Senior leader of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Li Ruihuan Saturday in Beijing met delegates to the seventh national congress of the Buddhist Association of China (BAC) and the newly elected leadership of the association.
Li, a standing committee member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, offered congratulations to the leadership on their election and to the whole Buddhist community on behalf of the CPC Central Committee and the central government.
He praised the Chinese Buddhist community for their loyalty and contributions to their motherland and Buddhism over the past five decades.
Li is also chairman of the ninth National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, a national advisory body.
He called on the new BAC leadership to unite Buddhist followers of all ethnic groups so as to make more contributions to the reunification of the motherland, solidarity of all ethnic groups and social stability, and the construction of Socialism with Chinese characteristics.
The BAC national congress, which was held from September 16 to 20, elected the new leadership, consisting of Yi Cheng, president of the association, and 20 others.
Nearly 500 delegates and specially invited delegates all over the country attended the congress.
(People's Daily September 23, 2002)
