The wide attention from people on both sides of the Taiwan Straits on the trip to worship ancestors by Ma Ying-jeou, former chairman of the Chinese Kuomintang party, embodies the common pursuit of compatriots on both sides, Shen Xiaoming, secretary of the Communist Party of China Hunan Provincial Committee, said on Saturday.

Shen met with Ma in Changsha, Hunan, on Saturday and welcomed him home. Ma, leading a group from Taiwan, arrived in Hunan on Friday during an ongoing visit on the Chinese mainland.

Ma paid respects to his ancestors with his sisters in Xiangtan of Hunan on Saturday morning, where his family originates, ahead of the Qingming Festival that falls on Wednesday, during which Chinese citizens clean the tombs of their forebears. It was the first time Ma came to the mainland to worship his ancestors.

"Ma returned home with his family to pay respects to their ancestors, attracting wide attention from people on both sides of the Taiwan Straits. This fully demonstrates that the splendid and time-honored traditional Chinese culture is our common spiritual home and the common value pursuit of compatriots on both sides of the Straits," Shen said during his meeting with Ma on Saturday afternoon, Hunan Daily reported.

Over the years, Ma has adhered to the 1992 Consensus and opposed "Taiwan independence", and made important contributions to promoting peaceful development of cross-Straits relations and deepening cross-Straits exchanges, which we highly appreciate, he said.

Hunan, with deep historical origins and close exchanges with Taiwan, will continue to create benefits for Taiwan people working in the province and support exchanges among young people from both sides, Shen said.

He called on more people from Taiwan to come to Hunan and promote the peaceful development of cross-Straits relations and strive for realizing the nation's rejuvenation.

Ma thanked Hunan for its warm reception of the visit, which made the homecoming trip full of warmth.

He said: "It is an important part of our moral education to pay respects for our ancestors. The visit to Hunan to worship ancestors and sweep the tombs has fulfilled my long-cherished wish."

During his stay in Hunan, Ma is scheduled to visit Hunan University where he will communicate with local students. "I hope young people from both sides can exchange more to understand each other so as to deepen their friendship," he added.

Zhangyi1@chinadaily.com.cn