Thousands sign petition demanding CY Leung is stripped of honorary title

An online petition demanding that a Hong Kong university withdraw an honorary academic title awarded to Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying has garnered thousands of signatures from students, alumni and staff.

The appeal – which had more than 7,000 signatures by Sunday evening – calls for Polytechnic University to withdraw the “Honorary Outstanding PolyU Alumni” title given to Leung in 1997 because of his handling of pro-democracy protests, as Occupy Central enters its third week.

“My purpose is to put political pressure on him and to make him reflect on his actions. Many staff and students don’t agree with what he has been doing,” said Dr Steven Tsang Wai-fan, an assistant professor at the university who initiated the petition on October 1. Tsang is from the university’s department of building and real estate, from which Leung graduated in 1974.

“He might not listen to the Hong Kong population at large, but this may have a stronger effect on him,” Tsang said. “This is not a personal vendetta against him. We just hope to be a voice that he can hear.”

Police use of tear gas against pro-democracy protesters on September 28 created “more dissatisfaction and anger” towards Leung, said Tsang, who was on the front line in Admiralty that day. “The demonstration was largely very peaceful and for a good cause. There was no reason to take such a hard line,” he said.

Tsang hopes the petition will help put further pressure on Leung to respond to the protesters’ demands and make a “more compromising decision”, adding that he wanted “to avoid a bloodbath”.