LHASA, Aug. 19 (Xinhuanet) -- Hundreds of people from all walks of life gathered at the Tibet People's Hall in Lhasa, capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region, to mark the 40th anniversary of the establishment of the regional people's congress.

    Legqog, chairman of the Standing Committee of the Tibet Autonomous Regional People's Congress, recalled a series of changes taking place in Tibet over the past four decades.

    He said, the peaceful liberation in 1959 liberated Tibet from the invasion and fetters of the imperialism and safeguarded the unification of the sovereignty of the state and the territorial integrity.

    In 1959, Tibet carried out the democratic reform, rooting out the feudal serfdom and ushering in a new era during which local people became the masters of their own affairs.

    In September, 1965, the first meeting of the Tibet Autonomous Regional People's Congress was convened and the Tibet Autonomous Region was established. These indicate that the people's democratic political power was established and the regional national autonomy was implemented in Tibet, said Legqog, adding that from then on, people in Tibetan have the rights to participate in and manage their own affairs and the state affairs and walked on to the road of socialism together with people of other parts of China.

    Yang Chuantang, secretary of the regional committee of the Communist Party of China, said that the establishment of the people's congress system in Tibet liberated serves and slaves, who made up more than 95 percent of Tibet's total population from enslavement of the local government, nobles and high-ranking monksin old Tibet and obtained a new life.

    The establishment of the people's congress system realized the change of Tibet's social system from autarchy to democracy, Yang said.

    Currently, Tibet has 35,161 deputies to the people's congress of various levels, of whom more than 70 percent are of Tibetan and other ethnic groups.

    Legqog said, the eye-catching development in Tibet over the past four decades has shown that the people's congress system and regional national autonomy accord with the situation in Tibet and are welcomed by people of various groups in Tibet. Enditem