Song Jian, president of the Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE) presided over the 5th Conference of CAE called lately in Beijing.
Song said that CAE's 2000-2002 tasks will center on efforts to realize China's centennial strategic goal with improved engineering technology, fight for west development, set up a perfect democratic centralized decision-making system, promote management science development and carry forward materialism.
He stressed that China's development shows a big gap compared with developed countries in various engineering technology fields, we are now facing new challenges, and only by enhancing our engineering technology level, can we have chances to compete with other countries in the international arena after China's entry into WTO. The CPC Central Committee and the State Council have pointed out that China is a laggard in science management, thus limiting the development of the Chinese economy. The CPC Central Committee sets year 2000 as management year, the CAE, as China's topmost academic and advisory institution in technology engineering is responsible for enhancing the country's management science and engineering level, he concluded.
Song pointed out that scientific communities should, together with all social circles, resolutely safeguard scientific principle of Marxism, stick to truths of science, oppose superstition, fatuity and pseudoscience. Science study permits hypothesis, also failure, but not falsification. Many academicians have set examples for us to fight against Falun Gong cult, he said.