Tourists crowd a red tourism attraction in Shanghang county, East China's Fujian Province, on February 10. Photo: VCG

 Muslims from Central China's Hunan Province visited a red tourism site and learned the history and revolutionary journey of the Communist Party of China (CPC), as more religious people go on red tours to deepen their knowledge of the Party. 

Muslim representatives from Shaoyang, Hunan Province participated a three-day trip to Jinggangshan Mountain, known as the "Cradle of the Chinese Revolution," and Shaoshan, the hometown of  Mao Zedong, as part of activities to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, the Chinese Islamic Association said on its WeChat account on Wednesday. 

The tour included visits to Chairman Mao's former residence, martyrs' cemetery and museums on revolutionary history, which showed them how the CPC united people to fight for a better future and the bravery of Red Army soldiers in their struggle, the WeChat article said. 

The Muslim community should continue to learn about China's revolutionary past and cherish the current happy life at the cost of countless revolutionary martyrs' blood and lives. 

Believers should keep the tradition of loving the Party, the country and religion, persist in the sinicization of Islam and contribute to religious harmony and ethnic unity, the article said. 

Li Xiangping, a religious studies professor at East China Normal University in Shanghai, told the Global Times that it is good that believers are not confined to religious venues but participate in different social and cultural activities. 

Such tours aim to carry out patriotic education and to reflect the sinicization trend of religions, and better integrate religions with Chinese culture, he said. 

Revolutionary history and spirit represent the positive elements of Chinese culture, without which the country could not become strong and prosperous, a Beijing-based expert on religious studies who requested anonymity, told the Global Times on Wednesday. 

She also pointed out that religious people have made their contributions to China's revolutionary cause, and learning about China's revolutionary history is part of knowing their roots.

Besides, Muslims are not the only religious group involved in such patriotic education tours. 

Taoists from Central China's Hubei Province went to Yan'an, Northwest China's Shaanxi Province from April 25 to 29, where they visited the sites the Red Army soldiers lived and fought on in the 1930s-40s, and listened to lectures on the revolutionary spirit. 

Christians and Buddhists from Hubei also visited revolutionary sites in June. 

China has around 200 million religious believers, close to 15 percent of the population, according to the Xinhua News Agency.