Hundreds of Hong Kong students skip school in call for action on climate change, joining global day of protest
- Marchers urge Environment Bureau to give youngsters a voice when it comes to overseeing policies and driving bigger climate initiatives
- Parents gave students permission to join strike but education authorities called event a disruption to learning
Around 1,000 children skipped classes and took to the streets with their parents on Friday to urge the Hong Kong government to stop turning a blind eye to climate change.
Friday was the only day the Hong Kong pupils could get away with skipping classes, as they had handed in parents’ permission letters to their schools beforehand. Still, the education authorities called the march a disruption to learning.
“Be the solution, not the pollution! There’s no planet b,” the protesters chanted, as they marched from Central to government headquarters in Admiralty, following the lead of a global student environmental movement that originated in Sweden.
Marching proudly and carrying a sign that took two hours to make were 10-year-old Caleb Chan and his classmates from an international school in Central.
“We need everyone to save energy, even the world’s top climate scientists keep flying around the world and they keep eating stuff that causes climate change. We need action, please support us!” Chan said.
The group was accompanied by a classmate’s mother, Clara Lam, who took two hours off work to join.
“To be out here, experiencing this in person, raising awareness in their school, standing up for themselves and learning about climate change this way is better than any textbook knowledge,” the mother of two said.
While most of the children were from international schools, Nathan Lee Shun-hei was one of the few students from local schools present.
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The 17-year-old Secondary Six student said he took a few hours out of studying for the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education examination.
In an exam-oriented environment, most of his peers would rather be studying, Lee said.
“But a few hours out of one day isn’t going to affect my DSE scores,” the teenager added.
In a bid to steer the attention of youths to environmental issues, three high school girls – Zara Campion, Emily Tarr and Elisa Hirn – organised the School Strike For Climate Action Hong Kong.
The organisers, School Students for Climate Action, said the event was inspired by a global movement called #FridaysForFuture, started in September by 16-year-old Swede Greta Thunberg, who encouraged young people to skip school and demand stronger government action to combat climate change. The movement has since spread to Britain, the United States, Canada, France, South Korea, Finland and Germany.
We hope this is the start of something big and change in Hong Kong will come from this
The girls said the turnout, around 800 to 1,000, was more than what they had expected.
“We hope this is the start of something big and change in Hong Kong will come from this,” Campion said. “We are calling for a youth council, where youths will be directly involved with the Environment Bureau to help and decide on their future.”
She also urged the bureau to increase the use of renewable energy to more than 4 per cent by 2030.
In its latest climate action plan for up to 2030, the bureau said renewable energy could only provide 3 or 4 per cent of Hong Kong’s energy mix, up from the current 1 per cent.
Campion said the group would decide its next move depending on the reaction to Friday’s event.
The bureau, meanwhile, said the class boycott was a “disruption” to order and learning in schools.
“We respect the right of students to express their opinions in a rational, peaceful and legitimate manner, but we are opposed to boycotts of classes,” a spokesman said.
Hong Kong should be proud of its young climate change protesters
Greenpeace senior campaigner Frances Yeung Hoi-shan said she appreciated the students’ efforts but defended those who did not participate.
“This is one way of voicing out their concerns and making a statement but there are many other ways to do so, like starting small from our daily lives and spreading the word among your peers,” she said.
“So even if other students weren’t able to come out today, it doesn’t mean they don’t care.”
