Five things to know about Arthur Li’s appointment as HKU council chairman
A strong ally of Hong Kong’s chief executive and a confrontational style virtually guarantee that ‘King Arthur’ will be a polarising leader
1. Who is Arthur Li?
Professor Arthur Li Kwok-cheung, 70, was born in Hong Kong in 1945 into the city’s powerful Li family. He is the grandson of the co-founder of the Bank of East Asia, Li Koon-chun, and brother of its current chairman, David Li Kwok-po. He studied medicine at Cambridge University in Britain.
He returned to the city in 1982 and became the founding chairman of the department of surgery at Chinese University. He was promoted to the post of dean of the university’s medical faculty in 1992; four years later, Li secured an appointment as the university’s fourth vice-chancellor.
READ MORE: ‘Very poor choice’: Howls of protest as Arthur Li is appointed Hong Kong University’s governing council chairman
But during his 14 years with the medical faculty, Li’s leadership style led some to refer to him as ‘King Arthur’ and even ‘the Tsar’. Li insisted he was by nature a “very gentle” person who enjoyed company and conversation.
Li left the university in 2002, and at the invitation of then-chief executive Tung Chee-hwa, he joined the administration as education chief.
Li retreated from the political limelight in 2007 after serving five years in government. He made a comeback in 2012 after he backed Leung Chun-ying for the city’s top job. At the start of his term as chief executive, Leung appointed Li a non-official member of the Executive Council.
In March, Leung appointed Li to serve as a member of the HKU council. On Thursday, Li was appointed the council’s chairman.
2. Why is Li so controversial?