Good morning, everybody!

Today, we get together with immense joy in the beautiful campus of Xiamen University, to hold the opening ceremony for 2015 graduate students. This year we welcome a total of 3,697 master students and 734 doctoral students to join in Xiamen University, a big family. Now, please allow me, on behalf of Xiamen University, staff and students, to extend a warm welcome to and sincere congratulations on all 2015 graduate students! Express our heartfelt gratitude and lofty respect to your parents, teachers and friends who have cultivated, cared, supported and helped you for many years!

Fellow students, on September 3rd ten days ago, in Tiananmen Square, the Chinese People adopted an epic grand parade to commemorate 70th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People’s War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War. The indomitable heroic Chinese people, with casualties of over 36 million people fighting a bloody battle, won the great victory. As general secretary Xi Jinping pointed out, the victory "Reestablished a great power status for China in the world", "opened up glorious prospects for the great rejuvenation of Chinese ethnic peoples, and started a new journey to Phoenix Nirvana and Born of Fire of the ancient China." Why is it Phoenix Nirvana and Born of Fire? Because the modern history of China before that period was a history that Chinese people were repeatedly defeated by foreign aggressors, and it was also a humiliating history of lagging behind and being vulnerable to attacks. The victory helped the Chinese nation reestablished its power status in the East, but it is also like a mirror or an alarm bell constantly alerting us. We must clearly recognize that, although today, China's economic aggregate has ranked second in the world and we have a history of five thousand years of civilization, China is still a developing country in the modern world. Only from science and technology perspective, the pattern of the key areas of our core technology controlled by others has not changed fundamentally. Not long ago, Premier Li Keqiang visited Xiamen University. In a conversation with students, he said that China's annual imported chips cost more than RMB 200 billion yuan, the amount of money almost equal to our annual expense on imported oil. When he learned that some students tried to make contributions to research and development of independent chips, he was very happy and wished the students an early realization of their innovation ideals. As another example, many of you like to use Apple phones. In addition to their individual core parts, the others are produced and assembled in China. In terms of cost of production, 90% of apple phones are made by Chinese manufacturers, but the profits obtained by Chinese manufacturers are less than 3.6%. Such cases are still many, but in the final analysis it is due to the lack of independent innovation. This is not only China's weakness, but also the reason why we are lagging behind the major developed countries. Nowadays, science and technology are primary productive forces, and mastery and innovation of core technologies is a key to strength of a nation or state. Bearing in mind the history is to create the future, and creating the future depends on all of us, but more on you present, because you are the sun at eight or nine of the morning, and hope is placed on you."

First-rate universities are the engines to advance civilization and progress of a country, a society and a world, because the sacred mission of first-rated universities is a never-ending pursuit of truth, an exploration of the unknown, and reform and innovation. Such a mission can be achieved, relying on first-class professors and first-class students in first-class universities. As graduate students, you are ranked in the highest level of knowledge among peers, a group with the most active thought and the greatest development potential, have the responsibility and ability to participate in the creation of a new miracle, enhance yourselves in creation, allow yourselves to become more noble, more perfect and lead a more meaningful life. It is a great honor that when you turn a new leaf of your life. Chinese nation is standing on a new historical starting point. At this moment, our country is adopting innovation-driven development strategy for the realization of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese dream, striving for the goal of two centuries, which is the most promising era for young graduate students to do their best. Graduate students as a force for innovation and entrepreneurship, we must assume the mission and responsibility of “working for the Chinese renaissance and innovation," continuously improve services and constantly enhance our capacities of innovation and entrepreneurship, and take initiatives to join the great practice. Xiamen University you are joining in, is a university sticking through thick and thin together with modern China in the nearly hundred years of history, regardless of suffering, pain, glory or pride. In such a moment, we especially miss Tan Kah Kee, our school master. It is his greatness and nobleness that makes it possible for us from all over the world to gather together in this beautiful campus, and spend our meaning time for our dreams, family dreams and the dream of our nation. In such a moment, we particularly expect all of you present not only feel grateful to Tan Kah Kee but also learn from Tan Kah Kee. Tan Kah Kee gave all his assets to found Xiamen University, but it is his spirit and character that will always give us education and beneficence.

Tan Kah Kee was reputed by Chairman Mao Zedong as "the banner of overseas Chinese, the glory of our nation." Mao's appreciation for Tan Kah Kee has been accepted by the people. The reason that Tan Kah Kee became "the banner of overseas Chinese" was that first and foremost he was a most trustworthy leader in the mind of overseas Chinese, whose qualities of sincerity, integrity and keeping his promise inspired countless overseas Chinese. At 17 Tan Kah Kee left Jimei, his hometown, for Singapore, the then British colony, to make a living. He spent his first three years as an apprentice, and prepared to take over his father's rice store business after arduous efforts. But a storm may arise from a clear sky; his father’s company went bankrupt. In accordance with the laws of Singapore in the same year, it was necessary for Tan Kah Kee to pay for his father’s debt, and he could announced the closure of rice shop and make a new start, holding the society responsible for his father’s debt. But Tan Kah Kee did not do so, followed his father's footsteps, and announced that he would repay the debt on behalf of his father. After several years of very hard efforts, Tan Kah Kee rejuvenated his father’s business, and paid off all debts his father owed, interests included. 20-year-old Tan Kah Kee’s first step towards the market earned him the most important reputation in the market. His "seriously making and keeping his promise" quickly spread throughout Southeast Asia, which also brought him more opportunities than the others. Thus, he quickly developed into the most important entrepreneur in Southeast Asia. China's traditional culture states that "benevolent people always care for others", and "benevolence" is a starting point and an important value for traditional Chinese people to behave. What is "benevolence”? Confucius's "Analects of Confucius" has 48 sayings devoted to the discussion of "benevolence", first of which is “Those who are glib in their speech and wear an ingratiating expression have little benevolence ", meaning that those, who speak in a rhetoric manner with an exaggerative expression, are rarely sincere and honesty. Sincere Honesty and sincerity are the starting point and the cornerstone of doing things and behaving oneselves, especially for people engaged in scientific research, because scientific research does not allow false and false embellishment. Graduate students have more opportunities than undergraduate students to participate in a variety of scientific researches and innovation activities, so graduate students must adhere to the "academic integrity" and consciously resist the academic misconduct and prevent fraud, let alone plagiarism behavior. From its first day of establishment, Xiamen University has been requiring the implementation of "zero tolerance" for academic misconduct. When you embark on a new graduate school life, you should, as our school master embarked on his pioneering work, cultivate honest and trustworthy personality, and work together with our university to maintain a positive and just learning environment.

Young people areacuteand quick thinking. In this era of rapid innovation and change of human knowledge, our country is comprehensively promoting the four modernizations in a grand time, and whoever can seize the opportunity to ride on the momentum are more likely to succeed and live a more exciting life. Tan Kah Kee was also a brave person good at grasping the opportunity. In the early 20th century, rubber plantation began to rise. When Tan Kah Kee learned of the opportunity that a British businessman was in a hurry to return home, he bought from him 180,000 rubber seeds, which subsequently led to his achievements of the rubber magnate Tan Kah Kee. When World War I broke out, many of the original ocean shipping businesses did not dare to go down to the sea adventure, so maritime transport especially ocean shipping became the world's problem. Tan Kah Kee seized the opportunity once again, resolutely decided to rent two ships and started maritime transport others felt frightened and unwilling to engage in. Later, he simply bought his own ships, operating ocean shipping. One of his transport ships was sunk by a German submarine, but at the end of the First World War, Tan Kah Kee’s company had won him huge profits which were used to found Xiamen University, his dream of founding "universities in the world" starting. Our school master assessed the situation, identified risks, seized opportunities, and blazed a new trail, which was a secret for him to create value and become successful. Any promising youngsters should be said to have more skills and conditions to seize the opportunity when they become graduate students. Today, Xiamen University is forging ahead in the construction of high-level research university, making efforts to be ranked among world-class universities. Opportunities and challenges are like clouds in the sky, drifting away from your side every day, and it is up to you to find out and seize them. I hope that you can combine your academic interests with the needs of growth and success, closely seize the opportunity to work with your supervisors, communicate with experts and scholars as well as your peers from around the world, and participate in large-scale events and high academic conferences, seize the opportunities and challenges of overcoming difficulties to temper themselves, improve themselves, and realize their dreams.

University is one of the world's oldest social organizations, many organizations established together with universities have disappeared for a long time, but university is still full of vigor, always at the forefront of social development and progress. What’s the vitality of universities? It lies in innovation! The world's leading universities especially top universities have a common feature, which is not subject to the outdated authority, original in style, and brave in innovation. Being brave in innovation is also a character of Tan Kah Kee. When Tan Kah Kee started canning factory in his early years, he would not follow Singapore manufacturers producing bulk-loading canning only in spear and trunk, but broke a new path to produce canning with miscellaneous sizes. He would produce what the market needed, regardless of canning sizes, to quickly open the market and win market competitiveness. When planting rubber, he ingeniously interplanted the rubber in pineapple trees, which would not affect the supply of raw materials in original canning industry, but also opened up new rubber plantations. Later, he referred to Chinese-style shoes to design a kind of rubber-soled shoes and rainshoes, highlighting its lightweight and durable features, and made an inexpensive and fine "bell" brand new series of footwear, expanding rubber product, building a huge rubber production kingdom. Tan Kah Kee dared to innovate, be brave in innovation, and not be afraid of failure, which deserves our following up. In this highly competitive world, only those with constant exploration and courage of innovation can become more competitive and stand out. Graduate students are an innovative fresh force, and graduate students should focus on “research” in their study. The so-called research, is to "explore their interests in the unknown world system", and this "exploration" is no longer a passive acceptance and absorptions, but a process of positive, proactive, autonomous, self-conscious knowledge learning, perception of knowledge, exploration of knowledge, knowledge innovation. I hope that you can cultivate a habit of critical thinking, with the courage to surpass their tutors, challenge authority and dare to try to explore, be brave and persistent to be the first to make a temptation, study hard, and cultivate their ability of doing well in finding out and solving problems.

"Pursue excellence" was put forward by Tan Kah Kee when Xiamen University celebrated its first opening ceremony, which later became a part of our school motto. This sentence embodies a never-ending and indomitable righteousness. Tan Kah Kee's entrepreneurial path was full of hardships and suffering, but he never retreated in the face of hardships, but faced his life, history and the world with the spirit of pursuing excellence all over his life. When he was a young man and confronted with his father’s withering industry, he decided to stand up again in the place where his father fell; however, after becoming a "rubber king", he fell into the attack of Western powers such as the converging attack of the United Kingdom and Japan, Especially after the Japanese warlord started the "Jinan Massacre" in May of 1928, and Tan Kah Kee publicly called upon people to fight against the Japanese aggression in Southeast Asia. Japanese warlords begun to aggravate persecution on him and his business, which became worse all the way down to collapse due to the 1929 world economic crisis. In such case, it was on the precondition that Tan Kah Kee no longer supported the Jimei School and Xiamen University for someone to inject capital for his company, but he would not submit himself to others’ whims and fancies, and said: "Companies can close, but schools will continue", "would rather sell the building to support Xiamen University." He decided in early 1934 to announce the closing of enterprises, and cited the words of an American giant to motivate Chinese people: "justified failure is not a shame; fear of failure is the real shame", "people who can withstand setbacks, stand the blow and bear hardships are the hero." Unswervingly setting one’s mind on the goals with constant bravery to firmly pursue them is the spirit of Tan Kah Kee. Fellow students, you will surely encounter a lot of new problems, under great academic and research pressure, larger than those at your undergraduate learning phase, with more serious personal emotional problems, employment problems or family economic issues and so on, compared with the undergraduates. I think that these are compulsory for our growth, and we should actively face them. The key is to be like our school master, maintaining a restless, indomitable spirit in the face of any hardships, with a sense of mission to contribute to the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation" ,to face, and overcome difficulties and problems in our study, research and life.

Fellow students, I sincerely hope that we can follow the example of our school master, and are as patriotic, sincere, perseverant, pioneering and innovative as he was. We are in a great era, in a rapid development, rapidly changing era, the era of progress, urging people upward. But in this era there are many by-products, and there are many traps to pull you backwards. Infinite mass information is a "double-edged sword." So finally, I also hope that you do not always bow your heads kidnapped by phones, and take "WeChat" or "microblog" as a way to gain knowledge of a graduate student. Jameson famous American, a well-known cultural scholar, summed up a survival characteristics of current people, saying, "Everyone today has accepted bombing explosive information 24 hours a day. Explosive information is fragmented, "bombing" can only be passively accepted, and uninterrupted 24 hours a day will let you be overwhelmed. In this case, leaving aside the authenticity and utility of information, such kind of continuous bombing explosive state is entirely possible to make you no longer independently and correctly think of this world, of life, and of the value of life. This actually is a feature of post-modern culture, which will affect or harm our way of thinking, and weaken our holistic and systematic grasp of knowledge and problems. In this regard, you must remain vigilant. At the same time, I also hope that our graduate students pay special attention to exercise. Without physical health, you have difficulties in realizing your beautiful dreams or give full play to your talents. I sincerely hope that all of you surely adhere to physical exercise, breathe more fresh air, more and often expose yourselves to the sun and nature. Please firmly keep in mind the slogan in our play ground: "one hour exercise a day keeps you working healthy fifty years and a happy life forever!."

Finally, I sincerely hope that your life in Xiamen University will become the best part of your memories, and studying at Xiamen University can become your greatest achievement in life. I wish you a fruitful study, healthy and happy!

Thank you!