China’s Communist Party targets HKU student union

China’s Communist Party mouthpiece has launched a direct attack on the student union at the University of Hong Kong (HKU) – the city’s oldest and highest ranked institution – saying the student organisation ‘discredited’ national security education which is being proposed for universities across the city.

In what is being seen as an unusual direct intervention into university affairs of Hong Kong’s autonomous universities, the comment article in the People’s Daily this week said the HKU student union had “reached a point where it has to be controlled as it has been testing the bottom line crazily”.

The strongly worded attack comes just weeks after the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) effectively de-recognised its student union on national security grounds over potentially ‘unlawful’ remarks during the union’s campaign for its elected representatives. The action by the CUHK administration led to the resignation of the student union’s leadership.

Students at CUHK said it amounted to a campaign against student views on campus, designed to narrow and then eliminate the student voice. A student at HKU who asked to remain anonymous said that it signalled a “new battle” with Hong Kong student unions, “which will continue until all [student] unions are suppressed”.

In its article on 19 April, People’s Daily, which is the Communist Party’s mouthpiece, referred to a recent public letter to HKU President Xiang Zhang by the HKU Students’ Union (HKUSU) urging clarification of how the new National Security Law for Hong Kong would be implemented on campus.

Hong Kong’s Secretary for Education Kevin Yeung said in March that he had discussed its implementation with university heads in Hong Kong and that national security education for universities should be brought in by September.

It is being left to the universities themselves to draw up courses under the law which states that universities and schools are required to promote national security education. But students fear its top-down implementation without consultation with students could make it a continued source of tension on campuses.

The National Security Law imposed on Hong Kong by Beijing since July 2020 makes secession or advocating Hong Kong’s independence from China, subversion, terrorism and collusion with foreign or external forces a criminal offence punishable by up to life in prison.

People’s Daily article follows HKUSU open letter

HKUSU, in its open letter dated 16 April, noted widespread concerns over the vagueness and uncertainty of the law and how it will apply to universities, which was worrying many at the university, and said that implementation would destroy the autonomy of the city’s institutions.

Referring to a “crisis of institutional autonomy”, HKUSU also said the university was using national security as a guise to undertake “political tasks” at the institution. Unlike the Chinese mainland, where party political functions are the norm in university administrations, Hong Kong’s universities are not subservient to the party and its policies.

It added that in carrying out the law on campuses, the university was a “willing puppet” of the Hong Kong Education Bureau if not the Hong Kong government, in stifling academic development.

The letter pointed out that HKU’s vice president for teaching and learning, Ian Holliday, issued a letter on 18 March stating that the university would adhere to the principles of institutional autonomy and academic freedom to provide students with an academic space free from interference and inhibitions.

Reuters news agency reported that in his letter Holliday recommended that a group be set up within the university to protect academic freedom in conformity with the security law.

A new committee, comprising the vice president for teaching and learning and two associate deans from different faculties, would evaluate allegations of security law violations through academic and professional legal advice, according to the letter.

While the open letter pointed to legitimate concerns over campus freedoms, the People’s Daily indicated that the union had gone too far in criticising political changes in Hong Kong.

Union spoke out ‘provocatively’

The People’s Daily said that the student union had repeatedly spoken provocatively at critical times in Hong Kong such as when the amendments to Hong Kong’s mini-constitution annexes were passed, and on national security education day last week designed to promote the law in schools, and had blatantly smeared “one country, two systems”, undermining the constitutional order.

A recent statement by the union on ongoing changes to the city’s political system, in particular elections to the legislative council, was considered particularly provocative to Beijing.

In a statement on 7 April, the union criticised changes to the Hong Kong electoral system saying, “under a dreaded [new] electoral system, the conduct of nominations, voting and participation in elections has no practical meaning other than endorsement of the regime”.

It prompted a statement issued by the university administration on 10 April saying that the HKUSU’s view on changes to the political system “does not represent the position of the university, nor does it represent the views of the whole student population. The university strongly disagrees with HKUSU making the political declaration in an emotional manner.

“The HKUSU is an independent registered organisation. The university is currently reviewing the various arrangements it has all along provided for HKUSU to clearly define the rights and responsibilities of all parties involved.

“The university reiterates that everyone should abide by the law and take responsibility for one’s acts.”

The People’s Daily listed some other perceived wrongdoings of the student group including publishing articles in Undergrad, the student union publication, that support independence for Hong Kong; spending public funds on pro-democracy media outlets in a show of support to Jimmy Lai, the founder of Apple Daily, who last week was jailed for his role in peaceful protests in Hong Kong in 2019, and hosting an art exhibition “that glorified violence”.

The latter was a reference to the screening of a documentary about jailed pro-democracy activist and HKU alumnus Edward Leung, which was planned to be screened by HKUSU in February. It could not be held on campus after a warning of possible “serious legal concerns and consequences” from the HKU administration indicated that security guards could be deployed to prevent the screening if it went ahead.

The People’s Daily accused the student union of attempting to lure other students into their trap, describing the union as “a group of thugs hiding on campus”.

The editorial called for reform of Hong Kong education, which had gone astray, to remove the “malignant tumour” in the ivory tower and to purge it of “poisonous students and teachers”.

Those who play with fire will get burned, it warned. “Sooner or later, they will be punished under the law.”