In Henan, Visitors Throng 'Red' Museum

People visit the Jiao Yulu Memorial Hall in Lankao county, Central China's Henan province, on April 20, 2021. A lecture tour telling stories from the history of the century-old Communist Party of China has resulted in more visitors to the memorial hall. [Photo by Zhu Xingxin/chinadaily.com.cn]

The Jiao Yulu Memorial Hall in Lankao county, Henan province, is seeing an increasing number of visitors who are part of a wave of "Red tourism" across the country — a celebration of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China this year.

Jiao Yulu, born in 1922, was appointed Party secretary of Lankao in 1962, when the county had many problems, including water-logging, desertification and a poor harvest due to alkaline soil. Jiao dedicated his life to changing the surroundings and improving the lives of the masses. He died of liver cancer in 1964.

He is loved by the locals, and memorialized as role model for CPC members. Many of Jiao's ideas as a grassroots official — keeping close to people, devotion to service and being persistent in face of difficulties — are promoted today for officials across the country.

Zhou Juncai and his colleagues from Tianshui, Gansu province, came to Lankao county for business and visited the memorial hall on Tuesday. Zhou said the spirit Jiao displayed in volunteering to do difficult work will never go out of fashion in any era.

People visit the Jiao Yulu Memorial Hall in Lankao county, Central China's Henan province, on April 20, 2021. A lecture tour telling stories from the history of the century-old Communist Party of China has resulted in more visitors to the memorial hall. [Photo by Zhu Xingxin/chinadaily.com.cn]

"Learning his story and inheriting his spirit is a good way to boost confidence on our approach to development," Zhou said, adding it is also an important part of the Party's history and "Red" education.

The memorial hall exhibits personal items Jiao once used — shabby clothes, shoes and a broken chair, for example — as he typically spent money on others rather than on himself. There are also hundreds of pictures of Jiao, mostly paintings. Only four photographs of him exist.

The museum has hosted more than 14.5 million tourist visits over the last six years. From January to April, the number of visits reached about 900,000, said Dong Ya'na, the deputy director.

Dong recalled that a team of foreigners from about 40 countries once visited the museum, and were surprised to find they were moved to tears.

Besides exhibitions, the museum also organizes on-site study tours and sends docents to companies and campuses to spread Jiao's story.