Copies of a speech made by China’s top leader Hu Jintao on the 90th anniversary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) have been popular, according to booksellers on Sunday.
More than 100 copies sold out within hours of hitting the shelves at the Beijing Book Building in Xidan on Sunday, according to an employee.
“Customers included both individuals and group purchasers,” the employee told the Global Times.
The book, which is published by the People’s Publishing House and priced at 3 yuan ($0.46), contains the full text of Hu’s speech in Chinese only.
Customers began waiting for the books at the building before delivery on Sunday, and guards were dispatched to make sure none were hurt in the rush for a copy, the Legal Mirror reported. Many customers were logistics employees procuring the books so their companies’ CPC members could better study the speech, the report said.
“I watched the broadcast of the speech, and I’m considering buying a copy to study,” said Jin Tiehua, a 62-year-old CPC member and retiree of SINOPEC Beijing Oil Products Company.
“The speech covers a lot of new requirements for the future development of China, and it’s worthwhile for an old CPC member like me to study it, so that we can keep pace with the new era,” Jin told the Global Times.
Not everybody agrees with Jin.
“I watched the television broadcast because I care about the development of our nation, but I won’t buy such a book, and neither would anyone I know,” said Cao Guoliang, a 47-year-old worker at the Eastern Chemical Works in Tongzhou.
In fact, the entire speech can also be found on many websites, including that of the Central People’s Government of China (gov.cn).