Dear fellow Chinese students and scholars:

We are hereby announcing our candidacies for the President and the Vice President of the Independent Federation of Chinese Students and Scholars (IFCSS).

We would like to take this opportunity to share with you why we are running for the office, what you can expect from our term, and how we are going to conduct it if we are elected. We have attached our biographic information at the end of this announcement for your detailed reference.

With the support of its constituents and the hard work of many Chinese student and scholar (CSS) activists, through points of high and low, IFCSS has become a symbol of the CSS community, source of help and inspiration, and a ground where we can come together, interact, and make contributions to the development of our organization, our community and our homeland. In essence, IFCSS is an institution truly of our own. At the same time, it has accomplished several tasks which are far beyond what an ordinary CSS organization could do, and is still today the most influential CSS organization at the national level in this country.

However, what IFCSS is faced with now is no less challenging than before. Five years after "6.4", with CSPA and MFN lobbying activities entered into the history book, IFCSS is now at the crossroads. If IFCSS ignores the problems accumulated in the past few years and the changes in the composition of CSS and their concerns, if the trend of decreasing participation continues, if we the constituents do not rise to the occasion and meet the challenges, IFCSS may soon lose its legitimacy as an organization representing the CSS community in the US. This is indeed the time for all CSS to reflect what and how IFCSS has done in the past and to ponder over what and how IFCSS ought to do next.

IFCSS is not and should not become a political organization. The goals of IFCSS designated by its constitution can never be achieved by a few people working in the Headquarters alone, or a small circle of "elite activists". The current orientation and operation modes of IFCSS, which may have helped in some of IFCSS's past successes, are not adequate for the organization to face the new challenges of the coming era.

If we are elected, we will work with you earnestly and diligently to resolve the problems which hinder the participation of CSS in IFCSS in order to re-earn your trust in IFCSS, to restore the credibility and protect the integrity of IFCSS, to build a professionalized non-profit organization which can stand the test of time, and to renew the sense of pride in our organization with vision, standard, and determination. We will ensure that IFCSS does represent the CSS community, its majority views on major issues, its diversity in orientations and pursuits, and in particular, its concerns with and participation in the economic, social and political development of China as well as our community itself.

We are announcing our candidacies now because we are convinced that only by reaching out early and directly to the CSS community, could we have sufficient time and opportunities to communicate with you, the true constituents of IFCSS, on whose behalf we shall run our campaign. We will present our positions on important issues and our platform in the following weeks before the Annual Convention of IFCSS on July, 21-25. All comments, questions and criticisms are welcome.

We appeal to you for support.

If you feel the same way as we do about the future of IFCSS and our community, please join in our crusade for a more representative IFCSS and more prosperous community!

Together, we CAN do it!

----------------------------------------------------------------------- Biographic information of Luo Ning:

Last Name: Luo (camel)
First Name: Ning (tranquility)

Research Associate
Department of Physiology and Biophysics
Mount Sinai School of Medicine
One Gustave L. Levy Place
New York, NY 10029

Tel: (212)241-1613
E-mail: nluo@msvax.mssm.edu

Home phone & FAX: (718)426-1963

Education:

Undergraduate study in physics, Lanzhou University, 1973-1976
Graduate study in physics, Zhejiang University, 1979-1981
PhD in physics, Cornell University, 1981-1987
(came to US through the first year nation-wide CUSPEA program)

Career Experiences:

1971.8-1973.8: Farmer (cha1 dui4)
Ning County, Gansu
1976.9-1979.8: Technician
Wuhan Iron and Steel Company

1987.6-1988.5: Lecturer
Dept. of Physics, Cornell University
1988.7-1989.2: Visiting Scholar
Dept. of Physics, State University of New York, Buffalo
Research area: Solid state physics, high Tc superconductivity
1989.3-1992.11: Postdoctoral Research Affiliate
Dept. of Biophysics
Roswell Park Cancer Institute
Research area: Computer simulation and modeling of
biomolecular interactions
1993.1-now: Research Associate
Department of Physiology and Biophysics
Mount Sinai School of Medicine
Research area: Computational and theoretical studies of
radiation damages to DNA.

Other experiences:

Participated in drafting the open letter protesting the "Anti-bourseois Liberalization Campaign" (1987) (the letter was signed by thousands of overseas Chinese students and scholars)

Drafted by-laws for two local Chinese student and scholar associations (CSSA) (Cornell University, 1987; SUNY at Buffalo, 1989)

Member of coordinating group for Upstate New York CSSA's (1989.6-7)

Delegate to IFCSS annual conventions (1990, 1991, 1992, 1993)

Member of Supervisory Committee, IFCSS, (1990.7-1991.7)

Member of Board of Directors, June Fourth Memorial Fund Buffalo, New York (1991-1992)

Member of Board of Directors, China Academic Link, (1993.1-1994.6)

Vice President and member of Board of Directors, America-China Exchange Promotion (1993-1994)

Editor-in-Chief of network journal "Chinese Community Forum" (1993.9-1994.4)

IFCSS CBS Incident Committee, East Coordinator

Conference: "China: The Crisis of 1989" (February 1990) State University of New York, Buffalo Co-organizer Conference proceeding: "China: The Crisis of 1989. Origins and Implications" Roger V DesForges, Luo Ning and Wu Yen-bo eds. (1990) Council on International Studies and Programs, State University of New York at Buffalo, Special Studies No. 158 Vols I and II. Book: "Chinese Democracy and the Crisis of 1989. Chinese and American Reflections" Roger V DesForges, Luo Ning and Wu Yen-bo eds. State University of New York Press, Albany, 1993.

Hobbies:

Reading histories, novels, essays, etc.;
Traveling by car, camping in mountains, swimming;
Discussing with friends on unconfined topics;
Wandering about the netland.

----------------------------------------------------------------------- Biographic information of Liu Chengyan:

Name: Chengyan Liu

Economics Department
Washington University
St. Louis, MO 63130

e-mail: cliu@wuecon.wustl.edu
Tel: (314)-726-7971

Education

1980.9-1984.6 National University of Defense & Tech.
1987.9-1990.12 Automation Insititute of Ministry of Machinary & Electronic Industry (AIMMEI)
1991.9-present Washington University at St. Louis

Other Experiences

1984.7-1987.8 System Analyst Tianjing Software Company 1991.1-1991.7 Branch Manager
Changsha Optical Instruments Company

Activities

Graduate Students Coordinator for pro-demoncratic demonstrations at AIMMEI, withdraw from TAM Square June 4th around 7:20 a.m. (1989.5-6)

Delegate to IFCSS 5th Congress (1993)

One of the founding members of LCnet (1993.7)

LCnet News Release Editor-in-Chief (1993.7)

Chair, LCs Working Committee (1993.8-9)

Great St. Louis Chinese Club secretary (1993.8-1994.2)

Chair, IFCSS New Comers Working Committee (1993.10-1994.6)

IFCSS E-fund selection committee member (1993.10-1994.6)

Chinese Economists Society (since 1993.10)

IFCSS Consultation Service Committee member (1994.2-1994.6)

CND Writer Coordinator (1994.1-1994.6)

CND Source Coordinator (1994.4-1994.6)

CND Global Coordinator (1994.5-1994.6)

IFCSS CBS Incident Committee Mid-West Coordinator and Spokesman (since 1994.5)

Hobbies

Soccer, Philatelist, Classic Music, Travel