Confucius' Birth in 551 BC Commemorated ���� A four-day international conference commemorating Confucius' birth in 551 BC was inaugurated yesterday at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. ���� Luo Gan, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and councilor of the State Council, President of the International Confucianism Association Gu Mu and UNESCO representative Kim Yersu are among the notables attending the opening ceremony. ���� There are over 400 scholars and experts participating in the conference, coming from the Republic of Korea, Japan, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Australia, Britain, Germany, France, Belgium, Holland, Russia, the USA and Israel, along with their Chinese counterparts from Hong Kong and Taiwan and those on the mainland of China. ���� General Shin Siar Yoon, ambassador of Singapore to China, read out at the symposium a message from Singaporean Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew. ���� Gong Dafei, vice president of the Standing Committee of the International Confucianism Association delivered a keynote speech at the conference. He said that by the turn of the present century, when a new millenium is to be greeted, we make a study of Confucianism is by no means to return to or express some feelings merely to meditate on the past. It is the profound influence of Chinese culture especially the Confucian culture and its many concepts and great enlightenment to people in finding solutions to a series of problems as are found today involving world peace, development, environment and human relationship. ���� Erudite discussions to be carried out will focus on "Confucianism with Regard to Peace and Social Development of Mankind" and that of global multi-cultures during the 21st century. Representative views by participants from academic study of Confucianism will be presented and heard by representatives at the ongoing conference. After the conference, the representatives will go on a visit to the native place of Confucius, Qufu, Shandong Province. HomeNews 1999-10-08 Page3 Full Story in Chinese