Publisher rejects bias

The director of the National Education Services Centre, which published a booklet to be used for national education in schools, says calls to ban it are nothing more than political suppression and censorship.

The 34-page government-funded booklet entitled The China Model is intended for use as a reference book for liberal studies courses in secondary schools in Hong Kong. Critics, mainly pan-democrats, say the contents of the booklet are biased and try to convince students to accept Beijing's authority.

Last week, Education Minister Eddie Ng Hak-kim said the booklet's content was 'problematic' and it should not be used in schools.

The Advanced Institute for Contemporary China Studies, which edited the book, accused the critics of taking some of the booklet's contents out of context to suit their political needs.