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Hong Kong pupils return to class with protests and coronavirus on their minds

  • Hundreds of local schools in city reopen after months of being closed due to the Covid-19 pandemic
  • Some pupils registered their opposition to national security and anthem laws

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Students at Leung Shing Tak College stage a protest against two proposed laws for Hong Kong. Photo: Nora Tam
Most of Hong Kong’s 150,000 senior secondary students on Wednesday marked their first day back in class with excitement, after a four-month suspension due to the Covid-19 pandemic, but dozens looked to defy the city’s government by protesting against two controversial proposed laws.

Principals said the overall atmosphere on campuses was calm, despite student concern groups from dozens of secondary schools calling on pupils to participate in non-cooperative movements such as sit-ins and class boycotts.

Sources told the Post that some international schools had decided to ask their students to stay at home, given the uncertainties on how public transport could be affected by the possible citywide protests on Wednesday morning.

Among the schools were the Stamford American School in Kowloon and The Harbour School, which has campuses on Hong Kong Island.

Both schools had already resumed face-to-face classes, as international schools were allowed to welcome pupils back as early as last week due to their different course structures.

Under a phased class resumption plan, secondary students from Form Three to Form Five have returned to campus from Wednesday, while younger children will return in June.

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