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Two sessions: Xi Jinping tells Inner Mongolia’s NPC deputies to put Mandarin first in schools
- Standard Chinese – both spoken and written – and state-compiled textbooks must be unwaveringly adopted in schools, president says
- Pupils and parents in the northern region staged angry protests last summer against an order to replace Mongolian as the principal language in key school subjects
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Chinese President Xi Jinping has instructed authorities in Inner Mongolia to popularise the use of Mandarin in schools and resolve ethnic tensions, months after the regional government quashed rare protests by people fighting to preserve Mongolian as the principal teaching language.
Addressing deputies from the northern region on the sidelines of the National People’s Congress in Beijing, Xi said they must use “solid and meticulous efforts” to achieve ethnic unity, and that standard Chinese – both spoken and written – and state-compiled textbooks must be unwaveringly adopted, state news agency Xinhua reported.
He said also that all young people in Inner Mongolia should gain a comprehensive understanding of the Communist Party’s policies and its revolutionary heritage.
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“Cultural identity is the deepest form of identity. It is also the root and soul of ethnic unity and harmony,” Xi said.
Party officials should also consolidate efforts to deepen Chinese cultural identity education, especially for young people, to give them a comprehensive understanding of the party’s ethnic policy while instilling a correct perspective of the nation, history and religion, he said.
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The president’s comments came months after people in Inner Mongolia staged large street demonstrations ahead of the start of the new school term in September.
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