Chinese President Hu Jintao(Rear C) poses for a photo with children and teachers of Beijing Xisibei Kindergarten May 31, 2006 during his visit here to mark the coming Children's Day. (Xinhua Photo)

    BEIJING, May 31 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Hu Jintao on Wednesday marked the coming of Children's Day on June 1 with a group of handicapped children and orphans.

    At the Beijing Children's Welfare Institute, Hu taught children to make "zongzi", traditional glutinous rice dumplings wrapped in bamboo leaves and eaten to celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival, which fell on Wednesday. Full story

    Premier calls on whole society to help handicapped children

Premier Wen Jiabao, wearing a red scarf -- symbol of the official children's organization the Young Pioneers, salutes back as a student presents him a gift during his visit to Shijia Elementary School in Beijing May 31, 2006. (Xinhua Photo)

¡¡  BEIJING, May 31 (Xinhua) -- Premier Wen Jiabao, in a letter to the China Center for the Rehabilitation of Children with Hearing Disability, has called on the whole society to show concerns over all children with disabilities, to help them enjoy a lively childhood and increase their confidence and vigor for life. Full story

    China aims to offer free medical treatment to handicapped orphans

    BEIJING, May 31 (Xinhua) -- China is aiming to offer free medical treatment to 30,000 handicapped orphans within three years.

    The "Tomorrow Plan", funded by the Ministry of Civil Affairs (MCA), a three-year project that started in 2004, aims to give 30,000 handicapped orphans free operations.

    There are approximately 66,000 orphans and abandoned babies living in welfare homes nationwide and about half of them are disabled.

    "We have decided to extend aid to more handicapped children, whose families can not afford to pay for the operations," said DouYupei, Vice-Minister of Civil Affairs, when visiting hospitals that will perform the operations.

    So far, about 16,000 disabled orphans have received surgery andrehabilitation. Compared with the country's total number of 573,000 orphans, with a large number of disabled ones yet to be counted, there is a lot of work to be done. Enditem