BLCU News, June 16 (Correspondent Wu Wenzhi) – On June 12, the Second South Asia Sinologists Conference and China-Sri Lanka Scholars Civilization Dialogue, academically guided by the International Confucian Federation and co-hosted by BLCU's Center for World Sinology, the University of Kelaniya in Sri Lanka, and the Sri Lanka-China Cooperation Association, opened at the Bandaranaike International Conference Center in Colombo. President Sun Chunlan of the International Confucian Federation attended the opening ceremony and delivered an address. The ceremony was presided over by Secretary-General Malwana Chandrathna of the Sri Lanka-China Cooperation Association.
President Sun Chunlan congratulated the conference on being held on the International Day of Dialogue Among Civilizations. She stated that President Xi Jinping has pointed out: "China and South Asian countries are friendly neighbors and development partners, forming a community of shared future with intertwined destinies." How to infuse new vitality into the millennia-old interactions among civilizations and compose a new chapter in building a China-South Asia community of shared future is a contemporary question for the development of relations between China and South Asian countries. This conference, themed "Deepening Mutual Learning Among Civilizations and Building a Shared Future for Sinology," not only responds to the urgent global need for dialogue among civilizations but also embodies the beautiful vision of China and South Asian countries jointly building a community of shared future. In recent years, South Asian Sinologists have creatively integrated Confucian thought with local cultures, continuously enriching cognition, understanding, and expression of China, injecting fresh ideas and academic momentum into addressing contemporary questions and advancing the global development of Sinology.
President Sun Chunlan emphasized that the significance of civilization dialogue and cultural exchanges ultimately lies in promoting people-to-people bonds, close friendly interactions, improving livelihoods, and driving regional development. Facing global changes, the International Confucian Federation is willing to work with all parties to jointly advance Sinology research and South Asian regional civilization dialogue, making due contributions to composing a new chapter in building a China-South Asia community of shared future. Efforts should be made to jointly conduct Sinology talent cultivation and academic project organization, nurturing young Sinology reserves and launching major research achievements. The experience of the "Sinology + China-Sri Lanka Scholars Dialogue" model should be summarized to institutionalize and normalize the "Sinology +" dialogue mechanism, creating a high-end international exchange platform gathering top scholars from South Asian countries and even globally. Deeper mutual learning between Chinese civilization and South Asian civilizations should be promoted, extracting the essence of civilizations, transmitting shared values, and providing inexhaustible intellectual sources and solid civilizational foundations for regional development.
President Duan Peng stated that China and South Asian countries are connected by mountains and rivers, sharing civilizations with a long history of interactions. This conference aims to carry forward the tradition of dialogue, exploring new convergence points in the galaxy of civilizations, embracing a shared future to serve regional development and human well-being. He pointed out that Sinology, as a "mirror of the other," helps deepen understanding of Chinese civilization, while studying South Asian civilizations is key to comprehending human diversity. He highly affirmed the vigorous vitality of South Asian Sinology and the value of its unique perspective, calling for deepened cooperation to promote mutual nourishment between Sinology and South Asian regional studies and innovative cooperation models.
He emphasized that the ultimate value of academic research lies in benefiting people and contributing to humanity's future, and academic achievements should be transformed into concrete actions serving regional development: First, through deep understanding of each other's concepts, policies, and cultural backgrounds, and providing precise language services to support regional prosperity and provide guarantees for economic and trade cooperation and connectivity; Second, Sinologists and scholars in other fields, as envoys of civilizations, should enhance deep friendships among peoples through mutual translation of classics, cultural exhibitions, academic exchanges, and educational cooperation, building bridges of understanding and friendship; Additionally, promoting the fusion of profound wisdom such as China's "harmony in diversity" with South Asia's "Brahma-Atman unity" to contribute to building a community of shared future for mankind and provide Asian solutions for global challenges. President Duan introduced that BLCU, renowned as the "Mini-United Nations," and the Center for World Sinology have long been dedicated to language teaching, cross-cultural understanding, and international cooperation, fulfilling their mission through building a global Sinologists network. Co-hosting this conference is a concrete action to deepen academic cooperation in South Asia. He concluded that the practices and innovations in policy mutual trust, economic connectivity, and civilization symbiosis between China and Sri Lanka, as well as China-South Asia, are Eastern wisdom's response to contemporary questions. BLCU and the Center for World Sinology will continue to collaborate with global Sinologists to jointly promote cultural exchanges and the prosperous development of diverse cultures.
At the opening ceremony, guests such as Sri Lankan Minister of State Administration, Provincial Councils, and Local Government Chandana Aberathne, Deputy Minister of Education and Higher Education Madura Seneviratne, Chinese Ambassador to Sri Lanka Qi Zhenhong, and Representative of the University of Kelaniya President and Dean of the Faculty of Science Sudath R.D. Kalingamudali delivered addresses. They stated that actively conducting civilization dialogue amid global changes is beneficial for forging cooperation consensus, promoting people-to-people bonds, and better addressing common challenges. Efforts should be made to actively practice the Global Civilization Initiative, promoting diverse civilizations to coexist in exchanges and win together in cooperation. Regional Sinology academic networks should be strengthened to enhance international cultural exchanges and benefit peoples of all countries.
President Duan Peng, Director Xu Baofeng of the Center for World Sinology and Convener of the World Sinologists Council, along with Sri Lankan representatives and representatives of the South Asia Sinologists Council, jointly unveiled the plaque for the Sri Lanka Sinologists Council of the Center for World Sinology.
At the opening ceremony, the establishment ceremony of the Sri Lanka Sinologists Council of the Center for World Sinology and the book launch ceremony for the Parliamentary Debates on the China-Sri Lanka Rice-Rubber Agreement (trilingual edition in Chinese, Sinhala, and English) were also held. The Sri Lanka Sinologists Council is the 36th Sinology council established by the Center for World Sinology globally. Its establishment marks the formal integration of Sri Lankan Sinology into the international Sinology network, entering a new stage of institutionalization and mechanism-based development. In the future, it will coordinate Sinology forces in Sri Lanka and South Asia, organize series of academic activities, publish research achievements, and further promote deep cooperation between China and Sri Lanka in academic and cultural fields. The "Rice-Rubber Agreement" is a government trade agreement signed between China and Sri Lanka in 1952, primarily involving rice for rubber, a beautiful story in China-Sri Lanka interactions. With support from the International Confucian Federation, the Chinese, Sinhala, and English versions of Parliamentary Debates on the China-Sri Lanka Rice-Rubber Agreement were successfully published.
This Second South Asia Sinologists Conference and China-Sri Lanka Scholars Civilization Dialogue lasted three days. Over 200 participants, including renowned Sinologists from China, Sri Lanka, India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Bhutan, and other countries, as well as Sri Lankan political figures, university faculty and students, and media representatives, attended the conference.
This conference is an important activity for the Center for World Sinology to further upgrade and expand on the basis of the first South Asia Sinologists Conference. The South Asia Sinologists Conference builds a platform oriented to South Asia, connecting Asia, and radiating globally for Sinology research, promoting the construction of a multilingual, multidisciplinary, and multicentered global Sinology pattern, forming an international academic dialogue system supported by South Asian perspectives, developing country experiences, and Chinese academic principles. This conference provided a stage for academic voices from the Global South and injected ideological momentum into building a community of shared future for mankind. In the future, the Center for World Sinology will continue to deepen cooperation with universities and research institutions in South Asian countries, jointly promoting the rooting, growth, and prosperity of Sinology in South Asia.
On January 28, 2024, the First Himalayan China Forum (South Asia Region Sinologists Conference), hosted by the Center for World Sinology, was held at the Nepal Academy in Kathmandu. The forum gathered over 40 experts and scholars from China, Nepal, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and other countries to discuss topics related to the development of Sinology and Chinese Studies, sharing academic insights and cutting-edge achievements in Sinology research. The forum featured one main venue and multiple sub-venues, with topics covering Chinese traditional culture and classics research, the contemporary value of China-South Asia cultural exchanges, China-Nepal literary exchanges, China's contemporary development and global governance, as well as Sinology talent cultivation and discipline construction. Participating scholars engaged in in-depth academic debates on these themes. Chinese and Nepalese writers also conducted literary dialogues, offering participants a rich academic feast.
Editor: Guo Zhanling
Reviewer: Chen Siyu
