An evening party, featuring dancing, singing and poetry recitals, was held at the Beijing Aerospace City in Beijing Wednesday to celebrate the success of China's first manned space mission.

Yang Liwei, who spent 21 hours in space on Oct. 15 and 16, told the audience, "The victory belongs to the motherland and the people.

"My colleagues and I will redouble our efforts to make a new contribution to space exploration," he said.

(Xinhua News Agency October 23, 2003)