Chinese Delegation Visits LUMS to Commemorate 72nd Anniversary of Pak-China Relations
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A Chinese Delegation headed by the Consul General, Zhao Shiren, visited LUMS on June 2, 2023 to have a meeting with the Vice Chancellor and the senior management regarding the initiation of a meaningful educational collaboration between Pakistan and China on the auspicious occasion of the 72nd anniversary of Pakistan-China diplomatic relations. The prime focus of the meeting was the Centre for Chinese Legal Studies in LUMS and the role it will play in becoming the pillar of legal excellence in the entire region. The objectives are the facilitation of capacity building for CPEC, encouraging the exchange of students, knowledge and expertise from both countries and expanding the perimeters of academic scholarship and research.
The meeting was chaired by Dr. Arshad Ahmad, Vice Chancellor with the participation of Dr. Parvez Hassan, Member, Board of Trustees; Mr. Shahid Hussain, Rector , Ms. Nuzhat Kamran, Director, Office of Advancement, Dr. Sadaf Aziz, Dean of Shaikh Ahmad Hassan Law School and Dr. Sikandar Ahmed Shah, Director of the Centre for Chinese Legal Studies. Dr. Parvez Hassan inaugurated the meeting by expressing gratitude to the Chinese Delegation for China’s keen interest in promoting economic, social and cultural growth in Pakistan. He also stated that in this initiative LUMS would play a pivotal role as the cradle for Pakistan-China educational collaboration. The Chinese Delegation included Mr. Chen Bo, Secretary, Chinese Consulate; Ms. Hui Qui, Instructor Chinese language; Mr. He Wei, Chief Representative, Harbin Electric International and Mr. Wei He, Country Representative, China Machinery Engineering Corporation.
He shared his vision for the enhancement of Pakistan China relations through this educational collaboration by explaining that “ The Vision is that the law school at LUMS becomes the hub of legal excellence not only in Pakistan but in this entire region, wherever you have the OBOR (One Belt One Road), we want to provide this facility to their faculty and their students so that they also have access to the Chinese legal system, the vision is broader than just China and Pakistan and once successful this initiative can be a pillar of strength for the entire region.”
The Vice Chancellor expressed enthusiasm for the upcoming educational collaboration between Chinese universities and LUMS. He also shared the extensive scholarships that have been instituted by LUMS for foreign students that can be utilised by Chinese students. The National Outreach Programme was shared with its extensive reach to rural areas across Pakistan stretching till the Karakorum range of Gilgit Baltistan. Progress in different areas was highlighted such as the enhancement of experiential learning models by LUMS in which solution-based training sessions are conducted by its students. Dr. Ahmad concluded by saying that “I hope this relationship will be a long-term relationship as all of us are drawn to great learnings from China and look forward to this collaboration.”
The Consul General was then invited to visit the Centre for Chinese Legal Studies in which he was given a warm welcome by the students and faculty. The Consul General was invited to speak to a class of law students, to shed light on the versatile partnership between Pakistan and China. The Consul General addressed the law students and said “Our two countries are close and our relations are long standing and everlasting but we have different political systems and different cultures. Our legal system is also quite different, I would say it is substantially different but our values and our ideologies are the same that is to pursue justice, social fairness for the mutual benefits, for the common good. I always say that CPEC, China Pakistan Economic Corridor is not a gift from China to Pakistan. It is more appropriately deemed as a joint venture, as a common undertaking, as a shared endeavor by both our countries, by our governments, by our peoples to undertake and to proceed because CPEC has really been playing a vital role in transforming Pakistan’s socio-economic environment.”
The visit concluded on a note of immense enthusiasm for the consolidation of an educational collaboration between Chinese Universities and LUMS ushering in an era of prosperity, capacity building and the enrichment of knowledge, expertise and skills for both countries.
