Chinese senior official Li Changchun has called for strong ideological and publicity support for the rejuvenation of northeast China's rust-belt.

During a visit to Jilin Province from September 14 to 18, Li said the building of a prosperous socialist society must gather the wisdom and power of all cadres and the people.

Li, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, acknowledged the progress Jilin had made in reform and opening-up and modern construction.

He highlighted ideological and publicity work, saying a concerted and focused atmosphere should be created and cadres and the people should be inspired to revitalize the provinces of Jilin, Heilongjiang and Liaoning.

Strategies and guidelines of the central government in reviving the region should be conveyed to the people, and progress, innovative ideas and breakthroughs in all circles should be publicized, he said in the inspection of Jilin's capital of Changchun and Jilin City.

In a visit to the Jilin Publishing Group and Changying Movie Amusement Park, Li urged officials to boost innovation and the application of high-technologies in cultural reform, strengthen the mainstream role of state-owned culture distribution enterprises, and improve the traditional creation, production and distribution mode of culture.

He hoped Jilin would make more progress in the film industry.

In Misheng Village of Jinsha Town, Huadian City, Li talked with a villager about sharing cultural information. He called for faster progress in implementing the national project on information-sharing in the countryside, hoping it would introduce scientific farming techniques to farmers and enrich their cultural lives.

Jilin, Heilongjiang and Liaoning comprise China's old industrial base and traditional granary. Since 2003, the central government has carried out a revitalization strategy of the heavily burdened state-owned sector in the region.

A total of 122 state-owned companies went bankrupt from 2003 to 2005, 16.9 percent of the country's total bankruptcies for the period in the northeastern region, according to latest official figures.

The closure of state-owned businesses in the region left bad debts worth about 22.4 billion yuan (US$2.77 billion), 17.2 percent of the national total, and destroyed 327,000 jobs.

(Xinhua News Agency September 21, 2006)