又到清明

A Day of Remembrance

 

驻马耳他大使姜江

H.E. Jiang Jiang, Chinese Ambassador to Malta

 

2019年4月9日

9 April 2019

 

 梨花风起正清明。4月5日是中国传统节日清明节，每年的这一天，人们都会前往墓园祭扫，缅怀逝去的亲人和朋友，寄托思念之情。清明节还是迎接生机的节日，因为初春的大自然又开始生机勃发，欣欣向荣。

The Chinese festival of clear brightness, or Qingming, falls on April 5 this year. It is a day when the Chinese visit the burying places of their lost loved ones and honor their memories. It is also a festival that celebrates life as nature thrives with renewed vitality in the spring season.

 

这天，我又一次来到保拉市阿多洛拉塔公墓，看望长眠于此的两位中国工程师徐会仲和谷岩昭。墓园安详静谧，斑驳的阳光洒在石碑上，尘世的喧嚣仿佛都已远去。

Once againI came to the Addolorata Cemetery on this day to pay my tribute to Mr. Xu Huizhong and Mr. Gu Yanzhao, the two Chinese engineers laid to rest here. Away from the hustle of the world outside, the cemetery was poignantly quiet, and their tombstones dappled with rays of sunshine.

 

肃立在墓碑前，我的思绪飘回到上世纪70年代。1972年，中马两国老一辈领导人高瞻远瞩，开启了中马外交关系，也翻开了中马交往史上崭新的一页。当时，中国在自身尚不富裕的情况下，向马耳他伸出援助之手，帮助马耳他建设30万吨级干船坞。1975年，工程破土动工，800多名中国专家和技术人员不远万里来到马耳他，同马方工程人员一道，克服重重困难与挑战，夜以继日忘我工作，于1980年建成了这座当时地中海地区最大的干船坞。它是公认的工程壮举，也是中马友谊的历史丰碑。即使在近40年后的今天，它仍然在为马耳他经济发挥着重要作用。正是在建设干船坞期间，两位中国工程人员献出了宝贵的生命。1979年，工程师徐会仲在一次机械检查中不幸被掉下的起重机螺母击中，以身殉职。同年，干船坞建设工程副总指挥谷岩昭因积劳成疾，患肝癌不幸逝世。

As I stood before the tombstones, thoughts started to drift back, all the way to the 1970s. I thought of the day in 1972 when China and Malta established diplomatic relations thanks to the strategic vision of the leaders of the older generation, the day when a new page was turned in the history of our exchanges. I thought of how China, though still quite poor itself in those days, helped Malta build the 300,000-ton dry dock. Construction of this project started in 1975 when more than 800 Chinese experts and engineers traveled thousands of miles to Malta and worked side by side with the local Maltese day and night, facing down many challenges and obstacles. In 1980, they completed the then biggest dry dock in the Mediterranean. Hailed as an engineering feat and standing as a monument of China-Malta friendship, Dock Six is still playing an important role in Malta’s economic development today. During its construction, two Chinese engineers lost their lives. In 1979, Mr. Xu Huizhong was hit by a falling crane nut in an on-site inspection, and died on duty. In the same year, Deputy Chief Commander of the project, Mr. Gu Yanzhao died of liver cancer under constant overwork.

 

中国传统文化讲究魂归故里，但两位烈士的家人决定将他们安葬在马耳他这个他们生活和战斗过的地方。一位马耳他友人对此解释说，他们的亲人是希望他们能够亲眼看到干船坞的建成，看到中马友谊不断发展下去。

In the Chinese tradition, one shall be laid to rest in his homeland. However, the families of the two engineers decided to have their loved ones buried here in Malta, the country where they had worked and lived for so long. I cannot help but recall how a Maltese friend made his explanation for such a decision: it showed the wish of their families for them to see the day when the dock was completed, and to see continued growth of the China-Malta friendship.

 

光阴荏苒，两位烈士长眠于此40年了。40年，他们深爱的祖国和马耳他都发生了翻天覆地的变化。今年是新中国成立70周年和马耳他独立55周年，中国从一个贫困落后的国家成长为全球第二大经济体，中华民族实现了从站起来、富起来到强起来的伟大飞跃，而马耳他经济也保持强劲增长，成为欧盟的一颗“明星”。

Time flies. The two Chinese engineers have been in rest here for 40 years. In these 40 years, both their beloved motherland and Malta have undergone tremendous changes. The People’s Republic of China will celebrate the 70th anniversary of its founding this year, and Malta the 55th anniversary of its independence. In the past four decades, China has developed from a poor and backward country into the second largest economy in the world. The Chinese nation has stood up, become richer and grown stronger. And Malta, with its sustained robust growth, has become a rising star in Europe.

 

40年，中马友谊却始终未变，并且不断向前发展。双方高层交往频繁，在涉及彼此核心利益和重大关切问题上相互理解和支持，建立了牢固的政治互信。两国开展了形式多样的互利合作，上海电力等一系列经贸项目顺利实施，给民众带来实实在在的好处。双方人文交流密切，中国文化中心、孔子学院、中医中心等文化和医疗机构在马耳他落地生根，不仅增进了两国人民之间的了解和友谊，也为中西方文明交流互鉴作出有益贡献。去年11月，穆斯卡特总理率团赴上海出席进博会开幕式，期间中马政府签署了“一带一路”合作谅解备忘录，为两国进一步拓展深化各领域合作勾画了蓝图。下一步，双方将携手努力，遵循共商、共建、共享原则，将意愿落实到行动、转化为成果，实现两国共同发展和共同繁荣，推动构建人类命运共同体。

The past 40 years have also witnessed the deepening of China-Malta friendship. We have maintained frequent height level exchanges and built a solid foundation for mutual political trust. The two sides have always supported each other on issues involving their core interests and major concerns. We have carried out diverse forms of win-win cooperation. A series of joint projects, e.g. the Shanghai Electric Power with Enemalta, that the two sides have undertaken have delivered tangible benefits to our two peoples. We have had close people-to-people exchanges with the China Cultural Center, the Confucius Institute and the Mediterranean Regional Center for Traditional Chinese Medicine up and running here in Malta. These institutions have contributed significantly to deeper understanding and friendship between our two countries and to mutual learning between the Chinese and Western cultures. Last November, the Hon. Prime Minister Muscat attended the first China International Import Expo in Shanghai, during which the two governments signed an MOU on Belt and Road cooperation, mapping out broader and deeper collaboration between our two countries in the new era. Going forward, the two sides will work closely to translate this blueprint into concrete actions and deliverables under the principle of consultation and collaboration for shared benefits. And we will work together in building a community with a shared future for mankind.

 

中国有句古话叫做“吃水不忘挖井人”。中马关系能够取得今天的巨大成就，离不开每一位关心两国关系发展的各行各业人士的辛勤付出，更是像徐会仲和谷岩昭这样的同志用汗水和热血铸就。令人欣慰的是，他们的英雄事迹没有被忘记，他们的奉献精神感染了无数致力于中马友好的人。每年马耳他朋友和在马的许多中国同胞都会到他们的墓前祭奠，感谢他们为中马关系作出的贡献。今天与我一同前来扫墓的有两位90后年轻同事。两位工程师去世时他们还未出生，但先辈的事迹同样感动和激励着他们。在他们身上，我看到了中马友好薪火相传的希望，也增强了我推动中马友好合作的决心和信心。

A Chinese proverb says, “When drinking water, forget not those who dug the well.” The relationship between China and Malta could not have grown to where it is today without the dedicated efforts made by those who care deeply about it, and more importantly, the dedication and sacrifice of people like Xu Huizhong and Gu Yanzhao. I take heart in the fact that instead of being forgotten, their heroic stories have inspired and still inspire many who are devoted to China-Malta friendship. Each year, many Maltese friends and Chinese in Malta come to the cemetery to pay their tribute, grateful for contributions of the two Chinese brothers to the China-Malta relationship. I was accompanied on my visit today by two young colleagues in their 20s. They were not born when the two engineers passed away, yet they are as touched and motivated by their stories. I see in these young people hope for a stronger China-Malta friendship generation after generation.

 

告别墓园，呈现在眼前的是一派春回大地，和煦美好的景象。

（无英文）

 

我相信，中马友谊也一定会保持盎然生机，不断创造辉煌。

And I feel more determined to do my level best for even closer ties between our two countries, and I am convinced that closer ties we shall enjoy.