US foundation presents Deng Xiaoping statue to China

PLA Daily 2004-08-19

　

　　 CHENGDU, Aug. 19 (Xinhuanet) -- The Deng Xiaoping Foundation in the United States on Thursday handed a granite statue of late Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping to the Sichuan People's Association for friendship with Foreign Countries in Chengdu, southwest China's Sichuan Province.

　　 US foundation presented the statue to Deng's hometown, Guang'anin Sichuan.

　　 The 3.7-meter-high statue portrays Deng in his youth. It took Guo Xuanchang, a Chinese-born sculptor living in the United States, nearly two years to complete the work. It will be soon transported to Guang'an.

　　 Addressing the hand-over ceremony here Thursday, Wang Mingpi, president of the Deng Xiaoping Foundation, said: "Deng is not only a great leader of China, but also a prominent figure in the world."

　　 The statue was built with donations from overseas Chinese, showing that even Chinese living abroad cherish the memory of Deng, Wang said.