China announced a list of 36 nominees for its highest state honor Tuesday, in a bid to commemorate the nominees' contribution to the country's development since the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949.  

The list includes 8 nominees for national medals and 28 for honorary titles. They are pioneers devoted on the frontline of China's development in sectors of defense, foreign affairs, science and technology, border protection, among other fields. 

Hong Kong's first chief executive Tung Chee-hwa was nominated for a state honorary title for his contribution in the smooth transition of Hong Kong to Chinese sovereignty and the practice of "one country, two systems" principle.

Li Daoyu, 87, a former Chinese ambassador to the US, was nominated for a state honorary title  due to his achievements in properly addressing China-US relations and "resolutely safeguarding national interests." 

Aireti Mamuti, former deputy director of the public security bureau of Pishan county, Hotan Prefecture in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, was nominated for an honorary title.

Mamuti died in September 2016 when searching for A-class fugitives. He was killed by a suicide bomber. For 27 years, he had been fighting on the frontline for safeguarding social stability and security. By giving full play of his counter-terrorism combat experience, he led the police to successfully solve a series of cases.

Re Di, a deputy to the National People's Congress, was nominated for his great efforts to the development, harmony, and stability of Southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region and the improvement of people's livelihood. He has won the love and respect of all ethnic groups in Tibet.

Cheng Kaijia, who died in 2018 at the age of 100, was nominated for his contribution in testing China's first hydrogen bomb and atomic bomb. Cheng was the pioneer in the country's nuclear weapon development and one of the founders of the country's science and technology system of nuclear tests.

Yuan Longping, the "father of hybrid rice," was nominated for national medals for his outstanding contribution for China's food security, scientific development of agriculture, as well as increasing the world's food output. 

Yuan has devoted himself to the research, application, and popularization of hybrid rice. He is also winner of State Preeminent Science and Technology Award — the nation's highest scientific award. 

Another nominator of the medal is Tu Youyou, Nobel Laureate for the discovery of artemisinin. She made great contribution to people's health care and innovating Chinese medical technologies. Tu, 89, devoted more than 60 years to developing Chinese medicine. She and her team managed to find the anti-malaria compound artemisinin and won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2015. 

She was the first Chinese national to win a Nobel prize in science.

Scholars from China's science and technology sector are also nominated, including Yu Min, Ye Peijian, and Nan Rendong. 

Yu Min, "Father of China's hydrogen bomb," who started to study theoretical physics at the age of 20 in 1946, and began his nameless research dedicated to the development of the country's first H-bomb in 1961, passed away at the age of 93 in Beijing in January 2019.

Yu received his first public recognition, the "Two bombs, One Satellite Meritorious Award" in 1999. In 2015, he was given the 2014 State Preeminent Science and Technology Award, the top national science and technology award.

In December 2018, Yu became one of the 100 Chinese who were awarded medals as reform pioneers at a conference held in Beijing to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the country's reform and opening up.

Ye Peijian, "father of Chang'e lunar probes",is an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, who played key role in the country's lunar probe missions including the latest Chang'e-4 mission which achieved the first ever soft landing on the far side of the moon in human history. As a leading Chinese aerospace expert, Ye was the chief designer and commander-in-chief for the country's Chang'e-1 mission, chief scientist for Chang'e-3 mission, and held chief consultant posts for Chang'e-2 and 4 missions. 

Nan Rendong, former chief scientist and chief engineer with the National Astronomical Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, is the founding scientist of the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Radio Telescope (FAST).

It took 22 years for the project to develop from concept design to site selection and construction, and Nan directed the project team to overcome series of technology obstacles. Nan was also named as a reform pioneer in 2018 December.

This is the first time China bestowed these highest national honors to commend so many exemplary contributors to the construction and development of the People's Republic of China, the Xinhua News Agency reported. 

Ceremonies to present the honors will be held on important occasions and anniversaries, such as the National Day, according to a law approved in 2015 by the National People's Congress Standing Committee, China's top legislature, to introduce the honorary system, said Xinhua.