hello and welcome to this edition of on saturday, august 4. i'm qi zhi in beijing. let's take a look at some of the major events that have happened in china and around the globe during the past week.
more than 2,000 delegates were elected to attend the 17th national congress of the communist party of china slated for the secon half of this year. china's armed forces, the people's liberation army, celebrated its 80th birthday. 69 miners were rescued alive after being trapped in a flooded coal mine in central china for more than three days. a bridge collapsed over the mississippi river in the us while being repaired, killing at least five people. and the south korean government and the taliban are seeking face to face negotiations on the fate of 21 south korean hostages in afghanistan.stay tuned.
the organization department of the central committee of the communist party of china announced on thursday that a total of 2,217 delegates had been elected for the party's upcoming 17th national congress. among them are president hu jintao and other seven incumbent members of the standing committee of the political bureau of the cpc central committee.
the party's 17th national congress will be held in the second half of 2007 in beijing.
wednesday marked the 80th anniversary of the founding of china's armed forces, the people's liberation army. a grand rally was held in beijing to honour the pla heroes and model servicemen.
''i have been taken out and now i am relieved. i have been underground for about 80 hours, and once shared one piece of bread with three others for two days. i feel so good to have survived.''
turning to the
the official death toll stood at five on friday but authorities warned the final number could rise as eight people remain missing.
us president george w. bush pledged federal assistance while offering his condolences to victims' families.
"we in the federal government must respond, respond robustly to help the people there not only recover, but to make sure that lifeline of activity, that bridge, gets rebuilt as quickly as possible."
the eight-lane bridge was being repaired when it collapsed.
the fate of 21 south korean hostages held by the taliban in afghanistan remained unknown as the south korean government said it is seeking face-to-face negotiations with the taliban. the militants kidnapped 23 hostages on july 19 to demand the release of some of its prisoners. two male hostages were later shot dead.
a south korean presidential spokesman insisted on wednesday that military action was not an option.
''we've confirmed numerous times that there won't be any military operation to rescue them without south korea's agreement. i don't think that has been changed. there is no reason to give up or stop the negotiating talks with the taliban.''
local tribal elders in ghazni province are helping and seeking a place for a direct meeting between the taliban commanders and the south korean ambassador to kabul.
and that concludes this edition of . remember, if you have any comments or suggestions, or would like to listen to any of our programs online, you can visit our website at: . i'm qi zhi in