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Hong Kong Polytechnic University leaders say unrest of 2019 is firmly in the past at anniversary celebration

  • The head of PolyU’s council says stability has been restored and the ‘misunderstandings’ that led to clashes at the university in 2019 have been cleared up
  • University president says PolyU will publish a book on its history, but whether the clashes will be featured is up to experts to decide

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Polytechnic University leaders said the institution had moved on from the unrest of 2019 at an anniversary celebration on Thursday. Photo: K. Y. Cheng

Hong Kong Polytechnic University had fully moved on from the damage to its reputation and grounds wrought by fierce campus clashes during the social unrest of 2019, its council chairman said while marking the school’s 85th anniversary on Thursday.

PolyU council head Lam Tai-fai gave the assessment at a ceremony marking the occasion on Thursday, noting that stability had been restored at the university and the “misunderstandings” that led to the turmoil had been cleared up.

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The saga of the siege at Hong Kong's PolyU

The saga of the siege at Hong Kong's PolyU

“Not only was our campus severely damaged, the incident was also clogged with misunderstandings, and painted a negative image of PolyU,” Lam said.

“We are grateful that all these misunderstandings have finally been proven wrong,” he added, offering a Chinese proverb about resilience. “It takes a long journey to know the power of a horse.”

PolyU council chairman Lam Tai-fai says the ‘misunderstandings’ that led to the clashes on campus in 2019 have been cleared up. Photo: Edmond So
PolyU council chairman Lam Tai-fai says the ‘misunderstandings’ that led to the clashes on campus in 2019 have been cleared up. Photo: Edmond So

In an interview after his speech, Lam hit back at past criticism of PolyU’s handling of the protests, with some at the time accusing the university of effectively condoning violence on the part of students by failing to maintain order.

“The fact is we did not condone it, and while our security system has been good all along, we could not withstand the clashes of that level in 2019,” Lam said.

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