国内英语新闻:300,000 martyr tombs to be repaired in 2012

BEIJING, April 3 (Xinhua) -- China would relocate or renovate 300,000 scattered martyr tombs and 2,000 memorial facilities in 2012, according to a report from the China Central Television (CCTV) on Tuesday.

The central government would subsidize 5,000 yuan (795 U.S. dollars)for each tomb and 200,000 yuan for each martyr cemetery, said the report, citing sources with the Ministry of Civil Affairs (MCA).

The project was launched in 2011 after a national survey of such sites, which has recorded over 610,000 tombs of martyrs outside martyr cemeteries, and 12,000 memorial facilities under poor condition.

The entire project is expected to be finished by Oct. 1, 2014 with a sound mechanism put in place for management and protection, said a previous MCA statement.

Tuesday also saw Chinese pouring into renowned cemeteries and memorial sites to pay respects to martyrs ahead of the Qingming Festival, or the traditional tomb-sweeping day, which falls on Wednesday this week.

About 20 million martyrs gave their lives to China's revolution and construction. Most of them are unsung heroes and only 1.8 million names were on government records.