HK, Macao, Taiwan compatriots return to mainland for honoring ancestors

Source: CCTV.com | 04-04-2007 16:30

Qingming, better known as Tomb Sweeping Day, falls on Thursday. According to tradition, it's a time for Chinese people to commemorate and honor their ancestors.

All over China, families sweep the graves of the dearly departed. Large numbers of compatriots from Hong Kong and Macao Special Administrative Regions, and Taiwan, have also returned to the mainland to pay their respects.

Statistics show that over the past five days, more than 17 hundred Taiwan compatriots have entered the mainland via Fuzhou Airport in southeast Fujian Province. The number is nearly 30 percent higher than normal. And most of the passengers have come to sweep tombs.

Taiwan compatriot said, "We're back for the Qingming Festival."

Another compatriot said, "I'm bringing the whole family, ten people altogether, for tomb sweeping."

In South China, it is estimated that passenger arrivals will amount to 7 million in Shenzhen during the Qingming Festival period. Luohu Checkpoint in Shenzhen will handle 310 thousand people. Special entry and exit paths have been added to help make the journey a smooth one.

Editor:Du Xiaodan