Advertisement

Letters | Lessons for Hong Kong from Polytechnic University siege: losing anger and gaining trust amid the tear gas

  • How staff, faculty and students came together to listen, share feelings and build trust

Reading Time:3 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
0
The ICC (International Commerce Centre) is seen in the distance through damaged glass at Hong Kong Polytechnic University. The campus became the focal point of some of the worst violence in more than five months of anti-government protests. Photo: AFP
These thoughts come to mind in the midst of the crisis in Hong Kong, when my own Polytechnic University has been in the news day and night these past weeks.
Staff, faculty, and students in the PolyU residences have also stayed up day and night, trying to ensure safety beyond just protocols, moving the university’s materials to safe locations under the threat of petrol bombs and tear gas – literally walking through conflict zones.

Fortunately, the residences are a five-minute walk from the main campus, though definitely close enough for students to feel the tension, which has resulted in many of them leaving Hong Kong. I cannot speak highly enough of our residential faculty, staff, and student teams, both local and non-local, who have shared information and rendered service unconditionally.

While there had thankfully not been much physical violence among our students on the residential campus, there had been outbursts of anger and verbal altercations. To defuse such situations, and rebuild the hope and relational trust that has been lost in our education system, we strived to listen closely to various local and non-local groups of non-violent students and found them more than ready to share their thoughts.

Going forward, we encourage staff, faculty, and students to:

  • listen attentively, and turn apathy/escapism/distraction into healthy engagement. We want to turn a fearful environment into one which celebrates diverse communities and which is grateful, despite the things that still need to change.
  • find ways to collaborate with and serve those different than ourselves, honour the cultural “other”, learn to see divisive issues from different perspectives, because even if we disagree, we don’t need to be disagreeable.
  • focus on the good that stakeholders with different opinions and cultures are doing, to overcome the parochialism, polarisation and violence that we have seen.
  • share negative feelings in healthy ways with at least one person every day, face-to-face, so that feelings will not leak out in bursts of anger.
  • ask themselves, “What small thing can I do to engender trust and hope in my immediate circle – friends, those who are culturally different, family, professors, teachers, and the authorities – and among each other?”

This, I think, is true education and will lead to the betterment of Hong Kong.

Ivan Chung, residential life manager, Office of Student Resources and Residential Life, Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Advertisement