UVic has cancelled plans to hold a special convocation in November following word that President Jiang Zemin of the People's Republic of China would not be available to receive an honorary degree at the ceremony. The department of foreign affairs and international trade notified the University of Jiang's unavailability on Aug. 27.
The Senate's decision to offer Jiang an honorary degree sparked controversy on- and off-campus and attracted wide spread media interest. He was nominated by Dr. Ralph Huenemann (Business) and Dr. Richard King (Pacific and Asian Studies). "The decision of the UVic Senate to offer an honorary degree to President Jiang is a positive recognition of his strong commitment to continuing the economic and civil reforms begun by Deng Xiaoping, including the policy of opening China to the outside world," said Huenemann.
The special ceremony was to mark Canada's Year of the Asia Pacific and coincide with the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders' Meeting in Vancouver. The decision to invite Jiang and Canadian businessman Paul Desmarais, who played a key role in the founding and development of the Canada-China Business Council, to accept honorary degrees was passed by Senate at a special Aug. 22 meeting.
Following the meeting of Senate where the honorary degree was approved, UVic Students Society (UVSS) and the Graduate Students Society (GSS) representatives issued a media release saying UVic students were shocked at the decision.
"For our institution to acknowledge that Jiang Zemin suspended freedom of the press and yet honour him for promoting 'economic reform' is a disregard for the value universities place on the free exchange of ideas," said GSS president Michael Conlon.
A briefing note to Senate from Earl Drake, former Canadian ambassador to China, describes Jiang as a "moderate" leader who was party secretary in Shanghai during the student demonstrations in 1989. Drake says Jiang refused to allow the army to enter the city and held open discussions with demonstrators "in sharp contrast" to the events in Tiananmen Square.