Chinese President Xi Jinping and other state and party leaders paid floral tributes on Monday to fallen heroes to mark Martyrs’ Day at the sprawling Tiananmen Square in central Beijing.

The Martyrs’ Day was observed ahead of the 75th National Day of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) on Tuesday. Xi, along with Premier Li Qiang, and other leaders was joined by representatives from all walks of life to pay tributes to the monument built in memory of martyrs of the revolutionary struggle during the 19th and 20th centuries leading to the formation of PRC on October 1, 1949, headed by the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC) founder Mao Zedong.

China will observe a week shut down from Tuesday to mark the national day holidays. Marking the occasion, Xi, 71, on Sunday awarded the highest state honours to several Chinese veterans.

He also presented China’s Friendship Medal to Dilma Rousseff, former Brazilian president and the Chair of the Shanghai-based New Development Bank of BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa).

Lauding Rousseff as an outstanding representative of China’s old and good friends, Xi said the Chinese people will never forget international friends who have significantly contributed to the country’s development and the friendship between the Chinese and foreign people.

The Chinese people stand ready to work together with people from various countries to safeguard world peace and promote common development, he said.

Xi said the CPC has led the Chinese people in creating the twin miracles of rapid economic growth and long-term social stability. China is now in a crucial period for building a great modern socialist country in all respects and achieving national rejuvenation through modernisation, he said. “All party members and people of all ethnic groups should take heroes and role models as examples, unite and strive forward to form a mighty force to build a strong China,” Xi said.