This Day, That Year

Item from April 5, 1996, in China Daily: Many people plant trees on Tomb Sweeping Day as a way to remember the dead. ... China's cremation rate reached a record 33.7 percent last year, indicating that the government's attempt to encourage cremation as a way to save valuable farmland is paying off, according to the Ministry of Civil Affairs.

The figure is expected to continue to rise steadily in the coming years with growing public awareness of China's shrinking farmland, officials said. ...

Although the national cremation rate is only 0.5 percent more than in the previous year, it represents considerable social progress for China, a country with a long tradition of burial.