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Always in My Heart
Speech by President Lee Teng Hui
of the Republic of China
Cornell University
June, 9, 1995
(Original Speech in English)
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It is a great honor for me to be invited to deliver the Olin Lecture
at my alma mater, Cornell University. It has been a long and
challenging journey, with many bumps in the road, yet my wife and I
are indeed very happy to return to this beloved campus.
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This trip has allowed both of us to relive our dearest Cornell
experiences. The long, exhausting evenings in the libraries, the
soothing and reflective hours at church, the hurried shuttling between
classrooms, the evening strolls, hand in hand -- so many memories of the
past have come to mind, filling my heart with joy and gratitude.
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As I was about to board my plane to come here two days ago, some
friends suggested that since I learned how to play golf at Cornell, I
should take some time out and play a round or two with my friends here
on this trip. These rounds, they suggested, should be called the "U.S.
Open" -- open to Lee Teng-hui, that is!
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I want to thank you, President Rhodes, for your hospitality and for
your unflagging support of my visit here to my alma mater.
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I thank you, my fellow alumni, for your understanding and support as I
undertake this important sentimental journey.
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I thank the many, many friends in the United States who have been so
supportive of my visit to your great country again.
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And I also want to thank the people of this academic community, my
professors and classmates, for the deep and lasting influence that
Cornell University has had on my life. The support each of you has
given means a great deal to me.
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I deem this invitation to attend the reunion at Cornell not only a
personal honor, but, more significantly, an honor for the 21 million
people in the Republic of China on Taiwan. In fact, this invitation
constitutes recognition of their remarkable achievements in developing
their nation over the past several decades. And it is the people of my
nation that I most want to talk about on this occasion.
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My years at Cornell from 1965 to 1968 made an indelible impression on
me. This was a time of social turbulence in the United States, with
the civil rights movement and the Vietnam War protest. Yet, despite
that turbulence, the American democratic system prevailed. It was also
the time I first recognized that full democracy could engender
ultimately peaceful change, and that lack of democracy must be
confronted with democratic methods, and lack of freedom must be
confronted by the idea of freedom before it would be possible to
hasten the day of genuine democracy and freedom. I returned to my
homeland determined to make my contribution toward achieving full
democracy for our society.
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Ever since I became president of the Republic of China in 1988, I have
sought to ascertain just what the people of my country want and to be
always guided by their wishes. Ancient China's Book of History from
over 2000 years ago contains the phrase, "Whatever the people desire,
the realm must follow." My criterion for serving as president is that
I do it with the people in my heart. And it is obvious to me that most
of all they want democracy and development. Democracy entails respect
for individual
freedom, social justice, and a sense of directly participating in the
destiny of their nation. Economic development goes beyond attaining
prosperity. It also involves equitable distribution of wealth.
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Today we are entering a new post-Cold War era, where the world is full
of many uncertainties. Communism is dead or dying, and the peoples of
many nations are anxious to try new methods of governing their
societies that will better meet the basic needs that every human has.
There are many pitfalls in this search for a new rationale, and man
must strive to make the right choices with all the wisdom and
diligence he can command.
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Czech President Vaclav Havel said, "The salvation of this human world
lies nowhere else but in the human heart." In my heart, I believe that
the Taiwan Experience has something unique to offer the world in this
search for a new direction. This is not to say that our experience can
be transplanted entirely to fit the situation faced by other nations,
but I believe that, without a doubt, there are certain aspects of this
experience that offer new hope for the new age.
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By the term Taiwan Experience I mean what the people of Taiwan have
accumulated in recent years through successful political reform and
economic development. This experience has already gained widespread
recognition by international society and is being taken by many
developing nations as a model to emulate. Essentially, the Taiwan
Experience constitutes the economic, political and social
transformation of my nation over the years, a transformation which I
believe has profound implications for the future development of the
Asia-Pacific region and world peace.
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It is worth remembering what we in the Republic of China on Taiwan
have had to work with in achieving all that we now have: a land area
of only 14,000 square miles (slightly less than 1/3 the area of New
York State) and a population of 21 million. My country's natural
resources are meager and its population density is high. However, its
international trade totaled US$180 billion in 1994 and its per capita
income stands at US$12,000. Its foreign exchange reserves now exceed
US$99 billion, more than those of any other nation in the world
except Japan.
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The Taiwan Experience bases peaceful political change on a foundation
of stable and continuous economic development. Taiwan, under
Presidents Chiang Kai-shek and Chiang Ching-kuo, experienced
phenomenal economic growth. Currently, aside from economic
development, Taiwan has been undergoing a peaceful political
transformation to full democracy -- quietly, without bloodshed or
violence.
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For many developing nations, the process of moving to a democratic
system has been marked by a coup d'etat, or by the kind of "political
decay" suggested by Professor Samuel P. Huntington. In short, it is
not unusual for such a process of transformation to be accompanied by
violence and chaos. However, the case of Republic of China on Taiwan
is a notable exception. Non-existent is the vicious cycle of expansive
political participation, class confrontation, military coup and
political suppression, which have occurred in many developing
countries. The process of reform in Taiwan is remarkably peaceful
indeed, and as such is virtually unique. In addition to the "economic
miracle," we have wrought a "political miracle," so to speak.
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The Taiwan Experience has regional and international dimensions as
well. In 1994, the indirect trade between Taiwan and mainland China
reached US$9.8 billion. Taiwan's indirect investment in southern
mainland China, made through Hong Kong, amounted to nearly US$4
billion, according to estimates from various quarters. Other sources
suggest that Taiwan's total investment in the mainland could be as
high as US$17 billion. Taiwan's trade and investment have also been
extended to Vietnam, Russia, countries in Central America and Africa,
and to the members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
Nearly 180,000 foreign workers, primarily from Southeast Asia, are now
working in Taiwan. If each of them is by average the head of a family
of six, then it is possible that almost one million people living in
Southeast Asia are at least indirectly supported by Taiwan.
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Although the Republic of China on Taiwan has been excluded from the
United Nations, it has accelerated the formation of an international
network with economic ties as the key link. Recently, it has even
begun to launch a project to build Taiwan into an Asia-Pacific
Regional Operations Center, aiming at further liberalization and
globalization of our economy.
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I never allow myself to ever forget for a moment that Taiwan's
achievements have been realized only through the painstaking effort
and immense wisdom of the people. However, success comes from
difficulty, and the fruits of the Taiwan Experience are all the
sweeter today from a recognition of the arduousness of the process.
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We in the Republic of China on Taiwan have found that peaceful
transformation must take place gradually, and with careful planning.
Five years ago, on my inauguration day, I pledged to initiate
constitutional reform in the shortest possible period of time. My goal
was to provide the Chinese nation with a legal framework that is in
accord with the times, and to establish a comprehensive model for
democracy. These goals have since been realized with the support of
the people.
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Our constitutional reform was conducted in two stages. First, all the
senior parliamentarians last elected in 1948 were retired. Then, in
the second stage, comprehensive elections for the National Assembly
and the Legislature were held in 1991 and 1992 respectively. This
enabled our representative organs at the central government level to
better represent the people.
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Last year, the governor of Taiwan province, and the mayors of Taipei
and Kaohsiung, the two largest cities in Taiwan which used to be
directly administered by the central government as special
municipalities, were directly elected by the people for the first
time. Next spring, the president and vice president of the Republic
will also be directly elected by the people for the first time.
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With the completion of the current phase of constitutional reform, we
have established a multiparty system and have realized the ideal of
popular sovereignty. This has led to full respect for individual
freedom, ushering in the most free and liberal era in Chinese history.
I must reiterate that this remarkable achievement is the result of the
concerted efforts of the 21 million people in the Taiwan area.
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Today, the institutions of democracy are in place in the Republic of
China; human rights are respected and protected to a very high degree.
Democracy is thriving in my country. No speech or act allowed by law
will be subject to any restriction or interference. Different and
opposing views are heard every day in the news media, including harsh
criticism of the president. The freedom of speech enjoyed by our
people is in no way different from that enjoyed by people in the
United States.
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I believe that the precept of democracy and the benchmark of human
rights should never vary anywhere in the world, regardless of race or
religion. In fact, the Confucian belief that only the ruler who
provides for the needs of his people is given the mandate to rule is
consistent with the modern concept of democracy. This is also the
basis for my philosophy of respect for individual free will and
popular sovereignty.
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Thus, the needs and wishes of my people have been my guiding light
every step of the way. I only hope that the leaders in the mainland
are able one day to be similarly guided, since then our achievements
in Taiwan can most certainly help the process of economic
liberalization and the cause of democracy in mainland China.
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I have repeatedly called on the mainland authorities to end
ideological confrontation and to open up a new era of peaceful
competition across the Taiwan Straits and reunification. Only by
following a "win-win" strategy will the best interests of all the
Chinese people be served. We believe that mutual respect will
gradually lead to the peaceful reunification of China under a system
of democracy, freedom and equitable distribution of wealth.
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To demonstrate our sincerity and goodwill, I have already indicated on
other occasions that I would welcome an opportunity for leaders from
the mainland to meet their counterparts from Taiwan during the
occasion of some international event, and I would not even rule out
the possibility of a meeting between Mr. Jiang Zemin and myself.
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Yearning to Play a Positive Role
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When a president carefully listens to his people, the hardest things
to bear are the unfulfilled yearnings he hears. Taiwan has peacefully
transformed itself into a democracy. At the same time, its
international economic activities have exerted an undeniable
influence. These are no minor accomplishments for any nation, yet the
Republic of China on Taiwan does not enjoy the diplomatic recognition
that is due from the international community. This has caused many to
underestimate the international dimension of the Taiwan Experience.
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Frankly, our people are not happy with the status accorded our nation
by the international community. We believe that international
relations should not be solely seen in terms of formal operations
regulated by international law and international organizations. We say
so because there also are semi-official and unofficial rules that bind
the international activities of nations. This being so, we submit that
a nation's substantive contribution to the international community has
to be appreciated in light of such non-official activities as well.
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During last year's commencement, President Rhodes brought up the old
saying, "Be realistic. Demand the impossible!" Well, over the last
four decades, we have been extremely realistic while always trying to
look forward, not backward, and to work, not complain. Accordingly, we
have created the very fact of our existence and economic prosperity.
We sincerely hope that all nations can treat us fairly and reasonably,
and not overlook the significance, value and functions we represent.
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Some say that it is impossible for us to break out of the diplomatic
isolation we face, but we will do our utmost to "demand the
impossible." Ultimately, I know that the world will come to realize
that the Republic of China on Taiwan is a friendly and capable partner
for progress!
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If we view the recent economic, political and social developments in
the ROC in this light, we have a basis for defining the status of my
country in the post-Cold War and post-Communist era. Only in this way
can we propose a new direction for the development of the Asia-Pacific
region and the "new world order" as we enter the 21st century.
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I want to once again express how grateful I am to be with you. My
gratitude extends not only to Cornell but also to the United States as
a whole. When we look back in history, we can immediately realize how
close the traditional ties between our two countries are. Indeed, our
shared ideals for human dignity and peace with justice have united our
two peoples in the closest of bonds.
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The United States was extremely helpful in the initial period after
the ROC government moved to Taiwan. We have never forgotten America's
helping hand in our hour of adversity, so your nation occupies a
special place in our hearts. Today, as the sixth largest trading
partner of the United States, the Republic of China imports and
exports US$42.4 billion worth of goods through our bilateral trade. We
also are the number two buyer of U.S. treasury notes. About
thirty-eight thousand students from Taiwan are studying in the United
States. Students who have returned have made important contributions
to our society.
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The Republic of China's development has been partly influenced by the
experiences of its people studying abroad. I gained substantial
know-how in the mechanics of national growth and development from the
faculty and students I worked with here in America. I had the chance
to see democracy at its best in the United States, and to observe its
shortcomings as well. We in Taiwan believe that we have much to learn
from an advanced democracy such as the United States; however, we also
believe we should develop our own model. The success of our
democratic evolution has provided tremendous hope for other developing
nations, and we wish to share our experience with them. Our efforts to
help others through agricultural development have been well received,
and we are eager to expand our technical assistance programs to
friendly nations in the developing world.
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Taiwan has grown from an agricultural exporting economy to a leading
producer of electronics, computers and other industrial goods. We are
"paving the information highway" with disk drives, computer screens,
laptop computers and modems. We are poised to become a major regional
operations center as well as to buy more American products and
services to develop our infrastructure.
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We stand ready to enhance the mutually beneficial relations between
our two nations. It is my sincere hope that this visit will open up
new opportunities for cooperation between our two countries.
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It is for this reason that I want to publicly express my appreciation
and admiration to President Clinton for his statesman-like decision.
We are equally grateful to others in the administration, to the
bipartisan leadership in Congress, and to the American people.
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Whatever I have done as president of my nation, I have done with the
people in my heart. I have thought long and hard about what my people
want, and it is clear that most of all, they desire democracy and
development. These wishes are no different than those of any other
people on this planet, and represent the direction in which world
trends will certainly continue.
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As I have spoken to you today, I have done so with the people in my
heart. I know that what my people would like to say to you now can be
expressed by this simple message:
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The people of the Republic of China on Taiwan are determined to play a
peaceful and constructive role among the family of nations.
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We say to friends in this country and around the world:
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We stand ready to help;
And we look forward to sharing the fruits of our democratic triumph.
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The people are in my heart every moment of the day. I know that they
would like me to say to you, that on behalf of the 21 million people
of the Republic of China on Taiwan, we are eternally grateful for the
support -- spiritual, intellectual and material -- that each of you has
given to sustain our efforts to build a better tomorrow for our nation
and the world. In closing, I say God bless you, God bless Cornell
University, God bless the United States of America, and God bless the
Republic of China.
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Enhance Mutual Understanding and
Build Stronger Ties of Friendship and Cooperation
Speech by President Jiang Zemin
of the People's Republic of China
Sanders Theatre, Harvard University
November 1, 1997
(translation)
Mr. President,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I wish to thank Dr. Neil Rudenstine, President of Harvard University, for inviting me to this ancient yet modernized institution of the United States in this golden fall.
Since its founding some 360 years ago, Harvard has nurtured a great number of outstanding statesmen, scientists, writers, and businessmen, including six of the American presidents and over thirty Nobel Prize winners. The fact that Harvard was founded before the United States of America testifies to its position in American history.
Harvard was among the first American universities to accept Chinese students. The Chinese educational, scientific, and cultural communities have all along maintained academic exchanges with this university. Harvard has thus made useful contribution to the enhanced mutual understanding between the Chinese and American peoples.
Mutual understanding is the basis for state-to-state relations. Without it, it would be impossible for countries to build trust and promote cooperation with each other. Since the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and the United States, the exchanges and mutual understanding between our two peoples have broadened and deepened steadily. However, this is not enough. To promote the development of China-U.S. relations, China needs to know the United States better, and vice versa.
To know China better, one may approach it from different angles. China is a country with 5,000 years of civilization. Therefore, it is important to approach China from a historical and cultural perspective.
I recall my first lesson on calculus in senior high school. My teacher quoted a line from Zhuang Zi, Chinese philosopher over 2,500 years ago, which reads, "Cut away half of a rod and keep on halving what is left, and there will be no end to that process." This gave me a vivid concept of limit. It shows that the ancient Chinese realized the endless process of changes of matters and had a fairly good understanding of the nature. As early as in 2,000 B.C., Chinese began astronomical observation and geographical survey, and gradually formed a world outlook of an "integration of the universe and humanity." China produced in its long history many outstanding philosophers, thinkers, statesmen, strategists, scientists, writers, and artists, and left us numerous volumes of literature. The scene of "contention of a hundred schools of thought" brought forth the Spring and Autumn Period 2,500 years ago and the Warring States Period over 2,200 years ago and the emergence of various schools of thought and their exponents, such as Lao Zi and Confucius, about 2,400 years ago. All occupy a very important position in the world history of philosophy.
Ancient China made unique contributions to many areas of science, including astronomy, calendric system, geography, mathematics, agriculture, medicine, and the humanities. Records of solar and lunar eclipses are found in inscriptions on bones or tortoise shells of the Shang Dynasty over 3,000 years ago. In the 2,100 years from the Qin Dynasty to the late Qing Dynasty (that is, from 221 B.C. to 1911), the 27 appearances of Halley Comet were all recorded in China. Zhang Heng, of the Han Dynasty, over 1,800 years ago invented a seismograph to determine the location of earthquakes, and the celestial globe that showed the movement of the sun, moon, and other stars. Mathematicians in the pre-Qin days over 2,200 years ago put forward the proposition known as the Pythagorean theorem in the West today. In the Northern and Southern Dynasties in the 4th century A.D., China's mathematician Zu Chongzhi calculated the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter to be 3.1415926. China's silk-weaving, porcelain-making, metallurgy, and ship-building reached the world's advanced level in ancient times. In the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Zaiyu initiated the twelve-tone temperament, which later became the universal standard tones. Chinese medicine is a unique school of its own. Particularly, China's four great inventions of paper-making, gunpowder, printing, and compass had once changed the face of the world. These inventions and creations of China have brought forward the rationalistic brilliance of coordination between humanity and the nature, and the integration of scientific spirit with moral ideals.
Chinese culture in history has never stopped developing. It has enriched itself through the contention and infiltration of various disciplines and schools of thought, and also through the mutual exchanges and learning between China and other countries in the world. Since old times, the Chinese people came to know full well the importance of "drawing widely upon others' strong points to improve oneself." The Han and Tang Dynasties were both an age of economic prosperity and also one of flourishing international exchanges. Imperial envoy Zhang Qian's trip to the "West" in the Han Dynasty, over 2,000 years ago, opened up the world-famous Silk Road; Eminent Monk Xuan Zang, of the Tang Dynasty, brought back ancient culture after braving the long journey to South Asian countries. In the Ming Dynasty, Chinese navigator Cheng Ho led a fleet to what the people then called the "West Sea" seven times in the 15th century, spreading the Chinese culture to distant land. Only later on, especially in late Qing Dynasty, the feudal rulers adopted a policy of seclusion, which hampered China's progress and its exchanges with the outside world. After the Opium War, generation after generation of enlightened Chinese people have spared no efforts in learning from Western countries advanced science and cultural achievements in combination with China's realities and pushing for China's social reforms and development. Today, the Chinese people who are struggling to achieve modernization have made the opening-up a basic state policy and conducted extensive exchanges and cooperation with the rest of the world, thus creating a brand-new situation in its opening-up endeavor in the Chinese history.
Sunlight is composed of seven colors; so is our world full of colors and splendor. Every country and every nation has its own historical and cultural traditions, strong points and advantages. We should respect and learn from each other and draw upon others' strong points to offset one's own deficiencies for achieving common progress.
In the prolonged course of development, China has formed its fine historical and cultural traditions, which have been either developed or discarded with the changes of the times and social progress. These traditions have exerted a profound impact on the values and way of life of the Chinese people, and on China's road of development today. I would like to make the following observations, which I hope will help you to know China better.
First, the tradition of solidarity and unity. The Chinese nation is a big family composed of 56 nationalities. Since time immemorial, people of all nationalities have established closely-knitted political, economic, and cultural links and joined hands in developing the vast land of our country. China became vast unified country more than 2,000 years ago. The deep-rooted Chinese culture has become a strong bond for ethnic harmony and national unity. Solidarity and unity have been inscribed in the hearts of the Chinese people as part of their national identity. Despite occasional division in the Chinese history, ethnic harmony and national unity have remained the main stream in the history of the Chinese nation, and an important guarantee for China's development and progress. The founding of the People's Republic marked an unprecedented great unity of the Chinese nation. A new type of relationship of equality, solidarity, and mutual assistance between different nationalities has been established. People of all nationalities enjoy full rights and freedoms provided for by the law. In places where there is a high concentration of minority-nationality people, regional autonomy is in practice. All these have laid a solid political foundation for consolidated national unity.
Second, the tradition of maintaining independence. Our ancestors always regarded the spirit of maintaining independence as the foundation of a nation. China has all along maintained its cultural tradition without letup in the history of several thousand years. In modern times, the frequent bullying and humiliation by imperialist powers once weakened China. However, after 100 years of struggle, China has stood up again as a giant. This fully testifies to the indestructible strength of the spirit of the Chinese people. Today, in finding a road to development suited to us, we will proceed from our own national conditions to address the issue of how to conduct economic construction and political and cultural advancement without blindly copying other countries' models. In handling international affairs, we decide our positions and policies from an independent approach. The Chinese people cherish its friendship and cooperation with other countries, as well as their right to independence they have won through protracted struggles.
Third, the peace-loving tradition. Chinese thinkers of the pre-Qin days advanced the doctrine "loving people and treating neighbors kindly are most valuable to a country." This is a reflection of the aspiration of the Chinese people for a peaceful world where people of all countries live in harmony. Today, the Chinese people who are committed to modernization need more than ever a long-term international environment of peace. China's foreign policy is peace-oriented. We will establish and develop friendly relations and cooperation with all countries in the world on the basis of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, especially the principles of mutual respect, equality and mutual benefit, and non-interference in each other's internal affairs. We will never impose upon others the kind of sufferings we once experienced. A developing and progressing China does not pose a threat to anyone. China will never seek hegemony, even if it is developed in the future. China is always a staunch force for world peace and regional stability.
Fourth, the tradition of constantly striving for self-perfection. Ancient Chinese philosophers proposed the following doctrine: "As Heaven maintains vigor through movement, a gentleman should constantly strive for self-perfection." This idea has become an important moral strength, spurring the Chinese people to work hard for reform and renovation. The fruits of ancient Chinese civilization were brought about by the tireless efforts and hard work of the Chinese nation. In the past hundred years or so, the Chinese people have waged arduous struggles to get rid of the sufferings under semi-colonial and semi-feudal rule. Dr. Sun Yat-sen, China's forerunner of the democratic revolution, was the first to put forward the slogan of "rejuvenation of China." He led the Revolution of 1911 to move the millennia-old autocratic monarchy in China. Under the guidance of Mao Zedong Thought, the Chinese Communist Party led the Chinese people in achieving national independence and people's liberation and in building China into a socialist country with initial prosperity. Today, guided by Deng Xiaoping Theory, the Chinese people are firmly pressing ahead with reform and opening-up and have made remarkable achievements in the modernization drive. China has entered a period with the fastest and healthiest development in this century.
The reform and opening-up endeavor is an embodiment and a creative development of the Chinese spirit of constantly striving for self-perfection and renovation in modern times. We refer to our reform and opening-up as socialist reform and opening-up, because they constitute the process of self-improvement and development of the socialist system in China. The practice in recently twenty years has eloquently proved that we are right in direction, firm in conviction, steady in our steps, and gradual in our approach when carrying out the reform and opening-up, and we have achieved tremendous successes. We have successfully overcome various difficulties and risks in the course of our advance without causing great social unrest. Rather, we have succeeded in greatly releasing and developing productive forces, and maintained social stability and an all-round progress.
We are conducting a comprehensive reform with full confidence. Economically, we will speed up the establishment of a socialist market economy and realize industrialization, and the socialization, marketization, and modernization of the economy. Politically, we will endeavor to develop socialist democracy, govern the country according to law, build a socialist country under the rule of law, and ensure the full exercise of people's rights to govern the country and manage social affairs. Culturally, we will work hard to develop a scientific socialist culture for the people, a culture that is geared to the needs of modernization, of the nation, of the world, and of the future, adopt a strategy of rejuvenating China through science and education, and strive to raise the political and moral standards, as well as the scientific and cultural level, of the entire nation. In a word, it is to build our country into a prosperous, strong, democratic, and culturally advanced modern country.
China, a country with vast territory, a big population, and a long history, should make greater contribution to humanity. The Chinese people waged a dauntless struggle for one hundred years. They have effected great reforms and changes, one after another, to build China into a strong and prosperous country. They have worked to strengthen ethnic harmony and achieve national reunification and to promote the lofty cause of world peace and development. In the final analysis, they have done all these for one objective, that is, the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and China's greater contribution to humanity.
In short, the choice of the social system and development path that China has made, the domestic and foreign policies that it has pursued, and the goals it has identified for the next century, are all based on both the reality and the history. Therefore, they are not only in conformity with the trend of the historical development of mankind and that of the times, but also reflect the characteristics of the Chinese nation. They serve not only the fundamental interests of the Chinese people, but also world peace, stability, prosperity, and progress. This is the key to an understanding of the present-day China and its future.
(President Jiang begins speaking in English)
Ladies and gentlemen, the friendly exchange between the Chinese and American peoples dates back to more than two hundred years ago. Back in 1784, American merchant ship the "Empress of China" came a long way to China. In 1847, Chinese student Rong Hong [with others] came to the United States as the first group of Chinese students to study here. Many Chinese contributed to the nation-building of the United States, while a lot of American friends helped and supported the national liberation cause of the Chinese people. We will never forget their contribution, which has touched us deeply.
The Chinese people have always admired the American people for their pragmatic attitude and creative spirit. My visit to IBM, AT&T, and the Bell laboratory yesterday gave me some first-hand knowledge of the latest successes in modern science and technology. Today's rapid development in science and technology is bringing about increasingly greater impact on global political and economic patterns and on people's social life. If we persist in our reform, we will be able to turn our ideals into reality. In our cause to further open up and achieve modernization, we have spared no efforts in learning from all the fine cultural achievements of the American people.
Friendship and cooperation between our two peoples are of great importance to the world. The United States is the most developed country, and China the largest developing country. China is a country with 1.2 billion people. Its stability and rapid development is of vital importance to the stability and development in Asia-Pacific and the world at large. China holds a huge market and great demand for development, and the United States holds advanced science and technology, as well as enormous material force. The economies of the two countries are therefore highly complementary with each other. China's potential market, once combined with foreign advanced technology and capital, will produce many opportunities and great vigor for development. China and the United States share broad common interests and shoulder common responsibility on many important questions which are crucial to human survival and development, such as maintaining world peace and security, preventing the spread of weapons of mass destruction, protecting the environment for human survival, and combating the international crimes. All these provide an important basis for further developing China-U.S. friendly relations and cooperation. We should take a firm hold of the overall interests of China-U.S. relations and settle our differences properly, so as to reach the goal of promoting mutual understanding, broadening common ground, developing cooperation, and building a future together.
During my current visit to the United States, I had a deep exchange of views and reached broad agreement with President Clinton on the future development of China-U.S. relations. We both agree that with a view to promoting the lofty cause of world peace and development, China and the United States should strengthen cooperation and work hard to build a constructive strategic partnership oriented towards the twenty-first century. This will mark a new stage of development in the China-U.S. relations.
Harvard University has all along placed importance on China studies. When I come here, I remember when I was minister of electronic industrial ministry. Fourteen years ago, I was here my first time. The late Professor Fairbank was a well-known scholar from Harvard. He devoted all his life to the study of Chinese history and culture. In order to promote the study of China's past and present, I will present Harvard with a set of newly-published Twenty-Four Histories with Mao Zedong's comments. Twenty-Four Histories are important classic works on China's history of several thousand years. In his lifetime, Mao Zedong made numerous comments and annotations on the Twenty-Four Histories, thus leaving us with a rich heritage of philosophy in understanding and in drawing useful lessons from China's history.
I am glad to learn that you, Mr. President, will come to China next year. I look forward to meeting you again in Beijing - -or Shanghai.
I highly appreciate the motto on the gates of your university. It reads: "Enter to grow in wisdom" and "Depart to serve better thy country and thy kind." Young people in China have also a motto; that is: "Keep the motherland in heart and serve the people with heart and soul." I hope that in the cause of building our own countries and promoting world peace and development, younger generations of China and the United States will understand each other better, learn from each other, enhance the friendship, and strive for a better future.
Thank you very much for your attention.
Q & A Session
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