Confucius Institutes hit with visa ban in US
By Wang Qingchu and Liang Yiwen |
May 25, 2012, Friday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
Chinese academics with a J-1 visa and teaching at Confucius Institutes in the United States will have to leave the country by June 30 as the State Department has said their visas won't be extended.
China's Foreign Ministry said yesterday that Chinese authorities are communicating with US officials for a proper solution to the issue.
Ministry spokesman Hong Lei told a news briefing that China hopes programs won't suffer because of the policy.
In a policy directive issued on May 17, the State Department said it was reviewing the credentials of Confucius Institutes which are university-based, Chinese-sponsored language and cultural centers, and said that these institutes should gain certification from the US government before carrying out teaching activities in American universities.
However, the directive did not say where certification could be obtained.
Similar cultural establishments such as Germany's Goethe Institute and France's Alliance Francaise don't have to apply for certification, yesterday's People's Daily reported.
Officials at the Confucius Institutes in the University of Maryland and George Mason University said they were bewildered by the decision and were communicating with authorities regarding certification.
The Confucius Institute, named after the Chinese philosopher and educator Confucius (551-479 BC), is a nonprofit institution aimed at promoting Chinese language and culture in foreign countries.
There are more than 350 Confucius Institutes and 500 Confucius Classrooms around the world. These include 81 institutes and 299 classrooms in 48 states of the US.
An official at the Confucius Institute headquarters said the directive could harm the Sino-US friendship, Xinhua news agency reported.
The official said all of its centers around the world, including those on American campuses, were voluntarily requested by foreign partners, approved by the headquarters and jointly operated with Chinese colleges.
The Chinese teachers were carefully selected and trained by both sides in an effort to help American elementary and secondary school students learn Mandarin and understand Chinese culture, the official said.
The People's Daily said that presidents of several American universities were upset by the new policy which they felt was a violation of their rights to carry out teaching activities.
Several Chinese universities, including Shanghai Jiao Tong University, East China Normal University and Shanghai Normal University, have collaborated with US colleges to establish Confucius Institutes.
"This will affect Chinese language teaching in the United States,'' Liu Jianxin, an official with Shanghai Jiao Tong University's School of International Education, told Shanghai Daily.
Liu said the university would be calling back all its teachers and student volunteers by the end of next month, a date that coincides with the end of the current semester.
The university has established Confucius Institutes with two US universities, one of which has temporarily suspended the admission of teachers from SJTU.
Sun Yi, an official at East China Normal University's foreign affairs office, said she learnt the news from the media and would be discussing the situation with university leaders to find a solution.
The university has established five Confucius Institutes.
No one at Shanghai Normal University was available for comment yesterday.
China's Foreign Ministry said yesterday that Chinese authorities are communicating with US officials for a proper solution to the issue.
Ministry spokesman Hong Lei told a news briefing that China hopes programs won't suffer because of the policy.
In a policy directive issued on May 17, the State Department said it was reviewing the credentials of Confucius Institutes which are university-based, Chinese-sponsored language and cultural centers, and said that these institutes should gain certification from the US government before carrying out teaching activities in American universities.
However, the directive did not say where certification could be obtained.
Similar cultural establishments such as Germany's Goethe Institute and France's Alliance Francaise don't have to apply for certification, yesterday's People's Daily reported.
Officials at the Confucius Institutes in the University of Maryland and George Mason University said they were bewildered by the decision and were communicating with authorities regarding certification.
The Confucius Institute, named after the Chinese philosopher and educator Confucius (551-479 BC), is a nonprofit institution aimed at promoting Chinese language and culture in foreign countries.
There are more than 350 Confucius Institutes and 500 Confucius Classrooms around the world. These include 81 institutes and 299 classrooms in 48 states of the US.
An official at the Confucius Institute headquarters said the directive could harm the Sino-US friendship, Xinhua news agency reported.
The official said all of its centers around the world, including those on American campuses, were voluntarily requested by foreign partners, approved by the headquarters and jointly operated with Chinese colleges.
The Chinese teachers were carefully selected and trained by both sides in an effort to help American elementary and secondary school students learn Mandarin and understand Chinese culture, the official said.
The People's Daily said that presidents of several American universities were upset by the new policy which they felt was a violation of their rights to carry out teaching activities.
Several Chinese universities, including Shanghai Jiao Tong University, East China Normal University and Shanghai Normal University, have collaborated with US colleges to establish Confucius Institutes.
"This will affect Chinese language teaching in the United States,'' Liu Jianxin, an official with Shanghai Jiao Tong University's School of International Education, told Shanghai Daily.
Liu said the university would be calling back all its teachers and student volunteers by the end of next month, a date that coincides with the end of the current semester.
The university has established Confucius Institutes with two US universities, one of which has temporarily suspended the admission of teachers from SJTU.
Sun Yi, an official at East China Normal University's foreign affairs office, said she learnt the news from the media and would be discussing the situation with university leaders to find a solution.
The university has established five Confucius Institutes.
No one at Shanghai Normal University was available for comment yesterday.
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