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Coronavirus Hong Kong
OpinionLetters

Letters | As schools reopen, don’t discriminate between students based on vaccination

  • Barring unvaccinated children from music and sports classes deprives them of an integral part of education
  • Separating children in this way encourages discrimination, harms children physically and mentally, and disregards their well-being

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Secondary school students leave school in Shek Kip Mei on January 20, following the announcement of school suspensions. Photo: Sam Tsang
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The Hong Kong Committee on Children’s Rights is glad to hear the government’s announcement of the resumption of face-to-face classes in stages after the Easter holidays, so children can get back to normal school life.

We understand that the government requires teachers and students to take daily rapid coronavirus tests and to only return to school if they have negative results. It is hoped that as the number of confirmed cases falls, the frequency of tests can be gradually reduced.

However, our committee strongly disagrees with the proposed barring of unvaccinated schoolchildren from taking part in sports and music lessons. These activities are essential to children’s development and an integral part of education. They should not be separated from academics.

Since students must test negative every day before they can go to class, they should have the right to participate in all school activities. Unvaccinated students should not be discriminated against or marginalised.

Both the world and local health authorities have always emphasised that vaccination against Covid-19 is an effective way to reduce the occurrence of severe disease and mortality, but it is not the only means of preventing the spread of the virus. The World Health Organization does not make vaccination a prerequisite of students going to school and receiving education. Instead, WHO, Unicef and Unesco endorse the following eight expert recommendations developed by the WHO European Technical Advisory Group for schooling during Covid-19:

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