Mr Peng Gaojian is the winner of this year’s AusAID Scholarships Alumni Award and is currently the Deputy Director-General, Department of Politics, Human Resources and Social Security of the Legislative Affairs Office of the State Council in Beijing. He spoke to Sophie Loras.

While Peng Gaojian was studying towards his Graduate Diploma in International Economics at the University of Adelaide and a Masters of Commerce at Curtin University of Technology (as the recipient of an AusAID scholarship programme) during the late ‘90s and into 2000, China was in the process of negotiating its accession to the WTO. The skills Peng Gaojian says he learnt during his time in Australia, played a role in his assisting in drafting documents and legislation towards China’s ascension to the WTO upon his return to China.

Peng Gaojian has worked in various positions within the State Council over the last 20 years and has published several books relating to his legal work and research. He has participated in the legislative work of more than 10 laws and regulations in China, mainly in the field of human resources, social security, anti-corruption, ethnic affairs and religious affairs.

Peng Gaojian
Deputy Director-General, Department of Politics, Human Resources and Social Security of the Legislative Affairs Office of the State Council in Beijing
University of Adelaide / Curtin University of Technology
Winner: 2010 AusAID Scholarships Alumni Award

In 1999, when I returned to work in Beijing, I took part in the final negotiations for China’s accession to the WTO and what I learned in Australia contributed greatly to my negotiation work.

The time I spent in Australia left a good memory for me. I learned a lot during that period, including my studies of economics, especially in gaining knowledge about the WTO and then going to Canberra where I worked for DFAT as an intern for two weeks and got some Australian civil servants’ work life experience. I visited Parliament and watched some political debates. The democratic debates left a very deep impression.

The Legislative Affairs Office of the State Council is a key legislation agency within the Central government of China and nearly 70 percent of laws and drafts and all of the administrative regulations of drafts are scrutinized and reviewed by the Office. In the past three decades, China has enacted more than 200 laws and 700 administrative regulations and I am lucky to have witnessed the process of building a socialist country ruled by law.

From 2004 to 2007, I worked in Lhasa as the Director-General of the Legislative Affairs Office of the Tibet Autonomous Region and in 2008, I was a visiting scholar in Harvard Law School. All of these experiences have enriched my career. ■

To read more about the winners of the 2010 Australia China Alumni Association Awards, click here.

For more information about the Australia China Alumni Association and for the full list of 2010 Australia China Alumni Award finalists, visit: www.austchinaalumni.org