As many of you know, President Jiang Zemin of the People's Republic of China will visit Harvard this Saturday to deliver an address in Sanders Theatre. In light of the discussion surrounding this visit, let me offer a few thoughts on the broader educational significance of such events, and why I believe they affirm the traditions and purposes of a community such as ours.

Harvard, for well more than a century, has had a deep interest in the understanding of China. The University is fortunate to be home to many programs and activities relating to China, including one of the world's leading centers for the study of China and of East Asia more generally: the John K. Fairbank Center for East Asian Research. At the initiative and request of the Center's director, Professor Ezra Vogel, Harvard more than a year ago extended an invitation for President Jiang to come to Harvard to deliver an address. Since then, Professor Vogel and others have worked energetically to bring about this Saturday's visit.

Over the decades, Harvard has opened its doors to a wide array of speakers when recognized faculty or other groups within the University initiate invitations to individuals from whom they wish to hear. I believe that this tradition serves a vital educational purpose. It enables members of our community to listen directly to the views of significant actors on the world stage, from the United States and abroad. At the same time, it can stimulate the vigorous expression of differing opinions and perspectives, and contribute to the free exchange of ideas that is a central part of the life of the University.

In this case as in others, when an invitation is extended to a speaker, the invitation does not represent an institutional endorsement of the speaker's particular point of view. Rather, it reflects a broader belief that we are ultimately stronger - as a University committed to education, reasoned discourse, and mutual understanding - if groups within our community have broad discretion to invite speakers of their own choosing, representing a wide range of perspectives and beliefs.

So, too, are our educational purposes advanced when the appearance of speakers on our campus stimulates reasoned discussion and debate on issues of vital importance. Thus, in addition to President Jiang's address this Saturday, the Fairbank Center and others within Harvard have scheduled a number of related events, so that a range of opinions can be openly expressed and heard.

Let us receive our visitor this Saturday in a manner that respects the interests of those members of our community who wish to hear from him. Let us also learn as much as we can from the other discussions that have been organized this week and next. While we, as individuals, may agree or disagree with speakers who take part in these events, I hope that we, as a university community, will all agree that knowledge is preferable to ignorance; that reasoned, civil, vigorous discourse advances our educational purposes; and that any effort to impose an institutional orthodoxy, in this context as in others, would be inimical to our central values.