97年后的缺席

海牙国际法庭的各位法官：

闲悉所谓的南海仲裁案，将于近期在海牙国际法庭宣判。中国政府对此的态度是明确的，那就是不参与，不接受，不承认。中国的代表将不会出现在南海仲裁案的法庭上，而这也注定无法成为对中国的缺席审判。说到缺席，我们的思绪被拉回到了97年之前，1919年。同样是在温和湿润的欧洲大陆上，中国的代表曾经经历另一次毅然的缺席：那便是中国代表拒绝在巴黎和会上签字。时隔97年，中国人变了吗？

1919年的中国，正处风雨飘摇，国力衰微之际。当时的民国政府，尚军阀割据，四分五裂。我们无力处理主权方面的争端，对外国的入侵也只能是默然许之。因此，在德国所侵占的胶东半岛和几座军港上，日本远征军进行了对德战争并成为了一战的战胜国。而在巴黎和会中，同样作为战胜国的中国却要蒙受领土被再度割占的耻辱，并被要求将山东划给日本。这一幕，在中国的爱国电影《建党伟业》中被完美重现，外交代表顾维钧拒绝签字时那气壮河山的演说。是的，山东是中国的领土，我们作为战胜国，凭什么要将自己国家的一部分，拿去送给日本人？

这样的话，说着是有底气的。当时的中国国内，刚刚爆发了五四运动，全体的年轻人，胸膛里都烧着爱国而愤怒的烈火。他们为国为民，支持外交人员，坚强不屈。正是这一砖一瓦地堆垒起来的中国青年的爱国心，成就了当时羸弱的国家的底气。近百年后的今天，面对所谓的裁决和所谓的协约，中国人再次缺席，又是因为领土主权的争执。而这次，站在中国的外交家背后的，已不只是热血沸腾的学子，更是蒸蒸日上的国家实力。

西汉名将陈汤曾在给汉元帝的上书中表示，明犯强汉者，虽远必诛。这句话成为了支撑百代中国人维护主权和领土完整的口号。疆不分远近，地不分大小，人不分男女老幼，而敌之犯我，必共抗之。如果到了海权意识迅速发展的21世纪，还有国家抱着中国会在遥远的一隅小岛上“放水”的幻想，那么就是大错特错。无论这块疆土位于中国的什么地方，无论它富庶抑或荒凉，都是中国神圣不可分割的一部分，舍弃了，便是对历史的背叛，对未来的失职。我们必须对青年负责，对未来负责。也许法庭会对此感到疑惑，既然中国人如此在意南海星罗棋布的列岛，何不参与到对菲仲裁中，而选择了缺席呢？

答案是，我们从未缺席。

人活在世，行文处事，都要讲究方式方法，国家间的交往亦然。中国从形式上缺席了南海的仲裁，正是因为它形式上的不合法。我们无必向各位法官重申中国政府的观点，也无必重述我们与南海各方间双边解决的协议，我们只需要向各位法官表态，在道德为王的法庭上，中国不会缺席；在主权攸关的审判上，中国不会缺席；在实力写就的历史上，中国不会缺席。97年前中国代表缺席了巴黎和会签字，是对主权一种无可奈何的自保；而今天中国人的缺席，是因为我们正将更多的精力放到真正地解决问题的途径上。习近平主席曾言，空谈误国，实干兴邦。当中国的青年正奋力团结于中国梦的感召之下，为全面提升祖国的实力而奋斗时，来自地球另一端的弦外之音便早已如熏风过耳，虽吹毫而不惊了。

王毅外长近日答阿拉伯媒体记者问时，回应说自己不喜欢将某个世纪叫做某个国家的世纪，无论是“美国的20世纪”还是“中国的21世纪”。因为每个世纪的命运乃至人类的命运，都是各国人民自己书写的。但这只如椽的巨笔，必须按照各国人民能够接受的方式落下，必须沿着公平正义的轨迹写就，而绝非按照某些国家所提出的南海国际化等下策，在一片狺狺中草草收篇。面对错综复杂的国际局势和变幻多端的南海风云，中国人过去没有缺席，今天不会缺席，未来更不会缺席——并且会制定属于自己的游戏规则，孰胜孰负，还请诸君拭目以待。

就是这样一群普通的青年人，在忙碌的学习生活之余，向海牙同样忙碌的法官们写完了这样一封信。无论我们的年龄悬殊之大、地位尊卑之显，我们显然都没有过多的时间去领味生命中的嘈杂，那么不妨躬亲戮力，都多去做一点实事——“牢骚太盛防肠断，风物长宜放眼量”。

此致

敬礼！

南开大学 姚 春

燕山大学里仁学院 王 玥

山西大学 季 明

内蒙古工业大学 贾金晓

吉林大学 马 晨

华东政法大学 阚 琪

苏州大学 朱 琳

宁波大学 姚丹春

合肥工业大学 汪 斌

厦门大学 蔡晓娜

福建师范大学 郑 鹰

南昌大学 吴雪晨

山东大学 李 彤

郑州大学 喻 耀

湖南大学 王文娟

湘潭大学 陈绪林

华南理工大学 吴芷亦

广东东软学院 江旭东

北京科技大学 吕 鑫

大同大学 程升誉

东北农业大学 李树爱

东华大学 傅 煌

河南理工大学 闫李月

河南工程学院 彭托娅

2016年5月28日

Absence after 97 years

Distinguished judges from the Hague：

It is said that the so-called Arbitration on the South China Sea will declare its result in the International Court of Justice in Hague in the near future. The Chinese government has already clearly stated its stance, that is non-participation, non-acceptance, and non-recognition. Chineserepresentativeswill be absent in the court, so it is impossible to bring the trial with China’s absence. Concerning the China’s absence, it dates back to 1919. 97 years ago, also on the European continent, with its mild and wet climate, the Chinese representatives resolutely chose to be absent by refusing to sign the treaties of the Paris Peace Conference. After these 97 years, could we Chinese change our standing?

Exhausted and deprived, China in 1919 was plagued by foreign aggression and internal conflicts. The nationalist government at that time was tore apart by the warlords. China was impotent in handling the sovereignty disputes, so she had to remain silent in the face of foreign aggression. On the Shandong Peninsula and military ports occupied by Germany, which is the properties of China, Japanese expeditionary force launched attack against Germany and became a victor in WWI. While China, also a victor in WWI, had to endure another humiliation of losing territory and was demanded to cede Shandong to Japan during the Paris Peace Conference . This scene was vividly reproduced in the patriotic filmA blockbuster Founding of the Republicwhen Chinese representative Gu Weijun refused to sign the treaty and delivered a sublime and heroic speech. Undoubtedly, Shandong is the territory of China. And why could we China, being the victor of the war, give away a part of our country to Japan?

These words are well-founded. Because the May 4^thMovement just broke out at that time, during which all the young Chinese, with the burning flame in the heart with patriotism and indignation, gave their perseverant support to the diplomats for the sake of nation and people. What to build the foundation of this weak country were exactly those patriotic souls of young Chinese. Today, after nearly a century, the Chinese are once again absent from the so-called arbitration and agreement concerning territory and sovereignty dispute. And at this time, the backbone of these diplomats are not only the students burning with righteous indignation, but also a country with surging power.

A well-known general of the Western Han dynasty, Chen Tang has written in a memorial to the throne that for those who encroaches upon we great China, we shall be bound to revenge no matter how far they run away! This sentence has become a slogan which supports hundred generations of the Chinese to safeguard the sovereignty and territorial integrity of China. When enemy invades, no matter how far the frontier is, no matter how little the territory is, all the Chinese, men, women, young and old, will rise up and fight back. In the 21st century, when sea power conscience is in full fledge, anyone who bears the illusion that China will shrink back and give up a little island because of its vast distance is committing a serious mistake. All territories, far or near, rich or desolate, are sacred parts of China. It constitutes the treason to the history and dereliction to the future. We must be responsible to the young Chinese and our future. The court may have such doubt that since China attaches such an importance to the scattered islands in the South China Sea, then why does it choose to be absent instead of taking part in the arbitration against the Philippines?

The answer is, we are never absent.

The manner holds the key for a man living in this world. This applies to the international relations. China is seemingly absent because the arbitration on the South China Sea is apparently illegal. It is unnecessary to reiterate the stance of Chinese government to you judges, let alone the bilateral agreement China signed with the parties concerned. All we need to do is to inform all the judges that in a court where ethic is the rule, China is never absent; in a trial where sovereignty is at stake, China is never absent; in the history written by power, China is never absent. The China’s absence 97 years ago demonstrates that China at that time had no choice if she would defend her sovereignty. But today the absence is due to the fact that we concentrate on the practical solutions to solve the problem. President Xi Jinping has said that empty talk will hamper the development of country, while solid work will revitalize the country. The contemporary young Chinese are united by the inspiration of Chinese dream in their struggle for a prosperous China, and the inharmonious sound from the other end of the world will no longer be disturbing.

Recently，Foreign minister Wang Yi responded the inquiry from a Arab media reporter, he said he didn't like naming a century as “a nation’s century，whether it is “the 20th century of the United States”or “the 21st century of China”. Because the fate of every century，and even the fate of human beings are written by the world people. But like a rafter, this giant pen must follow the way people from different countries can accept, must be written along the path of justice, rather than following an unwise strategy some countries have put forward which is to internationalize the problem of the South China Sea, then solve this problem hastily. In the complicated international environment and the changeable situation of the South China Sea, the Chinese had not been absent in the past, not absent today, and definitely not absent in the future, and they will make their own game rules, so who will be the winner or loser, let’s wait and see.

This letter comes from a group of ordinary young people, in the busy study life, which express out feeling to you similarly busy judges in the Hague. No matter how different between you and us on age and status, obviously, we have not too much time to taste the noise in life, so we are supposed to do something practical, just like a poetry says, “Too much complaint would make your heart break; so look farther when you make judgment .”

With respect！

Yours sincerely,

Nankai University Yao Chun

Liren College of Yanshan University Wang Yue

Shanxi University Ji Ming

Inner Mongolia University of Technology Jia Jinxiao

Jilin University Ma Chen

East China University of Political Science and Law Kan Qi

Suzhou University Zhu Lin

Ningbo University Yao Danchun

Hefei University of Technology Wang Bin

Xiamen University Cai Xiaona

Fujian Normal University Zheng Ying

Nanchang University Wu Xuechen

Shandong University Li Tong

Zhengzhou University Yu Yao

Hunan University Wang Wenjuan

Xiangtan University Zheng Xulin

South China University of Technology Wu Zhiyi

Neusoft Institute,Guangdong Jiang Xudong

University of Science & Technology Beijing Lv Xin

Datong University Cheng Shengyu

Northeast Agricultural University Li Shu’ai

Donghua University Fu Huang

Henan Polytechnic University Yan Liyue

Henan Institute OfEngineering PengTuoya

May the 28th，2016