President Xi Jinping signed a presidential decree on Sept 17, 2019 to award 42 individuals the Medal of the Republic, the Friendship Medal and national honorary titles for their outstanding contributions to the nation's development as the People's Republic of China prepares to celebrate its 70th anniversary.

Medal of the Republic:

Yu Min, nuclear physicist, born August 1926 and died Jan 16, 2019

Yu played a crucial role in the design of China's nuclear weapons and won the Two Bombs, One Satellite Achievement Medal. In January 2015, the nuclear physicist won China's top science award for his outstanding contribution to the country's hydrogen bomb research.
 

Shen Jilan, farmer, born December 1929

Shen has been a farmer her whole life. She is the only person to serve at all 13 National People's Congresses since 1954. It was she who proposed the clause on "equal pay for equal work" between men and women, which was written into China's first constitution in 1954.