【Editor’s note: From September 6 to 9, a CAFIU delegation headed by Mr. Qi Xuchun, Vice-Chairman of the National Committee of the CPPCC and Vice-President of CAFIU visited New Zealand. The following is the address made by Vice-President Qi at the University of Victoria Wellington.】

 

Respected Vice Chancellor Guilford,
Teachers and students,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Dear friends,

 

Good evening! It gives me great pleasure to be here at your reputable University of Victoria to meet with teachers, students and friends from all walks of life. This is my first time to stand on the rostrum of a university to exchange with the faculty and students. I very much cherish this opportunity. First of all, on behalf of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), the Chinese Association for International Understanding (CAFIU) and in my personal name, I’d like to extend our warm greeting and best wishes to you all! The Chinese Ambassador to New Zealand Mr. Wang Lutong and two former New Zealand ambassadors to China are also present here, who have made great contribution to China-New Zealand friendship. I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to them. The CPPCC, consisting of representatives of the Chinese Communist Party, eight non-communist parties, non-party personages, people’s organizations, ethnic minorities and personages from all circles, is an important institution of multiparty cooperation and political consultation under the leadership of the CPC. CAFIU is an influential non-government organization in China, which was founded in 1981, aiming at “letting the world understand China, and letting China understand the world” and committed to enhancing mutual understanding and friendly cooperation between China and other countries.

The University of Victoria is one of the most time-honored universities in New Zealand and has won a good reputation around the world. The University has brought up a great number of high-quality talents and its graduates are employed in all sectors of the New Zealand Society and the world at large. I’m happy to know that out of the over 3000 overseas students in your esteemed university, more than 800 of them are from China, which reflects the large scale people-to-people and cultural exchanges between China and New Zealand and is also a significant miniature of the friendly bilateral relations.

 

Since the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries in 1970s, the bilateral relationship has developed smoothly. State visits are frequent. Particularly in 2014, when President Xi Jinping visited New Zealand, the two sides decided to upgrade the China-New Zealand relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership and issued the first Joint Statement Between China and New Zealand on the bilateral relations. Last April, Prime Minister John Key visited China for the 6th time during his term. Leaders of the two countries reached important consensus on promoting the China-New Zealand Comprehensive Strategic Partnership which injected new vitality to the bilateral relations.

I would like to share my views on the current situation of China’s economy and China-New Zealand cooperation.

 

In the Opening Speech at the G20 Hangzhou Summit, President Xi pointed out that we should jointly build an innovative, invigorated, interconnected and inclusive world economy, urged that the G20 should always attach more importance to action than mere talking and called for all countries to jointly participate in global economic governance, indicating a new path for world economic development. President Xi especially emphasized the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and promoting inclusive development, which is the common aspiration of the Chinese people and people of all other countries. Many people worry about China’s economy and claim that China’s economy is in recession after decades of high speed development. Actually, China’s economy maintains medium-high rate of growth instead of high rate of growth and pays more attention to the quality of economic growth instead of its growth rate. President Xi put forward the concept of ecological environment first and green development. That means China should change the unsustainable economic growth model and take the road of sustainable development relying on scientific and technological innovation. According to the 13th Five-Year Plan, by 2020 China will achieve a moderately prosperous society in all respects and its 2010 GDP and per capita personal income will be doubled. In 2015, China’s GDP was $10.8 trillion and the per capita GDP was close to $8000. By 2020 China’s GDP will reach about $14 trillion and the per capita GDP $12000. In order to realize this goal, we are working hard on carrying out structural reform so as to continuously optimize the industrial structure. Currently, China’s production overcapacity of crude steel, cement and ship making is serious. The Chinese Government has the resolution to make painful self-adjustments to cut down and weed out the overcapacity. We are planning to cut down production capacity of coal by 280 million tons within one year’s time, which will lead to 700 thousand coal-miners facing the problem of job transfer and reduce overcapacity of crude steel by 45 million tons and 160 thousand workers have to find new jobs. The Chinese central and local governments as well as enterprises will cost altogether 100 billion RMB to fulfill this arduous task.

 

China will unavoidably pay cost for its economic transformation. Some regions including the 3 Northeast Provinces, Shanxi Province and Shannxi Province depending on resources in the past are undergoing economic downturn. But this is just a phenomenon in these certain areas and even though the economic situation of Jilin Province which suffered high economic downward pressure is improving this year. When I paid home visits to the ordinary Chinese people, I found that they all led a comparatively well-off life. For those regions such as Guangdong and Zhejiang Provinces where the economic transformation took place earlier and scientific and technological innovation was stressed more, their economic development has gained strong momentum with a growth rate around 7.8%. On the whole, China’s economy has achieved moderate but stable and sound development. During the first 6 months of this year, China’s economic growth rate is 6.7% which is no picnic under the background of the world economy remaining in the doldrums. I hope you could have the opportunity to visit China to find out the real development in our country. There is an American economist who believed that China’s economy had run out of steam. But after a 10-day visit to China, he found that China’s economic development is much better than what he imagined and the Chinese market is flourishing.

 

For the cooperation between China and New Zealand, I would like to mainly talk about tourism, agriculture and animal husbandry. Tourism is an important area of China-New Zealand cooperation. China is striving to develop health and elderly care services. Last August, the Central Committee of Revolutionary Committee of the Chinese Kuomintang and the People’s Government of Hebei Province jointly held a forum on health and elderly care services. Within only two days, contracts of more that 50 billion RMB have been signed. Not long ago, a similar forum was held in Chishui City, Guizhou Province and 58 billion RMB’s contracts were signed. Chishui City receives 16 million tourists a year, where there are 5 five-star hotels and another 2 are under construction, which speak volume for the great market potential of the health and elderly care services and tourism. However, there are only 0.4 million Chinese tourists visiting your beautiful, rich and safe country each year, which is a very small proportion among the 110 million Chinese outbound tourists. If the Chinese visitors to New Zealand increase to 1 million, it will bring about $6 billion’s income to New Zealand. The China-New Zealand tourism cooperation has broad perspectives. There is also big room for China and New Zealand to cooperate in the areas of agriculture and animal husbandry. The agriculture and animal husbandry of New Zealand are quite developed enjoying advanced technology and management experience. I hope both sides could strengthen cooperation in these areas.

 

I envy you young students very much. The young people are always full of vigor and could constantly emancipate their minds. When I graduated from Peking University, I went to the rural area. Only when I became a farmer, did I really understand the Chinese people, China’s society and national conditions. Young people are short of knowledge about the real society and experience of frustration. I realized that when I became a farmer. Life should be pragmatic. I lived through those days when there were no sufficient food and clothes. Therefore I cherish today’s life very much. We should look on issues in a historical, comparative and developing way. Only in this way can we grasp the substance of those issues. Someone asked me, “Do you think the Chinese system is the best system in the world?” I answered that the Chinese system is the best system for China because time has proved that this system is correct. The Chinese people support it and it conforms to China’s national conditions. We strongly oppose those who always teach others what they should do without considering their real circumstances. Afghanistan, Libya and Syria are all painful lessons. We will unswervingly take our own road. 

 

Currently, Chinese-New Zealand relations are developing smoothly. New Zealand is one of the friendliest countries towards China in the west. Our two countries are highly complementary to each other. President Xi Jinping put forward the concept of inclusive development and wished all countries would benefit from it. China wishes not only itself but also all countries prosperous development. We oppose hegemony and stand for that every country should be equal. We wish New Zealand a bright future and New Zealand people an even happier life.

 

This morning, Speaker Carter and I reached a consensus during our meeting that the futures of China and New Zealand depend on the young generation. I hope you could make your own contribution to promoting China-New Zealand friendship and strengthening the bilateral cooperation in economic, political, social, cultural and ecological areas.

Thank you!