Vice-chancellor, targeted by pro-Beijing factions, to quit

In a move that has unsettled, but not entirely surprised, the academic community of Hong Kong, Rocky Tuan, vice-chancellor of the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK), announced his resignation this week after months of targeted criticism by pro-Beijing newspapers and legislators in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong-born Tuan took up the post of vice-chancellor of CUHK, one of the city’s top institutions, in January 2018. Despite criticism from pro-Beijing groups for supporting CUHK students during clashes with police during major unrest in Hong Kong in 2019, he had his tenure renewed in 2022. His current term was expected to run until 2026.

However, in a letter presented to the university council on 8 January, Tuan announced his resignation and said he would step down in January 2025.

In November, Hong Kong’s legislature, commonly known as LegCo, passed a controversial bill reforming CUHK’s governing council. The reform increased the number of external appointees to the governing body, reducing the influence of academics and staff on the university’s affairs.

Some legislators suggested the reform move was a response to the decision in 2022 to reappoint Tuan as vice-chancellor, which was heavily criticised by pro-Beijing factions.

Tuan referred to the governance changes in his resignation letter to the CUHK council, quoted in a university statement on the issue. Tuan said: “As the new governance structure is implemented following the amendment of the CUHK Ordinance, I believe now is an opportune moment for the university to search for a new vice-chancellor and president.”

The reform passed by LegCo downsized CUHK’s governing council from 55 to 34 members. A majority of 23 of the new-look council is to be external members and only 11 internal. The council has not yet been fully revamped, with members still being appointed.

Departure of vice-president

In December, shortly after the reforms passed through the legislature, Eric Ng, then vice-president of CUHK, who had served 16 years at the university, was sacked by the CUHK governing council with immediate effect.

Ng was one of 1,500 people who signed a petition in July last year to protest the reforms, saying the proposed changes would undermine the university’s academic freedom and institutional autonomy.

CUHK Council Chair John Chai said at the time the governing body “no longer had confidence” in Ng. His endorsement of the petition apparently sparked doubt among council members over his ability to remain neutral, according to Chai.

A source at CUHK said Tuan’s resignation, coming in the wake of Ng’s departure, was sudden but not surprising. “After the departure of Ng, his [Tuan’s] days were clearly numbered as Ng had been a strong supporter of the vice-chancellor. It was striking that when questioned [by media] about Tuan’s future after Ng’s departure John Chai repeatedly sidestepped the issue, which was not a good sign,” the source said.

Another CUHK academic told University World News, on condition of anonymity, that in today’s Hong Kong “it is not possible for a vice-chancellor to remain unaffected by politics, and it has become difficult to steer a middle course, much less remain neutral. Tuan has had a target on his back since 2019”, referring to his support for student protesters.

Criticism by lawmakers

Some pro-Beijing lawmakers also criticised Tuan for not turning up at LegCo meetings last year to discuss the CUHK reforms, prompting them to call for Tuan’s resignation.

“The vice-chancellor must have known that he would be subject to a ‘struggle session’ in LegCo,” said the CUHK academic, referring to aggressive denouncements prevalent during China’s 1960s Cultural Revolution. “It was clear that certain legislators wanted to attack Tuan personally rather than discuss the university’s governance,” the academic added.

However, Pricilla Leung, chair of the LegCo committee scrutinising the CUHK reform bill, said last year: “We are not targeting one person. Some people may really want him [Tuan] to resign, but whether he should stay or not should be decided by the new [reformed] council.”

She described the reforms as “moderate” and intended to improve administration of the university.

Last year CUHK was also singled out for the first ever audit of a university in the city by Hong Kong’s Audit Commission which one CUHK academic described as “a form of harassment” of the university’s leadership.

The government’s Education Bureau said in a statement that CUHK's governing body had been working to improve its structure. “The improvement of the CUHK’s governance standard and effectiveness marks an important step in Hong Kong’s higher education development,” it said.

University singled out

Lawmaker Tik Chi-yuen, a former CUHK council member, told local media he was shocked and saddened by Tuan’s resignation but added it came as no surprise. LegCo frequently targeted the institution, with Tuan’s management of the university being heavily criticised and Tuan’s performance being scrutinised politically.

He believed the university should be autonomous and free from political interference. Lack of autonomy can lead to a chilling effect and negatively impact the reputation of universities, and potentially discourage overseas scholars from coming to Hong Kong, Tik said.

A committee will be set up to advise the CUHK council on the appointment of its next vice-chancellor, CUHK said.

As with other universities in Hong Kong the search is likely to be global.

But “for university leaders with earlier careers in Western academia the climate in Hong Kong must have become stifling”, noted Carsten Holz, professor of social science at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST).

“Their profession requires them to uphold academic freedom and academic norms. The regime expects them to police their institutions. It is no surprise that at least four vice-chancellors of Hong Kong’s seven [publicly funded] universities recently resigned,” he told University World News in reference to the heads of HKUST, the University of Hong Kong, and now CUHK, who did not complete their terms, “or did not seek a second term”, he added, referring to Roland Chin, former head of the Hong Kong Baptist University, who opted to retire rather than seek another term at the helm.