Premier Wen Jiabao paid tribute to China's intellectuals during a visit to Ji
Xianlin, one of the country's leading academics, at the General Hospital of the
Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) on Sunday, to celebrate Ji's 95th
birthday.
Premier Wen Jiabao paid tribute
to China's intellectuals during a visit to Ji Xianlin, one of the
country's leading academics, at the General Hospital of the Chinese
People's Liberation Army (PLA) on Sunday, to celebrate Ji's 95th birthday.
[Xinhua] |
Wen said the central authorities
respected and acknowledged the contributions of all Chinese intellectuals.
Ji, a professor and former deputy president of the prestigious Peking
University, is described as a man of letters, educator and statesman, but is
widely known for his studies of ancient Indian languages and literature.
Since China began opening up in the late 1970s, he has written several
autobiographical works, particularly on his experiences during the Cultural
Revolution (1966-1976).
Although he was deprived of political rights in the Cultural Revolution and
once worked as a gatekeeper, Ji translated the many Sanskrit works into Chinese.
"Your books are not only a reflection of your own life, but also a reflection
of the experiences of all Chinese intellectuals in the past century," Wen told
Ji.
The premier acknowledged the country's debt to intellectuals. "China relies
on knowledge, talents and intellectuals for its developments in science and
technology as well as build a harmonious society," he said.
The two discussed the harmonious society, economic development, and
democracy. Wen pointed out that in some ancient Chinese dynasties, many great
thinkers and philosophers had emerged thanks to ideological emancipation.
At the end of the visit, Ji cut a birthday cake and shared it with Wen and
others.
As he parted, Wen told him, "I keep your birthday clearly in mind. You write
in your book that you were born into a farming family in Guanzhuang Village of
Qingping County, Shandong Province, on August 6, 1911."
It was the premier's third visit to the aged scholar in the PLA General
Hospital. The last two visits were in 2003 and 2005.
