It is with great sadness that we announce that Dr James Ziang Mien Kung, our Chairman, passed away peacefully on Sunday, May 9th, 2010 at the age of 82.
We are particularly indebted to Dr Kung for the pivotal role he played in securing a collaborative agreement in 1999 between the Institut Pasteur and the then Faculty of Medicine of the University of Hong Kong (HKU). As a result of his tireless efforts, an agreement to establish the HKU-Pasteur Research Centre (HKU-PRC) was signed that year and the Centre was inaugurated in the year 2000. Dr Kung served as convenor of the HKU-Pasteur Foundation Preparatory Committee and was Chairman of the HKU-PRC. His contribution to our Centre, the Institut Pasteur International Network and our partnership with HKU cannot be fully expressed in words.
Dr Kung was a philanthropist who supported education and the pursuit of knowledge to benefit mankind. For his active role in promoting these values in the community, he received several awards, including an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from the Chinese University of Hong Kong in 1990, an honorary Doctor of Business Administration degree in 1991 from the then Hong Kong Polytechnic, an OBE in 1994, and an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from the University of Hong Kong in 2000. He was also Honorary Patron of the HKU Foundation. He was made Grand Officer of the Order of Merit of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg in 1994, and Commander in the Order of Leopold in 1997. In 2003, Dr Kung was awarded a Gold Bauhinia Star for his distinguished services to the Hong Kong community. He had strong ties with the French community in Hong Kong for many years. He was honoured in 2007 as Grand Officer dans L'Ordre National de la Légion d'Honneur. Dr James Kung will be sorely missed and warmly remembered by all those who knew him.
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