More university students back independence – Poll

An online poll by a university magazine shows a growing number of Hong Kong students support independence for the former British colony, amid sliding confidence in the "one country, two systems" formula under which the city is governed, writes Donny Kwok for Reuters.

The findings come a month after Hong Kong's embattled leader Leung Chun-ying warned against the rise of separatism, after parts of the city were paralysed last year by more than two months of pro-democracy protests.

About 28% of 569 students polled by Undergrad, a student union magazine of the University of Hong Kong, supported independence, up from 15% in a similar poll early last year. Some 53% of respondents favoured the "one country, two systems" formula as the best political structure for Hong Kong, down from 68% in early 2014, according to the poll, done between 24 January and 5 February.
Full report on the Reuters site