Union will hold a referendum to decide whether to quit the organisation which they say is beset by problems
The University of Hong Kong's students' union is to hold a referendum next month on whether to withdraw from the Hong Kong Federation of Students after complaints that the organisation was plagued by internal divisions and made little contribution to society.
Lam Ting-yu, chairman of the union council of the Hong Kong University Students' Union, said the decision to hold a referendum stemmed from students' complaints about the federation, an organisation of student representatives from seven tertiary institutions. Unions at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and Hong Kong Institute of Education are not affiliated.
Some HKU students claimed in a letter that the federation was beset by problems, including the loss of autonomy such that 'its stance often reflects the view of the society and certain civic groups'. 'Unclear accounts' were also being cited as a major problem, with expenses alleged to be running at HK$1 million last year.
The students demanded a referendum to be held to decide whether the students' union of HKU should stay in the federation.
Mr Lam said another problem the federation faced was that decisions were based on unanimity, which restricted the role of the federation to represent its members. 'A plan may fall through just because one or two members disagree with it,' he said. 'Sometimes action taken by the federation is not in line with what HKU students want.'
However, representatives of other universities have no intention to quit the federation.
