Universities are for students to be educated, Lam said. For that reason, she added, advocating independence “should not be allowed to continue” at local universities.

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Reminding students of the boundaries of freedom of speech was a duty for university heads, Lam continued, and institutions were being “responsible” by making clear the banners would be taken down.

“I have confidence in university management not to turn a blind eye [to the issue] and allow this unhealthy wind to spread,” she said. “I have absolutely no intention right now of intervening in university management.”

The leaders of different institutions differed over whether to allow such banners and posters on their campus ‘democracy walls’.

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At Chinese University on Tuesday, student union representatives were still guarding the banners from removal. They had set up a booth at Cultural Square where posters were put up, guarding them around the clock.

The student union had hung a new black banner bearing the words “Oppose Article 23 legislation”, referring to the part of the Basic Law requiring Hong Kong to enact laws against treason, sedition and subversion.

“Even though the slogan is against the Basic Law, it is protected by freedom of speech,” the union wrote on Facebook.

On campus, a student identifying himself only as a union committee member said: “If the posters are put on the wall following our rules, such as not covering other [posters], we should protect them from being torn down under the freedom of speech ... It’s [the union’s] responsibility to protect them.”

“We’re stationed here to guard against the school and any unknown person tearing down the posters and banners. We hope not to have any bodily conflict with them,” he added.

More clashes at Chinese University over independence posters

At Lingnan University, posters bearings the words “Support Hong Kong Independent Media” had been put up, but the word “independent” had been ripped off. The union vice-president Issac Chan Tsun-hin said no one claimed responsibility for the act, but said he did not think university staff did it.

Meanwhile, Secretary for Education Kevin Yeung Yun-hung said the question of independence did not arise during any of his meetings with mainland officials over his three-day Beijing visit which ended on Tuesday.

“We didn’t mention what happened in [Hong Kong’s universities recently] because we consider them to be issues within our autonomy,” Yeung said.

Additional reporting by Billy Wong