Furious students plan protests in Hong Kong next week over meddling in governing councils' appointments
Lingnan University and Chinese University students are staging protests next week as their institutions' governing councils meet over controversies involving how the government is handling appointees to the influential bodies.
Lingnan University and Chinese University students are staging protests next week as their institutions' governing councils meet over controversies involving how the government is handling appointees to the influential bodies.
Concerns about political interference with academic freedom and institutional autonomy at local universities spread across the higher education community after the University of Hong Kong's council voted down pro-democracy Professor Johannes Chan Man-mun's candidacy for a key managerial post last month.
READ MORE: University of Hong Kong council's weak argument for not appointing Johannes Chan only fuelled the criticism
At Lingnan, students are angry about Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying's recent appointment of two pro-establishment figures to their university council: former Law Society president Junius Ho Kwan-yiu and solicitor Maggie Chan Man-ki. Both were visible opponents of last year's pro-democracy Occupy movement.
The student union plans to confront the newcomers when Lingnan's council meets on Monday and ask them for their stance on academic freedom.
Union president Philip Lau Chun-lam said if their answers did not "align with staff and students' positions, we might take further action".
Both Ho and Chan denied having a political agenda against Lingnan's academic freedom.