Campus Digest

HKBU lecture by Professor Yoo Il-ho, Former Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Strategy and Finance of South Korea

Friday, 1 December 2023

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Distinguished guests (from left) of the lecture: Professor Clara Ho, Head of Department of History; Dr Albert Chau, Vice-President (Teaching and Learning) and Acting Dean of the Faculty of Arts; Professor Yoo Il-ho, Former Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Strategy and Finance of South Korea; Professor Alexander Wai, President and Vice-Chancellor; Professor Chen Zhi, Director of the Jao Tsung-I Academy of Sinology; Professor Johnny Poon, Associate Vice-President (Interdisciplinary Research).
Professor Yoo Il-ho and Professor Alexander Wai.
Professor Yoo gave a lecture titled “East and West: After the Third Century BCE”.
Guests of the dinner reception (from left): Professor Chen Zhi; Mr Yoo Hyungcheol, Professor Yoo Il-ho.
Visit of the Jao Tsung-I Academy of Sinology.

Held by the HKBU Jao Tsung-I Academy of Sinology and generously supported by the Eurasia Foundation (from Asia), the “Connecting Europe and Asia, Recasting the Glory: Lecture series of early encounters between Europe and Asia” took place on 17 November. Guest speaker Professor Yoo Il-ho, Former Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Strategy and Finance of South Korea, was invited to deliver an insightful lecture titled “East and West: After the Third Century BCE”.

Professor Yoo began his lecture by using the Han dynasty in China as a case study. Citing viewpoints offered by the Chinese classic Yantie Lun (Discourses on Salt and Iron) as a point of entry, he developed arguments that circled around perspectives on the government monopolies of salt, iron, and wine. He also discussed the debates in the Roman Empire on their economic policy and the laws pertaining to agricultural land and taxation.

He said that having solved these problems, both the East and West were able to embark on their journeys of development. He considered these “separate tributaries” as the starting point for divergence between East Asian and Western countries that had happened since the 19th century. He then elaborated on the issues of practical realities facing the East Asian society and summarised the strategies of the South Korean government in the past seven years. Likening history to a mirror, Professor Yoo inspired his audience with a deeper level of reflection and insight.

After the lecture, the Academy held a dinner reception for Professor Yoo, with the South Korean Consul-General in Hong Kong, Mr Yoo Hyungcheol, being one of the guests of honour. At the banquet, the distinguished guests continued to engage in profound discussions about the historical and political issues raised during the lecture.