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Commentary: Respecting Talents, Encouraging Innovation
Today, our Daily publishes an editorial congratulating the convocation of the National Science and Technology Awards Ceremony. Following is the full text:
In the first Spring of the new century, a grand science and technology awards ceremony was held in Beijing February 19 by the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the State Council to confer awards upon the individuals and collectives winning the 2000 national science and technology awards. General Secretary Jiang Zemin personally signed the State highest science and technology awards and conferred awards upon the first prize-winners Comrades Wu Wenjun and Yuan Longping. Premier Zhu Rongji delivered an important speech, expressing his earnest expectations of the country's scientific and technological circles.
The State Council made the decision on the 2000 national science and technology awards, calling on scientific and technological workers nationwide to learn from the prize-winners, study hard and be courageous in making innovations, so as to comprehensively enhance China's scientific and technological innovative capability and scientific and technological level. Here we express our warm congratulations for this grand science and technology meeting, and our high respects for the prize-winning scientists and technicians.
Comrade Jiang Zemin has said, "Science and technology competition is mainly competition for knowledge and talent, and competition of the abilities of development and innovation". In the primary innovation and the industrialization of high and new technologies, talents, particularly top-notch talents, play a decisive, irreplaceable role. Eminent scientists Wu Wenjun and Yuan Longping are the outstanding representatives of the talents of China's science and technology innovation. People of the whole country rejoice over their winning of the awards. A constant emergence of scientists like them will enable China to quicken its pace to keep up with world scientific and technological progress, really win initiative through the increasingly fierce international competition and make still greater contributions to the cause of the civilization and progress of mankind.
Science and technology innovation is the driving force for our implementation of the strategy of rejuvenating the country through science and education. Domestic and foreign experiences gained in the development of science and technology have repeatedly proved that one cannot buy up high technology. To realize the modernization of China's national economy and national defense, we need to have a large batch of specialized technologies and independent intellectual property rights and to have a niche in the world hi-tech field, which is commensurate with China's national status. To this end, we must emancipate the mind, energetically promote the spirit of innovation, give full play to the intelligence and wisdom of the masses of people and enthusiastically encourage the growth of scientific and technological talents nationwide. Scientists and technicians who have made tremendous contributions to the development of the country's scientific and technological undertakings should be respected by the whole Party and the people of the whole country.
When publishing the Regulations on National Science and Technology Awards in 1999, the State Council conducted reform of China's science and technology reward system and additionally set up the State's highest science and technology awards, amply awarding outstanding, top-notch scientific and technological talents who have made remarkable contributions to scientific and technological undertakings. This major move has enhanced the authority and influence of the country's science and technology awards, given further expressions to the Party and State policies of respecting knowledge and talents, demonstrated the staunch determination and firm confidence of the Party Central Committee and the State Council in implementing the strategy for rejuvenating the country through science and education and vigorously pushing forward science and technology innovation, this move has and will continue to produce major and far-reaching impact.
The 21st century is an era characterized by the dominance of science and technology innovation. The new technological revolution represented by information technology, bio-technology and nano-technology is bringing a profound change in the traditional economic structure, production organization and operational mode and giving a boost to a qualitative leap emerged in the development of productive forces. Knowledge has become an important production element and a crucial factor for economic growth. The strength and innovative capabilities of science and technology are playing an increasing role in deciding the position and dignity of various countries in the global political and economic arena.
We must form a system and mechanism as quickly as possible, that facilitate innovation. We should quicken the pace of the reform and innovation of the science and technology system and speed up the construction of a national innovation system. We should rapidly form a technological innovation system with enterprises as the mainstay and bring about a fundamental, close integration between science and technology, and economy; establish a capable, efficient and vigorous scientific research system and, in line with the principle of trying to do certain things and refraining from doing other things, optimize the distribution of scientific and technical forces and strengthen primary innovation; we should set up a socialized science and technology service system and accelerate the proliferation and application of scientific and technological achievements. We should intensify efforts in reforming the employment system in the field of science and technology, give full expressions to the due values of knowledge and talents and encourage scientists and technicians to engage in innovation and start undertakings in the course of competition.
We must form a cultural environment and social atmosphere as soon as possible that facilitate innovation. We should strive to create conditions in the aspects of study, work, system, policy and environment, weed out the old to bring forth the new, so that young, outstanding gifted people will come to the fore incessantly. We should promote the innovative spirit featuring the courage to be ahead of others, to take risks, to fear no failure, and work with perseverance. We should encourage efforts to explore the unknown world and objective truth. We should construct a sound academic atmosphere and create an environment for equal competition, we should advocate the grouping spirit, select and employ innovation-minded people without sticking to set forms. In this way, our cause will be prospering with each passing day and will always be able to retain its vitality and vigor.
We must quickly form a new situation in which the whole Party and the entire society heed and support innovation. Party committees and governments at all levels should place scientific and technological progress and innovation in the crucial position of economic and social development, and earnestly solve practical problems in scientific and technological development. We should make up our minds to increase input in science and technology and strive to provide better treatment for scientific and technological workers. We should further formulate and improve various incentive policy measures, so that the contributions made by the vast numbers of scientists and technicians in innovation and the start-up of undertakings can find expression in distribution.
Today features sound political development, and the prosperity of the country and peace and contentment of the people, China's scientific and technological workers consciously take the creation and development of advanced productive forces as their own mission, serving the cause of the country's modernization drive as their own responsibility, and the use of scientific knowledge to benefit the people as their own pursuit, in this way, they will certainly be able to accomplish much. The move of the Party and State to amply award scientific and technological personnel, as well as the combatant and innovative spirit of the prize-winning scientists will definitely immensely inspire the national self-respect and self-confidence of scientists and technicians at large and the people of the whole country and will stimulate the enthusiasm of the scientists and technicians and their lofty ideals to scale new heights of world science, to meet new challenges and seize new victories.
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