Norman Hung Chen Ming from Taiwan is glad to spend the summer
visiting some Chinese mainland cities and exchanging views with
other 246 university students of Chinese origin from 17 countries
and regions.
Hung from Taiwan's Tsing Hua University is a member of the fourth
China Synergy
Program for Outstanding Youth (CSP), a "root finding" tour to
the Chinese mainland which kicked off Tuesday at the Government
House.
The 17-day itinerary starting Wednesday has been designed to enable
the students to gain some first hand knowledge of the latest
social, economic, technological and cultural developments of
Chinese mainland, said Alice K.Y. Lam, delegation leader of the
fourth CSP.
"We hope that with a better understanding of the heritage and
traditions of their motherland, the students will ultimately play a
significant role in bridging Western and Chinese cultures together
and contribute to the future development of China," she added at
the Commissioning Ceremony of the fourth CSP officiated by Chief
Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Tung Chee
Hwa, who also acts as patron of the program.
With a mission to provide Chinese university students from around
the world an opportunity to "learn more about China and Chinese
culture," the program starts in Hong Kong before proceeding to
Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Xi'an.
Chan Shu Hei from the Hong Kong
Polytechnic University is excited about going to the Chinese
capital Beijing. He noted that his schoolmates who took part in the
previous synergy activity were amazed at the rapid economic
development of the Chinese mainland, as well as the high English
and professional standards of the mainland university students.
The CSP was initiated in 1999 by some community leaders in Hong
Kong with a partial funding from the Hong Kong Jockey Club
Charities Trust, having attracted more than 500 outstanding
university students of Chinese origin from around the world during
the past three years.
Lam pointed out that the 247 distinguished students had been
carefully selected from some of the world's leading universities
including Harvard, Stanford and Princeton from the United States,
Oxford and Cambridge from the United Kingdom.
Endorsing the CSP, John Chan, steward of the Hong
Kong Jockey Club, wished the students to "explore the many
riches China has to offer" during the "journey of discovery."
Luo Haocai, vice chairman of the People's Political Consultative
Committee of the People's Republic of China, was among those
present at the ceremony.
(
July 10, 2002)