British professor: Institutional strengths enable China to realize great accomplishments
By Jing Yi, People’s Daily
China’s unique institutional strengths enable it to realize great accomplishments one after another, said Ralph Martin, a professor of Cardiff University in the UK, stressing that work efficiency of Chinese people is amazing, as they have been constantly setting new records.
The institutional advantages make the country able to mobilize resources for major undertakings, focus resources on resolving the most urgent problems, and implement plans through feasible and effective mechanisms, noted Martin, adding that the institution of China has also won the support of the people.
Chinese people’s capabilities and resolve to achieve goals always impress him, stressed Martin while referring to the high-speed railway network covering the whole country, the projects undertaken by Chinese companies under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), and the Beijing Daxing International Airport which opened to traffic this September.
It was a great honor and precious glory to have been invited to the celebration marking the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China, said Martin excitedly as he recalled the day when he watched the grand celebration at Tian’anmen Square on Oct.1 in Beijing.
Inviting foreign experts to watch the military parade during the celebration marking the anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China, which was of extraordinary commemorative significance, has fully manifested Chinese government’s respect for talents and shown the open and inclusive mindset of the country, noted the professor.
In the 1990s, Martin came to China to give lessons to Chinese students for the first time. Although the students then weren’t able to communicate with him in good English, their spirit and thirst for knowledge impressed Martin deeply.
Chinese people attach great importance to education, and Chinese students are diligent, studious, and eager to learn, said Martin, adding that what gratifies him the most is that Chinese students still carry forward the good tradition of respecting teachers and attaching great importance to education.
As he got to know Chinese students more, Martin found out that the students were getting more and more active in thinking, and showed good creativity and courage to face up to difficulties.
In 2001, Martin came to Tsinghua University and conducted cooperative research with the Department of Computer Science and Technology of the university. In 2007, Martin was officially hired as a guest professor of Tsinghua University.
Traveling frequently between China and the UK, Martin has witnessed China’s journey of development over the past two decades.
China has made so many development achievements, said Martin, adding that in his opinion, one of the most important achievements of the country is that it has improved people’s living standards and helped everyone live a better life.
China’s rapid development has helped boost the progress of the world, noted Martin, explaining that as a major manufacturing power in the world, China provides products with high quality and competitive price for people around the world.
Today, with China’s scientific research capability being constantly improved, the country is becoming a land for important global scientific and technological advancements.
The Department of Computer Science and Technology of Tsinghua University is a world-class institute, according to Martin, saying that the rise in Tsinghua University’s international prestige is the evidence of the fact that China is increasingly moving closer to the center stage of the world and China’s educational level is winning global recognition.
Martin loves travelling in his spare time, and has travelled all over China, which, according to the professor, should be attributed to the convenient and efficient high-speed trains in China.
The first time he took the high-speed train in China is his most unforgettable experiences in the country, said Martin, noting that China’s high-speed trains have combined perfectly high speed with high-level comfort, which makes travel not only something people need to do, but a pleasure.
Martin has visited such Chinese provinces as northwest China’s Qinghai province and Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. What amazed him in these places was not only magnificent natural landscape, but also the wind turbines.
In order to make the most of the wind energy, many cities of China built wind power plants, said Martin, stressing that the wind turbines he saw in the Gobi desert are spectacular.
China has endeavored to promote clean energy and boost energy transformation all along, Martin pointed out, adding that the country has in fact made great efforts to protect ecological environment.
Climate change is an increasingly urgent problem for mankind, said Martin, stressing that China’s contributions to the protection of ecological environment should be known by more people.
Focusing efforts on the well-being of all humanity and calling on the world to jointly tackle major challenges concerning the future of mankind, China is doing what it has advocated in its proposal for building a community with a shared future for mankind, noted Martin.
Ralph Martin takes a photo in front of Tian’anmen Square as a memento, 2014. (File photo)
