With raising the youth of both Japan and China to shoulder the goodwill enterprise between the countries as its objective, the Japanese side of the "China-Japan Youth Amity Exchange" was opened in the Okuma Auditorium on May 8th. Waseda University alum Yasuo Fukuda and Chinese national chairman Hu Jintao (in Japan as a state guest) were in attendance. Prior to the opening ceremony, Chairman Hu gave a special lecture naming Waseda University (which has celebrated the 125th anniversary of its founding) as having welcomed Chinese exchange students since the start of the 20th century and having a deep historic bond with China. In front of roughly 900 invited students and exchange students, both from Waseda University and similar and from Japanese and Chinese high schools, he reflected on his own youthful exchange experiences and told his audience that, "the youth of Japan and China are the hope for Chinese-Japanese amity, and the future of that amity is something which you will open up for us."
Chairman Hu also said, "We must strive together, sowing the seeds of Chinese-Japanese amity widely, and pass its banner down to our children and our children's children." Along with similar future-oriented messages, speaking on behalf of the Chinese government, he publicly announced his plan to invite 100 Waseda University students to China on exchange. When he told the audience "I hope that all the students here today participate in this exchange program and come to see China," he was met with great applause from the auditorium.
After the ceremony, Chairman Hu played table tennis against the team of Ai Fukuhara (Beijing Olympics table tennis representative, sports science club, second year) and Chinese athlete Wang Nan (who took home gold medals in both the Sydney and Athens Olympic games) in the Okuma Garden House. He exhibited a smash which surpassed the Olympic athletes', and the 100 students gathered there cheered. Chairman Hu said, in closing, "The seeds we've sown today will, without fail, grow into a great tree of amity. I hope for the friendship between the Chinese and Japanese peoples to be passed down from generation to generation." With these parting words, he left Waseda University.
