CHANGCHUN, Jan. 18 (Xinhuanet) -- A group wedding was held Tuesday morning in Yongji County in northeast China's Jilin Province for five couples in which one or both of the partners was HIV positive,said a local official here Tuesday.

    Chen Mingxue, a local public health official, acknowledged thisis the first time in China that a group wedding was held especially for HIV carriers. In one couple, both were HIV carriers; the other four couples each included one HIV carrier.

    More than 1,000 folks from Yongji attended the wedding ceremony,and gave their best wishes for these couples.

    Chen Mingxue said he believed "these couples will create a better future by their own efforts."

    Bride Hu Guifeng, the wife of a HIV carrier, expressed thanks to all those present at the wedding party on behalf of the newly-wed couples. She pledged to work harder still and overcome difficulties with increased confidence and strive for a better, brighter future.

    Since the first AIDS case was reported in China in 1985, the spread of the killer disease has surged. The Chinese government officially estimates that there are approximately 840,000 HIV carriers in China, with 80,000 AIDS patients among them. Enditem