Give me some current information about the Wenchuan earthquake.

Guo Weimin:

Ladies and gentlemen, good afternoon! Today we once again invited relevant responsible comrades from the People's Liberation Army and the Armed Police Force to introduce the latest progress of the People's Liberation Army and the Armed Police Force in earthquake relief work. Attending today's press conference were: Air Force Major General Ma Jian, Deputy Director of the Operations Department of the General Staff Headquarters, Colonel Hu Changming, Spokesperson of the Ministry of National Defense and Director of the Information Affairs Bureau, Colonel Yang Qingtang, Deputy Director of the Mass Work Office of the General Political Department, Operation Department of the General Logistics Department Headquarters Colonel Xie Weikuan, Director of the Logistics and Planning Bureau. Sitting below at the press conference today are: Senior Colonel Chen Xinxin, Deputy Minister of Health of the General Logistics Department, Senior Colonel Ma Gaihe, Director of the Combat Support Bureau of the Comprehensive Planning Department of the General Armament Department, and Senior Colonel Wen Zhixiong, Deputy Director of the Combat Service Department of the Armed Police Force Headquarters.

The following is what the State Council Information Office issued under the authorization of the State Council Earthquake Relief Headquarters:

2008-06-11 15:56:35

Guo Weimin:

According to the Ministry of Civil Affairs, as of 12:00 on the 11th, the Wenchuan earthquake in Sichuan had killed 69,146 people, injured 374,131 people, and left 17,516 people missing.

According to the report of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, as of 12:00 on the 11th, the national government had received a total of 44.574 billion yuan in donations from all walks of life at home and abroad, and 42.446 billion yuan in actual receipts (of which 36.042 billion yuan was received in donations) Yuan, the material discount is 6.404 billion Yuan).

According to a report from the Ministry of Civil Affairs, as of 12:00 on the 11th, a total of 1.0515 million tents, 4.7685 million quilts, 13.976 million pieces of clothing, 916,900 tons of fuel, and 1.9587 million coals had been transported to the disaster areas. ton.

2008-06-11 15:59:58

Guo Weimin:

According to the report of the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, as of the 10th, a total of 100,000 transitional materials have been deployed to the disaster-stricken areas in Sichuan. There are 245,100 resettlement houses, of which 80,400 have been installed, 26,400 are being installed, 88,400 are to be installed, and 49,900 have been shipped to the production site. Another 73,400 units are waiting to be shipped.

According to a report from the General Staff Headquarters, as of 24:00 on the 10th, rescue and disaster relief personnel had rescued and relocated a total of 1,390,833 people.

According to the report of the Ministry of Health, as of 12:00 on the 11th, a total of 95,324 people were hospitalized due to earthquake injuries (excluding the number of patients in the disaster area), 77,034 people have been discharged, and 15,692 people are still hospitalized, including those from Sichuan who have been transferred to other provinces. There are 9,340 injured people in the city still hospitalized, and 1,355,666 wounded and sick people have been treated in the city.

2008-06-11 16:00:30

Guo Weimin:

According to the China Earthquake Administration report, from 12:00 on the 10th to 12:00 on the 11th, Wenchuan In the main earthquake area, 219 aftershocks with magnitude below 3.9, 1 aftershock with magnitude 4.0 to 4.9, and 1 aftershock with magnitude 5.0 to 5.9 were detected. A total of 11,601 aftershocks have been detected in the mainshock area.

According to a report from the Ministry of Finance, as of 11:12 p.m., governments at all levels had invested 23.602 billion yuan in earthquake relief funds, including 19.009 billion yuan from the central government and 4.593 billion yuan from local governments.

According to a report from the Ministry of Water Resources, as of 12:00 on the 11th, 8,114 water plants were damaged and 5,994 water plants had been repaired; a total of 47,642.5 kilometers of damaged water supply pipelines had been repaired, and 40,124.3 kilometers had been repaired.

According to a report from the Ministry of Transport, as of 12:00 on the 11th, a total of 47,277 kilometers of highways had been damaged, and 46,014 kilometers had been repaired.

2008-06-11 16:00:53

Guo Weimin:

That’s it for the full text. Next, we ask Colonel Hu Changming, spokesperson of the Ministry of National Defense and director of the Information Affairs Bureau, to make an introduction.

2008-06-11 16:01:28

Hu Changming:

Ladies, gentlemen, friends:

Today, we hold another press conference here to inform the people of the country and the international community about the progress of the military and armed police forces in earthquake relief.

First of all, we would like to express our deep condolences to our comrades Qiu Guanghua, Li Yue, Wang Huaiyuan, Chen Lin, Zhang Peng and the victims who died in the Mi-171 transport helicopter crash! My sincere condolences to their relatives! They were not afraid of hardships and sacrifices, made outstanding contributions to earthquake relief, and used their lives to practice their purpose of serving the people wholeheartedly. Their heroic actions will surely inspire us to work hard with the people across the country to win a comprehensive victory in earthquake relief!

2008-06-11 16:02:28

Hu Changming:

In recent days, the army and armed police have resolutely implemented the policies of the Party Central Committee, the State Council and the Central Military Commission. Following Chairman Hu’s series of decisions and instructions, we carried forward the fine tradition of obeying the party’s command, serving the people, and fighting bravely, and worked day and night on the front line of earthquake relief, ensuring that major phased results were achieved in earthquake relief. At present, the earthquake relief work of the military and armed police forces is advancing in depth in a powerful, orderly and effective manner, which mainly includes relocating and relocating people, treating injured people, preventing secondary disasters, monitoring and eliminating dangerous situations in barrier lakes, carrying out health and epidemic prevention, and implementing psychological Intervene, help the masses resume production, resume classes for primary and secondary school students, assist local governments in maintaining social order, etc.

2008-06-11 16:03:13

Hu Changming:

During this earthquake, many national defense departments and militaries provided us with assistance. As of June 10, the defense departments and militaries of 14 countries have provided a large number of aid materials such as tents, food, medicine, and generators to the disaster-stricken areas in Sichuan through various channels. The defense departments and militaries of some countries have provided cash assistance. Defense department and military leaders from 27 countries sent letters of condolences. For this, we express our sincere gratitude!

2008-06-11 16:03:53

Hu Changming:

Since the devastating earthquake in Wenchuan, the media has paid close attention to the earthquake relief situation of the military and armed police forces. It was given a lot of coverage and continued attention. I would like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude to all the journalists present here and all the Chinese and foreign media who paid attention to the Wenchuan earthquake!

Now, our team here is willing to answer your questions.

2008-06-11 16:04:33

CNN reporter:

Excuse me, what is the biggest challenge you face in dealing with barrier lakes? What? What dangers do officers and soldiers at the scene face? Are there any hidden dangers to their safety, and are there any concerns about the safety of local civilians?

2008-06-11 16:05:27

Wen Zhixiong:

I am very happy to answer the question raised by this lady. Currently, after the Wenchuan earthquake in Sichuan, there are 34 barrier lakes in the country, and the Armed Police Force is responsible for 19 of them. According to the unified deployment of the army and the local earthquake relief headquarters, the Armed Police Hydropower Force dispatched 1,128 troops and 408 pieces of heavy equipment to the Tangjiashan Barrier Lake from May 22 to 31. After several days and nights of hard work by the officers and soldiers, under the guidance of the on-site expert team, a 485-meter-long, 50-meter-wide, and 13-meter-deep diversion channel was excavated five days in advance. The diversion channel began to discharge on the morning of the 7th. By the morning of the 10th, it had already played its role. By the morning of the 10th, the diversion channel's risk relief mission had been basically completed.

2008-06-11 16:07:26

Wen Zhixiong:

In the process of eliminating dangers, the majority of officers and soldiers of the Armed Police Hydropower Troops overcame aftershocks, mudslides, and weather Due to the heat and other difficulties, in order to keep up with the schedule, we worked 24 hours a day for 9 consecutive days to give full play to the role of the large equipment. In order to ensure the safety of officers and soldiers during construction, we sent observation posts high up on the dam body to observe changes in the dam body and debris flows at any time. In order to ensure the continuous working energy and combat effectiveness of our officers and soldiers, we have strengthened logistical support to ensure that our officers and soldiers have access to water and food. The majority of construction officers and soldiers took the disaster situation in the disaster area as their order and time as their life. When the construction was in urgent need of fuel and explosives, more than 700 officers and soldiers traveled dozens of kilometers overnight, transporting 3 tons of explosives, 1 ton of diesel and dozens of materials. At the same time, we strengthen close and systematic cooperation with the People's Liberation Army officers and soldiers, and work together to transport explosives and eliminate dangerous situations. As of the morning of the 10th, all dangers in Tangjiashan Barrier Lake have been eliminated.

2008-06-11 16:10:42

Ma Jian:

On this issue, I would like to make a supplementary introduction to ladies and gentlemen. The entire barrier lakes are under the control of the state and the military. Let me show you a picture (see picture). All 34 barrier lakes are under our control. Judging from the current situation, the danger of the extremely high-risk Tangjiashan Barrier Lake has basically been eliminated. For the entire barrier lake, we made unified arrangements in a timely manner and mobilized troops to guard and supervise the lake in accordance with the "safe, scientific and timely" requirements put forward by Premier Wen. Among them, the military and armed police are responsible for 20, and local governments are responsible for 14. It can be said that the Ministry of Water Resources, local governments and the military have a set of disposal plans for each barrier lake. For possible dangers, the local government has made emergency plans in three colors: yellow, orange and red. The military has a strict protection plan in the process of eliminating dangers, so that it can withdraw in time in times of crisis. On this issue, we will ensure that no more civilians or soldiers are lost due to secondary disasters. Thank you all!

2008-06-11 16:15:17

Xinhua News Agency reporter:

Now that the large-scale rescue work is coming to an end, may I ask about the hundreds of thousands of disaster relief troops? Will they still stay in the disaster area? What role will they play in the disaster area? Thanks.

2008-06-11 16:18:34

Yang Qingtang:

Thank you for your attention to our troops’ earthquake relief work. Currently, 130,000 troops are on the front line and are actively participating in resettling the masses, resuming production, and post-disaster reconstruction in accordance with the eight tasks assigned by the Central Military Commission. During this earthquake relief effort, the People's Liberation Army and the Armed Police Force insisted on fulfilling the purpose of serving the people and close military-government-military-civilian relations throughout the earthquake relief effort, which was mainly reflected in five aspects:

2008-06-11 16:19: 04

Yang Qingtang:

First, consciously respect the leadership of the local party committee and government and make every effort to save people’s lives. The main leaders of the earthquake relief force at all levels have participated in the work of the provincial, municipal and county level three earthquake relief headquarters. The troop deployment and task allocation are determined based on local disaster relief needs. Whenever there is a local emergency, the troops take the initiative to fight and resolutely complete the task. Especially in the most urgent and dangerous rescue stage, officers and soldiers raced against time to rescue 3,336 surviving people from the rubble. There were 43 newly recruited soldiers from an engineering corps of the Jinan Military Region whose homes were in Dujiangyan City. Among them, 30 of them had their houses collapsed, 16 of their relatives were killed, and 34 of their relatives were injured. When the troops arrived at the disaster area in Pengzhou, the nearest home of the soldiers was less than 10 kilometers away. None of these soldiers asked to go home for a visit, and they all devoted themselves to the rescue and disaster relief battle regardless of their own safety.

2008-06-11 16:20:50

Yang Qingtang:

There are two soldiers in an armored unit, one named Zhang Liang and the other named Chen Jun , they lost their father and mother respectively in the earthquake. The two endured their grief and devoted themselves to earthquake relief. After the company leader learned about it, he specially arranged for them to go home for a visit, but the two people refused. The leader of the army sent someone to pick up their surviving relatives. They went to Dujiangyan and held a simple memorial ceremony for their parents. After learning about it, 200 local people took the initiative to participate in the memorial ceremony. Many people burst into tears. The scene was very touching.

2008-06-11 16:23:51

Yang Qingtang:

Second, help people in disaster areas overcome the difficulties of life. When disaster relief troops find it very difficult to provide for their own livelihood, the first thing they think of is the masses. Some troops would rather go hungry and give the dry food they carry to the masses; some troops would rather have three or four officers and soldiers drink a bottle of mineral water every day and save it for the masses; some troops would rather be exposed to the rain and cold, Give rain gear and tents to the masses. Journalists who have been on the front line of disaster relief should have seen that at the Mianyang Stadium, where the rescue point was first established, the army arranged for hundreds of officers and soldiers to cooperate with the local government to deliver boiled water and cook hot meals to more than 10,000 disaster-stricken people every day. The military also actively donated 427 million yuan and more than 21,000 pieces (sets) of clothes and quilts to the disaster-stricken areas. Army party members responded to the call of the Central Organization Department of the Communist Party of China to pay "special party dues" of 1.003 billion yuan.

2008-06-11 16:25:05

Yang Qingtang:

Third, actively appease the masses and stabilize people's hearts.

As soon as the troops arrived in the disaster area, they displayed banners and slogans such as "The Party and the people are heart-to-heart, and the soldiers and the people are in trouble" and shouted battle slogans such as "Victory must belong to the heroic Chinese people", which not only boosted morale but also stabilized the situation. won the hearts of the people. The General Political Department dispatched 71 psychological experts, and each army dispatched more than 30 psychological service teams to help the masses rebuild their spiritual homes, which played a very good role in stabilizing the masses' emotions.

2008-06-11 16:27:59

Yang Qingtang:

Fourth, fully participate in the recovery and reconstruction of disaster areas. As of June 10, the troops had cleared and transported more than 10 million cubic meters of debris, repaired 10,000 kilometers of roads, built 267,000 tents, and transported more than 800,000 tons of supplies. Various troops also built more than 80 tent schools in disaster areas, helping more than 30,000 students return to class.

2008-06-11 16:29:46

Yang Qingtang:

Fifth, love the people and obey the discipline, and never commit any crime. All troops strictly implemented the mass disciplines for earthquake relief formulated by the General Political Department. When the people in Yingxiu Town, Wenchuan County saw that the disaster relief officers and soldiers had been eating dry food for several days, they gave the few pigs that survived the earthquake to the troops. The officers and soldiers said nothing, and the masses They killed the pig and sent it to the army. The army couldn't refuse and paid the price. At present, the troops have dug out hundreds of millions of yuan in cash and a large number of valuables from the ruins, and have promptly returned them to their owners or handed them over to relevant local units. The party committees, governments and people in the disaster area vigorously supported the army's rescue operations just like they did during the war. In particular, the 50,000 militia reservists fought side by side with the army, forming a powerful joint force between the military and the people to unite and overcome the difficulties. Thank you all.

2008-06-11 16:30:48

Guo Weimin:

I heard that Colonel Yang Qingtang had just returned from the disaster area. He just talked about the five tasks the troops were engaged in. aspects of work.

2008-06-11 16:34:05

Reporter from Turkish World News Agency:

Can you tell us about those who died or were injured during the earthquake relief operations? How many people are there in the People's Liberation Army and the Armed Police Force?

2008-06-11 16:34:37

Ma Jian:

So far, in this earthquake relief, only this time - The five crew members of 171 died heroically, and there were no reports of deaths of other troops due to disaster relief in the Sichuan direction during the ground disaster relief process. Moreover, during the entire process, leaders at all levels were very strict in managing the safety of the troops themselves, and there were individual injuries.

2008-06-11 16:36:49

Phoenix TV reporter:

I have two questions: First, we are also reporters who go to the front line , I saw reports from foreign media, and they all gave a lot of coverage to the outstanding performance of the Chinese army. However, some media believe that the equipment of the Chinese military is not advanced enough this time. They cited examples such as the helicopter crash that took 11 days to be found, so they think this is because the equipment is not advanced enough. In addition, the supply of helicopters and transport aircraft is insufficient, and these pilots will perform multiple missions or perform extremely intensive missions. I would like to ask the military how it responds to such reports or views?

Second, regarding the issue of foreign military assistance. This is also the first time that our Chinese military has received some foreign military assistance in solving a domestic emergency. May I ask, what do you think of the effectiveness of this cooperation with foreign military forces? If this problem persists in the future, will we accept assistance from foreign troops again? Was this foreign military assistance requested by the Chinese military, or was it the foreign military's initiative? Thanks.

2008-06-11 16:38:58

Ma Gaihe:

Thank this reporter for his concern for our military’s equipment construction. Let me give a brief reply on the issue of equipment construction. The Mi-171 helicopter that crashed this time was imported from Russia in 1993. It has autonomous navigation capabilities and the ability to perform tasks under complex weather conditions. Helicopter crashes are mainly caused by sudden changes in airflow in an instant and the harsh local geographical environment. After the accident, the Party Central Committee and the Central Military Commission attached great importance to it. We adopted search and rescue methods that combined air and ground, general technology and high technology, and military and local search and rescue methods. In terms of technology, this time advanced technologies such as infrared remote sensing, satellites, synthetic aperture radar, and electronic positioning were used for search and rescue.

2008-06-11 16:40:11

Ma Gaihe:

The reason why the search and rescue time is so long is mainly due to two reasons: First, The topography of the Wenchuan area is very complex, with high mountains, dense forests, and lofty mountains. Transportation is very difficult. Many places are inaccessible, making it difficult for people to reach on foot, and it is even more difficult for helicopters to search in place. Second, a large number of buildings collapsed after the earthquake, especially some metal buildings. For example, after the collapse of high-voltage line towers, the target characteristics were very similar to those of helicopter crashes. After using some technical means to discover the target characteristics, analysis and judgment are very difficult. Very difficult task. Even after we discover the target and send people to the field to judge, it will take 2-3 days to reach each target.

2008-06-11 16:42:25

Ma Gaihe:

About the construction of large transport aircraft and helicopters for our army. As you all know, this time our military used nearly 150 large transport aircraft and helicopters and flew more than 4,600 sorties for disaster relief. They were mainly responsible for transporting troops and urgently needed earthquake relief equipment, evacuating disaster-stricken personnel, and delivering disaster relief materials. Through this disaster relief operation, large transport aircraft and helicopters have become increasingly prominent and their role has become more and more important. We will carefully sum up the experience of this earthquake relief, pay more attention to the construction of large helicopters, transport aircraft and special equipment for earthquake relief, continuously improve the equipment of the troops, and effectively enhance the ability to carry out military operations other than war.

2008-06-11 16:44:02

Hu Changming:

We accept disaster relief aid materials from foreign defense departments and the military, and it is also the military that participates in earthquake relief An aspect of disaster relief. The countries that currently provide us with material assistance are: the United States, Russia, Belgium, South Korea, Serbia, Israel, Romania, Germany, Belarus, Ukraine, Montenegro, Finland, Singapore, Poland, Vietnam and Mongolia have also provided us with cash in certain forms. assistance. This fully expresses the deep friendship between the defense departments and militaries of these countries towards the Chinese people and army, and also embodies the humanistic thinking.

We have gone through a historical process regarding accepting foreign disaster relief assistance. Before the reform and opening up, we cautiously accepted foreign disaster relief assistance, but now we accept it proactively. This reflects that in the process of reform and opening up, the military has become more open and confident. Thanks.

2008-06-11 16:46:32

Hong Kong Wen Wei Po reporter:

Currently, hundreds of thousands of officers and soldiers have been in the disaster area for more than a month. , which is a severe test for the support capabilities of the military's logistics system. It is said that strategic reserves were also used to support the disaster area this time. Will it affect the combat readiness level of the army? Thanks.

2008-06-11 16:53:58

Xie Weikuan:

It is very important for this journalist friend to raise this issue. Implementing continuous and powerful logistical support for disaster relief forces and maintaining the sustained and strong combat effectiveness of the officers and soldiers are issues of great concern to commanders and logistics agencies at all levels. There is an old saying in China that goes, "Before the soldiers and horses move, food and grass go first." While the troops rushed to the disaster area quickly, logistics departments at all levels also established a complete logistics support system in the disaster area. This system includes the logistics force of the disaster relief force, the operational logistics force of the Chengdu Military Region, and the strategic logistics force of the General Logistics Department. Relying on this system to implement three-level logistics support for strategic and operational logistics support based on tactical logistics, we not only better ensure the continuous support of the disaster relief force itself, but also provide service support to the people in the disaster area to the best of our ability. For example, it provides 70,000 hot meals to people in disaster areas every day, provides drinking water needed by 200,000 people, and provides a large number of disaster relief materials including 37,000 tents.

As for the use of strategic reserve materials, this earthquake relief did use some strategic reserve materials. This part of the supplies is mainly general supplies such as clothing, supplies, medicines, and tents; not much combat supplies such as weapons and equipment, ammunition, and oil are used.

2008-06-11 16:54:39

Reporter from Tokyo News:

I would like to ask about the issue of foreign military assistance. Mr. Hu just gave We introduced that many foreign troops participated in the earthquake relief work. Due to various reasons, the Japanese Self-Defense Forces did not participate in the rescue activities of the Wenchuan earthquake.

What comments are there on this? In addition, is it possible for the Japanese Self-Defense Forces to participate in China-assisted activities in the future? Thanks.

2008-06-11 16:58:15

Hu Changming:

First of all, I would like to thank the Japanese government and people for their assistance to the earthquake-stricken areas in Sichuan . Some time ago, everyone saw reports in the media about the Japanese government’s aid transportation methods for the disaster-stricken areas in Sichuan. The Japanese government finally decided to transport this batch of disaster relief materials to the disaster-stricken areas in Sichuan via civilian aircraft. Natural disasters such as earthquakes are the common enemies of mankind. People and governments of all countries, including the militaries of all countries, must unite and cooperate to respond jointly and form a strong joint force to ensure the safety of mankind and maintain world peace and Stablize. Thanks.

2008-06-11 16:59:42

Guo Weimin:

This ends today’s press conference. Thank you all!

2008-06-11 17:03:50