Heroes more than mere 'footnotes' to history

It would be hard to find any year in the past three decades in China that lacked really big news. Yet, it might not be stretching the truth to see 2013 as an especially crucial 12 months.

The new central government took over the reigns of power in March, and the much-anticipated Third Plenary Session, which laid out the blueprint for reform in the coming decade, was held in November. Indeed, the meeting was so important that this newspaper, and other media, provided extensive coverage, and it will almost certainly become a staple of books about Chinese history.

There was plenty of other news of course, but memories fade quickly.