Vice Premier urges cultural relics census

BEIJING - Chinese Vice Premier Liu Yandong has urged greater efforts to conduct China's first census on moveable cultural relics, a move aimed at better protecting the country's cultural heritage.

Moveable cultural relics are important carriers of Chinese culture and the national survey will play a good role in boosting the country's heritage protection system and safeguarding its cultural security, Liu said Friday.

A unified standard specification of the census needs to be drawn up to ensure that complete, authentic and accurate information about cultural relics is collected, she said.

Policies and regulations on cultural relics protection should be worked out based on collected data, Liu said, urging efforts to realize the digital management of cultural heritage resources.

The census running from October 2012 to December 2016 will cover all cultural relics preserved by state organs, public service units, state-owned enterprises, the People's Liberation Army, armed police units and other state-owned organizations in the mainland.

The census aims to accumulate basic information on moveable cultural relics, including quantities, types, distribution and preservation status.