50 years have passed since China and France first established diplomatic relations. 2014 was declared the year of friendship between China and France. Wu Hongmiao, professor at WHU’s School of Foreign Languages and Literature, was elected one of the 50 significant people in the process of establishing bilateral Sino-French diplomatic relations. On December 1st, Prof. Wu attended the award party held at the Luxembourg Palace in Paris.
Beside Prof. Wu, other contributions to maintaining good relations between the two countries, were acknowledged for the Minister of the National Ministry of Health, Mr. Chen Zhu, the entrepreneur Pierre Cardin, the scholar Liu Mingjiu, the writer Cheng Baoyi, the painter Fan Zeng and the actress Sophie Marceau, to name but a few.
Wu Jianming, a former Chinese Ambassador to France, said, ”The 50 people chosen, have played a significant role in the development of the Sino-French friendship by means of their work, efforts and personalities.”
It is known that in 1980, which was the beginning of the reform and opening policy, numerous western countries, including France, were eager to learn more about China. France hoped to establish academic and technologic contact and cooperation with the Chinese universities. After a series of thorough investigation and careful consideration, the French chose WHU as their only partner. WHU has since established cooperating relations with more than 30 universities and organizations in France.
At the end of 1933, Wu Hongmiao returned to China where he remained teaching French at WHU. In addition to the systematic translation of the masterpieces of Greimas, a famous French semiologist , he translated the works of Francois Julian and Edgar Morin, and received praise from both great masters and from the readers. Besides, he attended the fourth Sino-French Transcultural Advanced Round Table Meeting organized by the Institute of International Studies of the Chinese Foreign Ministry and Victor Segalen Fondation. In 2006, he was awarded the Golden Palm Education Knight Medal by the French government.
(Rewritten by Aoqi Li, edited by Sijia Hu & Diana)
