Letters | If Hong Kong protests are descending into mob rule, universities and schools share some of the blame

Reading Time:2 minutes

People walk past protest graffiti and posters on the grounds of Chinese University’s Sha Tin campus in Hong Kong on September 27. Photo: AFP

Published: 6:25am, 15 Oct 2019Updated: 6:25am, 15 Oct 2019

Outbreaks of violence have deteriorated into a race to the bottom. In the past, people opposing the “revolution of our times” were beaten up by black-clad gangs. Now, the chilling effect has spread to academia.

Mr Chan Wai-keung, a lecturer at Hong Kong Community College, a self-financed extension of Polytechnic University, was recently detained for hours by students upset that he had criticised “violent protesters”.

Like every Hongkonger, Chan has every right to protect himself by seeking the police’s help, especially given the prima facie evidence of false imprisonment and his concern for his personal safety. Yet, it was reported that the college did not allow the police to come to Mr Chan’s rescue.

By not allowing the police to enter the campus, the college not only denied Mr Chan’s legitimate rights, but also in effect assisted the students in detaining and putting undue pressure on Mr Chan. By reassigning Mr Chan to non-teaching duties and promising to further investigate the matter, the college flatters the students at Mr Chan’s expense. No doubt this is the easy way out for the college, but it is simply not the right thing for an educational institution to do.

Perhaps, the college, as a self-financed institution, takes the attitude that the customer is always right. But doesn’t it at least have a civic duty to stop wrongdoing, if not crime, on campus? Doesn’t it have a duty to educate students about having basic respect and courtesy for their own teachers and fellow citizens? Doesn’t it, as well as other universities and schools, partly share the blame for the complete breakdown of decency among some of our youngsters?