Political outcast honored

Beijing honored the reformist Communist Party chief Hu Yaobang, ousted in 1987 because of his tolerance of the democracy movement. The ceremony took place behind closed doors with heightened security in Beijing. State television reported the event, and within hours, websites were flooded with notes of remembrance and support. Said Vice-President Zeng Qinghong: "Comrade Hu Yaobang contributed all his life and built immortal merits for the liberation and happiness of the Chinese people, for the development and prosperity of Chinese socialism, for the implementation of the reform and opening-up policy as well as for the country's modernization drive."