The University of Warwick has announced today that it is to establish a special scholarship fund in honour of Li Xiaoming, a graduate student at Warwick who was killed in Haiti while serving as a  Chinese peacekeeper - he was due to be awarded his degree in absentia at Warwick's degree ceremony today Thursday 21 January. 

Sadly it has been confirmed that Li Xiaoming died in the Haitian earthquake which struck on Tuesday 12 January. He was in Haiti with seven other Chinese peacekeepers. The Chinese delegation was attending a meeting at the UN Stabilization Mission in Port-au-Prince when the earthquake struck shortly before 5pm local time.

Li Xiaoming studied for an MA in International Relations in the University of Warwick’s Department of Politics and International Studies during the 2008-2009 academic year. 

Warwick’s Vice-Chancellor Professor Nigel Thrift said: "The sudden death of a student brings great sadness to all those who knew them. Li Xiaoming was a compassionate, kind and caring individual, dedicated to his peacekeeping work and with many friends both inside and outside the University. Our thoughts are with Xiaoming's family and friends at this sad time."

Li Xiaoming and his seven colleagues were hailed as martyrs as they were laid to rest in a televised Chinese state funeral attended by the country’s president and prime minister yesterday.

 

Link to external Chinese blog remembering Li Xiaoming:
http://blog.sina.com.cn/rememberxiaoming

For further information please contact:

Peter Dunn, Head of Communications,
University of Warwick, 024 76 523708 or
07767 655860 email: p.j.dunn@warwick.ac.uk

Pr4 21st January 2010  PJD