Crisis management ideas come of age

Since Sichuan province was rocked by an 8-magnitude quake on Monday, the central government and localities, including those in the disaster areas, have taken a series of measures to rescue people. The Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China held two special meetings to direct the rescue work.

The People's Liberation Army (PLA), armed police, firemen, doctors, nurses, scientists and volunteers are flooding into the areas hit by the quake. Resources are also being rushed there from across the country.

People's lives outweigh everything else. The quick response by the State as well as other sectors of the society was key to protecting and saving lives in the natural disaster, and it also marked an increasing maturity of the country in setting up a modern contingency scheme to manage emergencies.