国内英语新闻:China honors outstanding military staff

BEIJING, May 8 (Xinhua) -- China on Friday honored dozens of military organizations and individuals for their contribution to the nation's quake relief or scientific research work.

    President and Chairman of the Central Military Commission Hu Jintao signed a decree awarding merits to 15 organizations and 28 individuals with the People's Liberation Army (PLA).

    Three classes of merits were meted out in accordance with the receivers' contribution.

    Ten units and individuals were cited for their relief efforts after the 8.0-magnitude earthquake struck southwestern China on May 12 last year, two for "remarkable troop building," five for "achievements in major scientific experiments," two for artist creations and the rest for achievements in scientific researches, according to the decree.

    In a separate decree signed by Hu, four other soldiers and officers were awarded honorable titles as being "model examples" for their peers.

    One of them, Meng Xiangbin, was given the honor posthumously as he was drowned while trying to save a suicidal woman from a river in eastern Zhejiang Province in 2007.