ESWN has translated a number of documents concerning the dismissal of Renmin University Dean of Political Sciences Zhang Ming, who was apparently fired from his post after writing on his blog about disagreements with his supervisor at the university. The translations include Zhang’s original blog posting, titled, “Perhaps I might be forced to leave the Renmin University of China,” in which he writes:
This is what happened. Ever since May last year, I and the faculty leader (more precisely, this is Mister Li Jingzhi, who is the Dean of the School of International Studies at the Renmin University of China) has been clashing with me and he regards this as being very serious. In last year’s faculty review panel, I expressed my opinion about the professorial qualifications of Mister Xiao Yanzhong of the Department of Political Sciences. Xiao is a renowned scholar since the 1980’s but he has not yet been promoted to professorship and that is really embarrassing. When I was speaking, the Dean interrupted me twice but I stopped him. Therefore, my speech and my refusal to let him interrupt me angered him. He believed that I did not have even minimal deference for him and therefore he wanted to dismiss me from my job, blacken my name and expel me from the Renmin University. Although I am just a small dean elected by everybody, it was not up to his say-so to dismiss me. He does not have the power to do so within the system. Ever since that time, the school dean has held a number of meetings with people who had anything to do with me and, in a word, asked them to severe their relationships with me and make me quit in embarrassment without any allies. During this period, various rumors were circulated within the faculty and the higher authorities in the university about how I had no scholarly knowledge and no writings, and I only knew how to cause trouble. Although I have a reputation in modern history and political sciences and I am one of the most productive people in the School of International Studies, I do not know the university leaders and therefore our Dean’s words have a certain market inside the school. [Full text]
