There is a famous Question, i. e. Qian Xuesen’s Question, circulating in Scolar circles. Just four years ago, Qian Xuesen, a great rocket scientist and gifted desiner of Chinese aerospace and missile engineering project, once asked our Premier Wen Jiabao when the latter visited him at home: Why among numerous pessonel we cultivate, genius is rare to be seen?  No one knows how Wen Jia bao answered. Last month, when soliciting suggestions of Government Work Report from representitives of sicence, education, hygience and sports circles, Professor Shi Yigong, also the dean of Life science college of Tsing Hua University told Wen Jiabao: You expressed your longing for master-level talented personnels in many occassions, but we can’t cultivate the first class talents if we have no first class universities in China. Shi YiGong has been engaging in structural biology study, and in 2008, he gave up his title of tenured professor in Princeton University of America and came back to teach in TsingHua Unversity. After enumerating the examples of Britan,  America and Japan, he pointed out that the first class Universities’  important role in the process of pursuing national prosperity and the rise of our country. While the huge obstruction for the emerging of first class university is the phenomana of seeking quick success and instant benefits in campus. He initiated the problem of autonomy in running schools. He said: Our universities,  places should be free kingdoms teemed with the most active thoughts and vivid creativities, heavily stymie the creativities of our students for the rigid education management. After listening to Shi Yigong, Premier Wen Jiabao expounded his thoughts: A good university must has its unique soul, i. e. independent thoughts and free expression. University must has its qutonomy in running its own affairs.

Till now, I undestand that our Premier WenJiabao has been thinking about the problem of Qian Xuesen. What he said is to the point. But the problem is not simple. Just like a doctor know exactly where the tumor is in the brain of a patient, dare he operate on the patient immediately without analyzing the risk he faces? Let university has its free way of expression must has two prerequisites. First, we must have a society of full expression. This is the rich soil of university with free thoughts. Our political reform must set out first and establish a stable political system which can tolarate, understand, absorb the free expressions of our society. Sometimes, the free expression of scolars sounds not comfortable. Now, in western countries, we still can discern some politicians are not satistied with the criticism of opposites. They can’t , can we feel good? Now, our party do a well job in manipulating the grand ship of China, but problems, such as the disparity of rich and poor, the inner democratic reform of CPC, the corruption problem, the environment pollution problem, etc,  like submerged reefs  lays on the way of our voyage. If we can’t resolve these problems right, free expression of our society would serve as catalyst which make these problems mentioned above more complicated. So we should reslove these problems with great resolution first and let the masses know that our political system can keep liveliness for ever and can represent the general interests of them for good. In this case, we can be supported by the majority of Chinese,  and against this background, universities can have good environment of free expression. Now, let we take a look at Tang Dynasty. Tang Dynasty was the most powerful state in then world. It had best schools and many countries sent students to learn the culture of Tang dynasty. At that times, all kinds of goods of that world could be trade in Markets of Chang An. All kinds of extotic cultures coexisted with each other in the territory of JiuZhou. At that time, the low-cut dress was popular among women. Women felt free to run across a city riding a horse with low-cut dress. There were not too much restriction in the minds of people. That should be called a society of free expression. But the regime of Tang Dynasty was still stable in its beginning. Why? I think the ruler of Tang had the broad mind to tolarate and absorbe defferent ideas. Our CPC has this depositon too and the establishment of New China was just the result of assorbing defferent ideas of democratic parties and sages of our society. But sometimes, because of the political resources are controlled by higher level government, low rank officials, in order to being protmoted by their direct leader, would not, even dare not show their individial ideas. In all kinds of files, the first phrase of it never fail to shout slogan-like sentences first, or the writer would be think lagging behind the time. In fact, this political habit stymies the free expression of cardres. Only after we perfect our political system in which corruptive officials can be easily picked out and be removed as soon as possible, only after we reform our social wealth distribution system through which the disadavantage groups can have just opportunities to climb up the social pyramid and rich guys make money in a tranparent way, can we set out to set free universities from current management mode. This is the first prerequisite of buiding first-class university.

The second prerequisite of building first-class university is what Premier Wen Jiabao said:Let University has automomy in managing itself. The ownership of our Universities should be diversified. Except several state-owned university, we shuld have universities run by private, none government organizations. Now, I guess some of our cardres worry about the undergraduates would be  affectted by some vicoius foreign political forces and do some extreme things which threaten the stable of our political system and society, just like the turbulence of 1989.Just after 1989, we enhanced the management of our universities and introducing Political edcation assistants into campus. This was a right decision in that case. But it has its own side- effects now, it seems as if it has been lagging behing the time. This is a law-ruled society. So, except state-owned universities, other universities should not introduce this method and we should replace it with imposing rulebooks. Only if the students in those universties can obey the constitution of China and don’t threaten the stable of society, he can learn anything, think about anything, express anything in his own way. In fact, seeing from this aspect, it is quite simple to establish universities with free exression only if our leaders can let universities have autonomy of management.We can take other aspects of our society as examples, Say, in economic field, after we decided to enhance big SOE and let go samll ones, the liveliness of our economy showed up immediately. In culture circles, just after we let private set up culture enterprises. Lots of excellent products cropps up, say, Happy goat and Gray big wolf(an popular animation),Gou Degang’s Deyun she(a cross-talk theatre). Huayi Brother culture Lmt.co, etc. So, I have the confidence of having universities with free expression only if we have confidence on our political systme and I hope my children can study in such kind of universities. Do you?