Today, thanks to UIC, I am receiving two honours in one day: one for the honorary fellowship, the other for the rare privilege of speaking on behalf of my distinguished fellow recipients. I suspect that I owe both honours to the fact that they call me the founder of UIC. But in fact, each of my fellow honourees are greater giants in their own fields and have stories more interesting to tell than mine. I sincerely apologize to them for enjoying this unfair advantage.
In some ways, the stories of these three gentlemen are the story of modern China and the Chinese miracle. Prof Chen Shiyi, whose given name Shiyi means October 1st the day of his birth and that of the People's Republic of China, is an outstanding scientist who has deep love for his motherland, undoubtedly a part of China's effort to save and reinvent itself as a nation of science and technology. He has excelled himself at the highest levels of global scientific research and education. His presidency of Southern University of Science and Technology of China had quickly elevated it to a world class research university. Mr Liu Shih Kun, the world-renowned pianist, embodies China's embrace of global culture. Unlike us ordinary mortals, he has performed before presidents and the queen of England. He was even given the rare gift by the Hungarian government: a hair from Hungary's greatest composer Franz Liszt. As for the third fellow recipient Mr Franco Cutrupia, he is the only non-ethnic Chinese honouree today, but he has lived more than half his life in China bridging the gap between China and Europe in many ways. He is an Italian citizen, but has been made an Honorary Citizen of Shandong Province for his many contributions to that province. He uses trade to do greater good and express his love for humanity. It is trade that has transformed China in the last 40 years, and our big-hearted Italian friend is part of that magic of transformation. I salute you all.
Now, what about me? I don't have any hair from Franz Liszt. The only hair I have is what's left on my thinning head. But unlike my three friends, I have travelled on a rather unconventional journey. In the years before and after Britain's return of Hong Kong's sovereignty to China in 1997, I had the great fortune to be part of this historic transition. I still vividly remember that heart-pounding history-making goosebumps moment, at 1156 PM, June 30, 1997, four minutes before midnight, I witnessed the lowering of the British flag and the raising of the Chinese flag at the Hong Kong Convention Centre. Since then, I served a role in local and national politics as a member of Hong Kong's Legislative Council and a deputy to China's National People's Congress. From my experience, politics is the art of the possible, of getting things done, of serving the public and the greater good. A good political player is a bridge that connects the people with the government to serve a larger purpose. I can say without fear of contradiction that without politics, UIC might not have been born. When you were trying to build a new university, you need to guide it through a process. Knowledge of this process is critical to its being born, of making sure it suffers no miscarriage. There is no contradiction between the roles of a political player and an educator. In my case, they are in fact positively complementary. Both helped me play a midwife role in the birth of UIC. But once the act of creation was done, I exited the field of politics, and made doubly sure that politics was wholesomely divorced from university administration. So you see, my friends, politics need not be a dirty word. It can sometimes be a noble word, a word of empowerment.
In China's modern history, one sobering slogan has dominated our national consciousness: "Saving China with Science". But as China began to find its footing, I became acutely aware of another need: the need for liberal arts education to train our next generation as well-rounded creative thinkers, servants of the community and effective cross-cultural communicators, negotiators across differences.
A modern nation needs to incubate creative thinkers; a great nation is not just a nation of engineers and technicians, but also a nation with its own cultural identity, and culture creators who speak to the world through their art. Culture is unique. Communication is key.
I am mighty proud that UIC is China's first liberal arts university. I still remember 19 years ago, when we began with just 274 students who were taught in borrowed classrooms. Now the enrolment stands at nearly 10, 000 including Master's and doctoral students. We now boast two stunning new campuses and cutting-edge facilities. Above all, UIC has become known as the nursery of talents who are eagerly welcomed into the halls of learning at the world's tip-top universities, from Cambridge to Columbia. UIC flies the flag as an oasis of international culture. We are the softer face of China. But, let me be loud and clear: UIC's spectacular achievements are not the fruits of one man's labour. It takes a whole village of devoted educators and administrative staff who together give us the subculture and the will to succeed. They are the real unsung heroes. I am therefore receiving this fellowship collectively on their behalf. I gratefully salute the many selfless colleagues whose talent and toil have made UIC what it is today.
At this moment, we mustn't forget the pivotal contribution of a very distinguished individual, Professor Xu Jialu (former Vice Chairman of National People's Congress Standing Committee) who brought BNU and HKBU together for an unprecedented education Odyssey, cutting through all the red tape, to turn UIC into a vital educational experiment.
Now, at age 84, I can look back over the last eight decades and say to myself: it is a life well lived. Together with fellow dreamers, I have done something which has not been done before in modern-day China. Thank you, my friends, my team members, and my fellow honourees, and above all, I must thank my family, especially my wife Shuk-Wah who has stood by me through thick and thin in this remarkable journey.
And now, my dear friends, may fortune smile on you all and on our beloved University.
Thank you.
