Dr. Sun Yat-sen, the founding father of Kuomintang (KMT), or the Chinese nationalist party, would have been pleased to see the mainland public extend a voluntary, warm welcome to a high-level KMT delegation from Taiwan, which paid homage to his mausoleum in east China's Nanjing City Wednesday.

The 60-member delegation was headed by party Chairman Lien Chan, who became the first KMT leader to visit the mainland since the party lost a civil war and fled to Taiwan in 1949.

With no prior arrangements from the local government, hundreds of Nanjing residents and tourists from all over the country crowded Wednesday morning at the majestic Mausoleum of Dr. Sun in the eastern suburbs of Nanjing to welcome Lien and his entourage.

"Welcome, Chairman Lien. We are all Chinese," a middle-aged man hailed amid loud applause. Some in the crowd held up high their self-made banners that read "Welcome the visiting KMT delegation", while others vied for a quick handshake.

Two students from Nanjing Polytechnic University appeared exceptional in the crowd as they were both wearing white T-shirts carrying printed slogans, which read "Blood is thicker than water," "Oppose Taiwan Independence," and "Peace Benefits, War Harms!"

Obviously touched by the passionate crowd, a smiling Lien frequently waved his hands to greet the people on both sides while climbing up the 392 granite steps of the mausoleum.

Nanjing was the capital of China under KMT rule before 1949. When the Communist Party of China (CPC), KMT's civil-war rival, came to power, the mausoleum, built in 1929, was put under state protection and regularly renovated.

Despite the twists and turns in cross-Straits relations over the past decades, the mausoleum always stands as a living bond of Chinese nationality, and is now hosting as many as 500 million domestic and foreign tourists annually.

Having expressed his respect and admiration to Dr. Sun many times since his arrival in Nanjing, the first leg of his eight-day mainland tour followed by Beijing, Xi'an and Shanghai, on Tuesday, Lien called his Wednesday tour "brief but unforgettable."

Plaques inscribed with Dr. Sun's calligraphy "Fraternity" and "For the Public" still stand separately on an arch and the lintel of a front gate, reminding every visitor of the revolutionary's lifelong cause and dreams. Lien paused and gazed upon those plaques solemnly.

Inside the memorial hall, Lien placed a yellow wreath on Sun's tomb on behalf of all KMT members, and followed the Chinese tradition of bowing three times before Sun's statue to pay respect.

After presenting an oration extolling Sun's character and achievements, Lien and all members of his delegation stood in silent tribute and then filed into the chamber where Sun's body is interred.

When the ceremony was concluded, Lien wrote four Chinese characters "Zhong Shan Mei Ling", which literally means "The Imposing Mausoleum of Dr. Sun", to mark this historic tour.

In a short yet emotional speech, Lien underlined the special timing of his visit, as the year 2005 marks the 80th anniversary of Dr. Sun's demise, as well as the 60th anniversary of China's victory against Japanese aggression in World War II.

"In this very special year, we would like to come and pay our utmost respect to Dr. Sun's mausoleum. And we are excited to see so many people coming to join in us voluntarily," he said.

"Faced with the grave situation for cross-Straits relations today, we couldn't help recalling the appeal Dr. Sun made on his deathbed to all Chinese, to work for peace and strive hard for a better China," said Lien.

"It is the common aspiration of people on both sides of the Straits to continuously boost the economy in Taiwan and further develop the mainland into a well-off society. The Chinese people should jointly strive for common prosperity and hold their heads high in the 21st century," he added.

According to their schedule, Lien and his delegation on Wednesday evening went to a famous local restaurant to taste traditional snack food with typical east China flavors, and then toured a local commercial district along the famous Qinhuai River winding through the city.

Local sources said that at least 10,000 people crowded into the commercial district and lined up along a pedestrian-only shopping street to welcome the Taiwan guests.

The KMT delegation is scheduled to leave Nanjing for Beijing on Thursday, where Lien is expected to have a landmark meeting with CPC General Secretary Hu Jintao on Friday, the first meeting between top leaders of the two parties in 60 years.

(Xinhua News Agency April 27, 2005)