President Hu Jintao on Thursday said that China had in the past 30 years given equal emphasis to political structural reform and economic restructuring.

In his keynote speech to mark the 30th anniversary of China's launching of the reform and opening up policy, Hu said democratic practice had become more dynamic after series of political reforms since 1978.

He pledged that the country would continue reforms in the political system to provide institutional and legal support for the modernization drive.

He said, "People's democracy is the lifeline of socialism, and the people's democratic rights to be masters of their own affairs are the essence and lie in the core of China's democratic politics."

"Without democracy, there would be no socialist modernization," he said.

China held a ceremony on Thursday to mark the 30th anniversary of its reform and opening-up drive, which turned the once poverty-stricken country into one of the world largest economies. The celebration drew top Chinese leaders to the Great Hall of the People in the heart of Beijing.

The economic reforms started 30 years ago after the 10-year cultural revolution (1966-1976), which left the country on the verge of an economic breakdown.

(Xinhua News Agency December 18, 2008)