Seven years on, Xi's vision of civilization inspires hope in world of uncertainties

-- "We need to encourage different civilizations to respect each other and live together in harmony while promoting their exchanges and mutual learning as a bridge of friendship among peoples, a driving force behind human society, and a strong bond for world peace," Chinese President Xi Jinping said in 2014 at the headquarters of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in Paris.

-- "Throughout the centuries, people have yearned for lasting peace, but war has haunted mankind every step of their progress. As we speak, many children on this planet are subjected to the horror of armed conflicts," Xi noted in the speech.

-- "We need a mind that is broader than the sky as we approach different civilizations ... we should seek wisdom and nourishment from various civilizations to provide support and consolation for people's mind, and work together to tackle the challenges facing mankind," Xi said seven years ago.

-- "Civilizations have become richer and more colorful with exchanges and mutual learning. Such exchanges and mutual learning form an important drive for human progress and global peace and development," noted Xi in 2014, proposing to the world China's understanding of harmony, which is deeply rooted in the spirit of the Chinese people.

"We need to encourage different civilizations to respect each other and live together in harmony while promoting their exchanges and mutual learning as a bridge of friendship among peoples, a driving force behind human society, and a strong bond for world peace," Chinese President Xi Jinping said in 2014 at the headquarters of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in Paris.

Seven years have passed, but Xi's vision of civilization featuring diversity, equality and inclusiveness in his UNESCO keynote speech is still reverberating in a world that is grappling with the raging COVID-19 pandemic, as well as global political and socio-economic challenges.

 

Seeds of peace

"Throughout the centuries, people have yearned for lasting peace, but war has haunted mankind every step of their progress. As we speak, many children on this planet are subjected to the horror of armed conflicts," Xi noted in the speech.

Indeed, for quite some time, people in Syria, Libya, Afghanistan and other countries in turmoil have been suffering from unimaginable violence and indignities. Stigmatization, xenophobia, racism and discrimination as well as hate speech have also been running wild in many parts of the world.

Dima al-Kaed, a Syrian citizen, told Xinhua she has lost both her parents during the war. "I once dreamed of changing the world, but the war has changed my dream," she said, holding a photo of herself taken when she graduated from the University of Damascus years ago.

Faiz Ahmed, an Afghan citizen living in the city of Kabul who is about to reach his 50s, said he has spent almost his whole life in an environment of war and violence. "I have not seen a single day of peace in my homeland. I hope that my country could achieve lasting peace and stability as soon as possible, and I pray to experience such a day."

"Since wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the defenses of peace must be constructed," Xi stressed on the importance of the idea of peace in his speech, quoting the preamble to the Constitution of UNESCO as saying.

To keep war as far away as possible from mankind, Xi has provided the answer -- to "step up inter-civilization activities in education, science, technology and culture across border, time and space to spread the seeds of the idea of peace far and wide so that they will sprout, take root and grow in the hearts and minds of the world's people, and provide the planet we share with more and more forests of peace."

These are not empty talks. In fact, guided by Xi's wisdom on peace, which has been revealed time and again through his remarks on various occasions, China has been making great contributions to regional and global stability, development and prosperity.

China is now the largest contributor of personnel to United Nations (UN) peacekeeping missions among the five permanent members of the UN Security Council. Moreover, the country has played a constructive role in addressing global issues such as the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, and the conflicts in the Middle East.

Anita Kiki Gebe, deputy joint special representative of the United Nations-African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID), awards UN peace medal to a soldier of the 2nd China Medium Utility Helicopter Unit (CMUHU02) in El-Fashir, Sudan, July 17, 2019. (Xinhua)

China always "works to resolve conflicts with peaceful methods and giving priority to the logic of humanity and the logic of the international law over the logic of force and hegemony," said Muhammad Zahra, a Syrian expert on China affairs.

The idea of peace espoused by Xi "does resonate very well with the fundamental principles of harmonious coexistence between people," said Cavince Adhere, an international relations researcher in Kenya. "We have seen this to be the basis of Chinese engagement both at home and abroad."

 

Broader mind

"We need a mind that is broader than the sky as we approach different civilizations ... we should seek wisdom and nourishment from various civilizations to provide support and consolation for people's mind, and work together to tackle the challenges facing mankind," Xi said seven years ago.

His remarks still bear profound significance now, as the world has yet to walk out of the severe global public health crisis -- diversity will support and enrich the global efforts against COVID-19.

While COVID-19 vaccines must be a global public good, accessible and affordable for all, as emphasized by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in February, some Western countries have stockpiled large quantities of vaccines against the virus, creating stark inequity between the rich and the poor.

According to a report by The New York Times on Monday, residents of wealthy and middle-income countries have received about 90 percent of the nearly 400 million vaccines delivered so far.

Against such a backdrop, China, as a responsible major country with a broader mind to help humanity prevail against the common enemy, has not only delivered medical supplies and sent expert teams to places in need at the early stage of the fight, but also made an all-out effort to promote the fair distribution of COVID-19 vaccines.

So far, China has provided vaccine assistance to 80 countries in need, and is exporting vaccines to 47 countries. It has also decided to provide 10 million vaccine doses to the multilateral vaccine alliance COVAX to meet the urgent needs of developing countries, and to donate vaccines to UN peacekeepers.

As the second batch of the Sinovac vaccines donated by China arrived in the Philippines on Wednesday, Philippine Health Secretary Francisco Duque said "the arrival of these vaccines could not have occurred at a more opportune time considering the continued rise in cases."

The second batch of the Sinovac vaccines donated by China arrive in Manila, the Philippines, on March 24, 2021. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)

"China the lion has awakened, but it is a peaceful, amicable and civilized lion," Xi said in 2014 at a gathering marking the 50th anniversary of the establishment of China-France diplomatic relations, stressing that the Chinese dream is about pursuing peace, questing for happiness, and contributing to the common good of the world.

"As the (Chinese) vaccines were released and aided, this becomes the biggest proof of China's sincerity of intentions and its willingness to lend a helping hand and reaching out to everyone who needs it," Ahmed Bahaa El-Din Shaaban, secretary-general of the Egyptian Socialist Party, told Xinhua.

What China is doing is "beyond nationalism," said Farhat Asif, president of the Islamabad-based Institute of Peace and Diplomatic Studies. "It's not for the one nation, and it's (for) a community of the shared future. When you're saving somebody, when you're saving a life, it's also saving humanity."

 

Harmony without uniformity 

"Civilizations have become richer and more colorful with exchanges and mutual learning. Such exchanges and mutual learning form an important drive for human progress and global peace and development," noted Xi in 2014, proposing to the world China's understanding of harmony, which is deeply rooted in the spirit of the Chinese people.

In today's uncertain world, where protectionism, unilateralism and the so-called "clash of civilizations" are on the rise, and where some Western countries are forming cliques, turning back the wheel of history, inciting division along ideological lines, or instigating confrontation between different groups, Xi's remarks have become even more thought-provoking.

"To meet our common challenges and create a better future for all, we look to culture and civilization to play their role, which is as important as the role played by economy, science and technology," Xi said in 2019 at the opening ceremony of the Conference on Dialogue of Asian Civilizations.

Through a series of global events, and within the framework of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, BRICS that groups emerging economies of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, the Belt and Road Initiative, and other organizations, Xi has continuously stressed the wisdom of "harmony without uniformity," which the Chinese have come to appreciate. Over the past seven years, during his trips to other countries, the Chinese president has offered to the world the Chinese idea of upholding inclusiveness.

Chinese engineers discuss solutions at the construction site of a joint Argentina-China hydropower megaproject in southern Argentina, April 22, 2020. Against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, China has seen resilient cooperation with the Belt and Road (B&R) countries in 2020. (China Gezhouba Group Corporation/Handout via Xinhua)

China has initiated an important dialogue among civilizations, sharing with other countries the ideas that the only way of peaceful coexistence is through understanding, through communication to resolve all differences, said Asif, adding this is "the essence of China's peaceful scene at the global level."

"On international exchanges as an avenue of cementing peace and development across the world, China has also played a very key role," said Adhere.

For example, the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation has become a key platform to promote multi-civilizational exchanges between China and African countries, he said, adding it is only through these exchanges that people can have mutual understanding.

"This decision by China to promote civilizational exchanges is a key component. It speaks to the aspiration of the UN, the multilateral settings, and it's something that eventually leaves every human being better," he said.