https://www.scmp.com/rss/322479/feed Calls have mounted in the city in recent years for Hong Kong officials to focus on issues perceived as serving local residents first and emphasise greater self-determination distinct from the authority held by the central government. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Brian Wong Brian Wong A 16-year-old boy has admitted joining a Taiwan-based political group to seek Hong Kong’s independence in breach of the national security law. The Form Three student pleaded guilty on Friday to conspiracy to commit secession between November 2024 and July this year for his role as secretary of the Hong Kong Democratic Independence Union. The District Court heard that the union, founded by fugitive activist Alan Keung Ka-wai, advocated Hong Kong’s “liberation” from mainland Chinese rule, sought... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3331098/hong-kong-boy-16-admits-joining-pro-independence-group-based-taiwan?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3331098/hong-kong-boy-16-admits-joining-pro-independence-group-based-taiwan?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 31 Oct 2025 11:05:39 +0000 Hong Kong’s social upheaval only petered out under the double whammy of a transplanted national security law and the Covid-19 pandemic. As pre-pandemic life resumes, we will return to Hong Kong’s political evolution. Politicians in Hong Kong could learn from Winston Churchill’s observation that in history lie all the secrets of statecraft. Or from Henry Kissinger’s book, Leadership: Six Studies in World Strategy, in which he writes that great leaders must be able to withstand solitude, sustained... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3203981/better-future-hong-kongs-leaders-must-study-chinas-past?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3203981/better-future-hong-kongs-leaders-must-study-chinas-past?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 23 Dec 2022 00:15:11 +0000 Hong Kong’s national security police have arrested a man suspected to be tied to a pro-independence group for allegedly posting seditious messages online. Officers stopped the man at a hotel in Hung Hom on Tuesday morning and seized electronic communication devices believed to have been used to deliver the messages, a force spokesman on Wednesday said. He was arrested after an investigation found he had published allegedly seditious content and launched crowdfunding activities for “military... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3198201/hong-kongs-national-security-police-arrest-man-suspected-ties-pro-independence-group-over-seditious?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3198201/hong-kongs-national-security-police-arrest-man-suspected-ties-pro-independence-group-over-seditious?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 02 Nov 2022 16:17:02 +0000 The radical Civic Passion political party known for advocating Hong Kong localism disbanded on Friday following the unseating of its chairman from the Legislative Council last week and the resignations of two district councillors. Chairman Cheng Chung-tai said the decision was taken as the organisation faced “a reality devoid of any political way out”. “It is despite the fact that we have gained the support from many people who share our beliefs,” he said in a Facebook post. Cheng said district... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3147530/hong-kong-localist-party-civic-passion-disbands-pointing?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3147530/hong-kong-localist-party-civic-passion-disbands-pointing?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 03 Sep 2021 12:46:13 +0000 A clerk and a secondary school student accused of conspiring to produce and distribute leaflets advocating Hong Kong independence have been remanded in custody after a magistrate adjourned the hearing by eight weeks. Chloe Cho Suet-sum, 45, and Wong Chun-wai, 17, on Tuesday appeared at West Kowloon Court before Chief Magistrate Victor So Wai-tak, who had been designated to hear national security cases. Both suspects face a charge of “conspiracy to print, publish, distribute, display or reproduce... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3136529/hong-kong-national-security-law-school-clerk-student?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3136529/hong-kong-national-security-law-school-clerk-student?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 08 Jun 2021 12:10:16 +0000 In the third instalment of our Tokyo Trail series on key issues surrounding the Olympics, we look at why Hong Kong’s government snapped up broadcast rights to the Games. It may sound surreal now, but tens of thousands of Hongkongers turned out to cheer for the Beijing Olympic torch relay when it came to the city in 2008. Local residents took pride in China winning 51 gold medals at the Games that year, surpassing America’s 36, and mainland officials could be confident that most Hongkongers were... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3133564/carrie-lams-tokyo-olympics-tv-deal-bid-dial-back-hong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3133564/carrie-lams-tokyo-olympics-tv-deal-bid-dial-back-hong?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 16 May 2021 03:41:55 +0000 Confidence in Hong Kong’s future has been shaken by a series of political and economic crises, so much so that more people are wondering whether they would be better off living elsewhere. Some have indeed left via different channels. Such a trend does not bode well for the city’s development and warrants closer government attention. If the latest survey of the city’s youth is any reference, nearly 60 per cent of respondents wanted to leave if possible, up from almost half three years ago. They... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3132785/hard-work-needed-restore-confidence-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3132785/hard-work-needed-restore-confidence-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 08 May 2021 16:46:46 +0000 When Alex* and Louis* started their Facebook page about siu mai, the popular Cantonese dim sum item, it was for the love of the steamed dumplings sold as humble street food as well as in luxe restaurants across Hong Kong. “We saw a page about potato crisps and it was fun, and we like the fish version of siu mai a lot, so we formed a page too,” Louis tells local media. Their page, called Hong Kong Siu Mai Concern Group and started in November 2019, is listed under the category of “trade unions”... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3129885/siu-mai-or-egg-waffles-hong-kong-foodies-cut-through?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3129885/siu-mai-or-egg-waffles-hong-kong-foodies-cut-through?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 17 Apr 2021 00:00:27 +0000 A Hong Kong activist who was among eight fugitives sent back to the city by mainland Chinese authorities was arrested after his return for allegedly helping the group to abscond, according to a police source.Andy Li Yu-hin was allegedly one of the conspirators behind the escape bid of 12 fugitives, himself included, who were arrested in mainland waters last summer while trying to flee to Taiwan on a speedboat, the source said on Tuesday.The 30-year-old has not been charged yet, as he was... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3126691/activist-handed-back-hong-kong-mainland-chinese?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3126691/activist-handed-back-hong-kong-mainland-chinese?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 23 Mar 2021 15:49:46 +0000 China’s crackdown in Hong Kong has left Japanese finance firms “very much afraid” and reconsidering whether to remain in the city, a senior banker said on Monday in a rare public declaration of concern from within the industry. Yoshitaka Kitao, chief executive of financial conglomerate SBI Holdings, which runs Japan’s largest online brokerage, told the Financial Times he was planning to pull his company’s operations out of the southern Chinese city, arguing that “without freedom, there is no... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3124568/japanese-finance-firms-are-afraid-and-will-leave-hong-kong-due?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3124568/japanese-finance-firms-are-afraid-and-will-leave-hong-kong-due?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 08 Mar 2021 10:15:14 +0000 Former Hong Kong leader Leung Chun-ying has said Hong Kong’s residents have to recognise it is not an independent country like Singapore, and must respect Beijing’s authority. Leung, in his second video speech in a week, also said while the opposition camp emphasised that “power comes from the people”, he argued Hongkongers could only give limited power to the city’s government. “In Hong Kong the extra autonomous power that we enjoy actually comes from Beijing, and Beijing has to account to all... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3123809/hong-kong-not-singapore-and-those-who-challenge-beijings?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3123809/hong-kong-not-singapore-and-those-who-challenge-beijings?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 02 Mar 2021 13:55:21 +0000 The Chinese University of Hong Kong has warned student union candidates against engaging in activities on campus that break the law or jeopardise national security. The university was responding on Wednesday to claims by the candidates, who are running for the union cabinet, that management had joined with police to have students arrested following an attack on security guards, in which an unknown white powder was hurled at them. Students have accused the guards of abusing their power in the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3120433/chinese-university-hong-kong-warns-illegal-acts-will?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3120433/chinese-university-hong-kong-warns-illegal-acts-will?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 03 Feb 2021 15:35:31 +0000 The EU-China investment deal, tentatively reached just last week, faces a new hurdle as a growing number of European Parliament members expressed concern on Wednesday over the mass arrests of pro-democracy politicians in Hong Kong. “The situation in Hong Kong is followed closely by parliamentarians,” said Bernd Lange, head of the EU parliament’s trade committee, which will be responsible for reviewing the deal later this year. “Concerns about political freedom and human rights have played a... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3116713/european-parliament-members-say-hong-kong-arrests-threaten?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3116713/european-parliament-members-say-hong-kong-arrests-threaten?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 06 Jan 2021 20:22:33 +0000 The first volume of a perceived semi-official version of Hong Kong’s history has been launched with an aim to reconnect people with their Chinese roots under a massive project led by the think tank of the city’s first post-handover leader, Tung Chee-hwa. Unveiling the first book of the “Chronicles of Hong Kong” series on Monday, the organisers denied the HK$780 million project – which aims to publish a total of 30 million words over eight years – was a political mission by the central government... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3115585/first-volume-chronicles-hong-kong-launched-part-hk780?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3115585/first-volume-chronicles-hong-kong-launched-part-hk780?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 28 Dec 2020 12:40:12 +0000 A Hong Kong court has acquitted the founder of a banned pro-independence party of unlawful assembly and assaulting police during last year’s anti-government protests, citing the possibility the case involved mistaken identity. Andy Chan Ho-tin was on Saturday cleared of the charges that stemmed from a demonstration in the border town of Sheung Shui on July 13, 2019. Chan was accused of disrupting public order alongside some 200 protesters and smacking a sergeant in the head. West Kowloon Court... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3113711/hong-kong-protests-founder-banned-pro-independence?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3113711/hong-kong-protests-founder-banned-pro-independence?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 12 Dec 2020 07:51:59 +0000 Britain’s home secretary held her first meeting with Hong Kong activists on Wednesday, including former lawmaker Nathan Law Kwun-chung, as she finalised plans to let a large number of Hongkongers resettle in the UK. The Post understands that Priti Patel held a one-hour meeting in Westminster with the activists, who also included Beatrice Li, whose brother Andy Li was one of 12 people detained by Shenzhen authorities while attempting to flee Hong Kong for Taiwan in August. The meeting came less... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3113263/british-home-secretary-priti-patel-meets-hong-kong-activists?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3113263/british-home-secretary-priti-patel-meets-hong-kong-activists?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 09 Dec 2020 19:47:16 +0000 Former opposition lawmaker Ted Hui Chi-fung has revealed he is seeking exile in Britain, ending days of speculation that he had fled Hong Kong, where he faces a raft of criminal charges stemming from last year’s anti-government protests. Speaking from the Danish capital of Copenhagen, where he arrived earlier this week, Hui described wrestling with the emotional decision to leave his home and end, at least for now, his nearly decade-long career in politics. “There is no word to explain my pain... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3112370/former-hong-kong-opposition-lawmaker-ted-hui-breaks-silence?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3112370/former-hong-kong-opposition-lawmaker-ted-hui-breaks-silence?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 03 Dec 2020 05:16:28 +0000 Hong Kong teachers have a responsibility to report “problematic” study materials to superiors, and school authorities should be held accountable over any failure in gatekeeping duties, according to the city’s education minister. Secretary for Education Kevin Yeung Yun-hung was responding to opposition lawmaker and Professional Teachers’ Union (PTU) vice-president Ip Kin-yuen’s question on whether his bureau’s decision to penalise five colleagues of a teacher – deregistered over class materials... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3109395/hong-kong-teachers-should-report-problematic-study?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3109395/hong-kong-teachers-should-report-problematic-study?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 11 Nov 2020 09:01:17 +0000 Professor Peter Baehr (“How far will we go in shaming city’s teachers?” October 22) asked if “803 partisans” will drop in on universities’ Zoom-relayed lectures. The answer is no. The judicial review application of 803 Funds does not concern universities. It aims at upholding the rights of parents and protecting minors in kindergartens, primary schools and secondary schools that are under the purview of the Education Bureau. We believe that parents have the right to be informed of... https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3107209/hong-kong-parents-have-right-be-informed-about-teacher-misconduct?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3107209/hong-kong-parents-have-right-be-informed-about-teacher-misconduct?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 27 Oct 2020 22:15:18 +0000 I refer to the letter from titled “Teachers still have rights to air opinions”, published on October 20. Recently, there have been quite a lot of comments on the issue. Indeed, teachers enjoy the same rights as all other ordinary Hong Kong citizens but when they teach in school, they should be professional and objective in instilling knowledge in their students, without reflecting their personal preferences. Outside school and teaching, as ordinary citizens, such as when they gather in Victoria... https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3106472/teachers-have-rights-also-duty-keep-political-bias-out-classroom?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3106472/teachers-have-rights-also-duty-keep-political-bias-out-classroom?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 22 Oct 2020 23:30:12 +0000 Outspoken pro-Beijing Hong Kong lawmaker Junius Ho Kwan-yiu is facing a disciplinary hearing by the regulatory body of Britain’s legal profession over controversial comments he made during a rally three years ago in which he suggested pro-independence elements should be killed “mercilessly”. The Solicitors Regulation Authority, a lawyers’ regulatory body in Britain, where Ho is also qualified as a lawyer, has announced it is pursuing the case and a hearing is to be held before the Solicitors... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3106540/junius-ho-facing-disciplinary-hearing-british-legal-body?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3106540/junius-ho-facing-disciplinary-hearing-british-legal-body?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 21 Oct 2020 15:14:19 +0000 I refer to your report, “Hong Kong teacher stripped of registration for purportedly spreading ‘independence’ message in classroom materials, lesson plans” (October 6). I do not support the Education Bureau's move to deregister the primary school teacher over allegedly promoting Hong Kong independence in life education classes last year. First, the video and work sheet shared with students did not spread any message that Hong Kong should be independent. The questions on the homework asked about... https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3106119/was-life-ban-hong-kong-teacher-really-necessary?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3106119/was-life-ban-hong-kong-teacher-really-necessary?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 19 Oct 2020 22:15:13 +0000 Lawyers for the founder of a banned pro-independence party charged with assaulting police and unlawful assembly have instead accused officers of provoking violence at a demonstration that took place during last year’s social unrest. The trial of Andy Chan Ho-tin opened on Monday at West Kowloon Court, with prosecutors accusing the 30-year-old Hong Kong National Party founder of taking part in an illegal gathering in the border town of Sheung Shui on the afternoon of July 13, which followed an... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3106148/hong-kong-pro-independence-figure-denies-slapping?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3106148/hong-kong-pro-independence-figure-denies-slapping?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 19 Oct 2020 11:39:05 +0000 It is clear that the Beijing authorities have Hong Kong schools and teachers in their sight, as the recent case of the deregistered teacher shows. So focused are the chief executive and the Education Bureau on weeding out “bad apples” that issues of process, fairness and professionalism seem to have been forgotten. It does not help that details of the deregistration case only seeped out little by little. One day it seemed the teacher was deregistered because he was promoting Hong Kong’s... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3105302/did-deregistered-hong-kong-teacher-receive-fair-hearing-he-deserved?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3105302/did-deregistered-hong-kong-teacher-receive-fair-hearing-he-deserved?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 14 Oct 2020 00:30:08 +0000 A primary schoolteacher has been deregistered for allegedly promoting discussion of Hong Kong independence and will be barred from working as a teacher in the city for the rest of his life. The case has sparked a great deal of public discussion on this subject in recent days. As Secretary for Education Kevin Yeung Yun-hung pointed out, the Education Bureau advised as far back as 2016 that the topic was not fit for discussion on campus. The Basic Law clearly stipulates that Hong Kong is an... https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3104837/how-hong-kong-education-bureau-can-do-more-halt-discussion?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3104837/how-hong-kong-education-bureau-can-do-more-halt-discussion?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 11 Oct 2020 22:45:11 +0000 It has been more than 100 days since the imposition of the national security law on Hong Kong on June 30. In the third of a three-part series, the Post looks at how it has led to the emergence of a group of exiled dissidents who have sought refuge abroad and another group who have chosen to stay and fight. See here for parts one and two. For many dissidents who have remained in Hong Kong, it is hard to see in the future anything but a vision of dystopia, shrouded by uncertainty, death threats... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3104908/im-ready-jail-hong-kong-dissidents-who-chose-stay-and-fight?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3104908/im-ready-jail-hong-kong-dissidents-who-chose-stay-and-fight?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 10 Oct 2020 02:30:15 +0000 It has been more than 100 days since the imposition of the national security law on Hong Kong on June 30. In the third part of a series, the Post looks at how it has led to the emergence of a group of exiled dissidents who have sought refuge abroad and another group who have chosen to stay and fight. See parts one and two here. Nathan Law Kwun-chung has barely stepped out of his flat in London since fleeing his hometown days before Beijing imposed a sweeping national security law on Hong Kong on... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3104917/national-security-law-and-hong-kongs-exiled-dissidents-worlds?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3104917/national-security-law-and-hong-kongs-exiled-dissidents-worlds?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 09 Oct 2020 23:30:06 +0000 The head of a Hong Kong primary school at the centre of accusations a teacher spread pro-independence messages in class has called the matter “extremely regretful and saddening” in a letter to parents. Stephanie Ng Lai-fun, principal of the private Alliance Primary School in Kowloon Tong, broke her silence for the first time since the male staff member was stripped of his right to teach in the city, and banned from all schools, by the Education Bureau. In her letter, Ng, who only took charge at... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3104823/hong-kong-school-head-calls-sacking-teacher-pro?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3104823/hong-kong-school-head-calls-sacking-teacher-pro?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 09 Oct 2020 06:25:23 +0000 More than 20,000 schoolteachers, students and parents have joined an email campaign against the move by Hong Kong education authorities to deregister a teacher accused of spreading pro-independence messages in class. Supporters of the campaign called the decision political suppression, arguing that the teacher had only asked pupils to analyse objective news material. But Communist Party mouthpiece People’s Daily on Thursday praised the move by officials, saying it was “an important step for the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3104761/more-20000-hong-kong-schoolteachers-students-and-parents?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3104761/more-20000-hong-kong-schoolteachers-students-and-parents?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 08 Oct 2020 13:57:59 +0000 A teacher from the Alliance Primary School in Kowloon Tong has been stripped of his registration for life by Hong Kong authorities who said he promoted the notion of Hong Kong independence via materials prepared for pupils – something his defenders deny. It was the first instance of a teacher being disqualified because of classroom content, setting off a protracted debate over what is appropriate content for students, and whether such a harsh punishment could have a chilling effect on... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3104580/what-you-need-know-about-education-row-which-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3104580/what-you-need-know-about-education-row-which-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 08 Oct 2020 02:00:18 +0000 Given the divided state of Hong Kong society, there is just no neutral way for teachers, especially those teaching at primary levels, to discuss sensitive political subjects such as separatism. In that sense, the Education Bureau is right to declare such discussions off limits in the classroom. But disqualifying a teacher for life for raising the topic? I certainly think it absurd and dangerous for a teacher to take up such a sensitive topic. Parents and school bosses have no way of knowing... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3104564/punishment-should-fit-offence-even-separatist-teacher?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3104564/punishment-should-fit-offence-even-separatist-teacher?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 07 Oct 2020 13:00:14 +0000 Hong Kong’s education authorities should be enhancing training so teachers can deal with contentious issues rather than summarily disqualifying them for introducing those ideas in the classroom, veteran educators say. They also warned on Tuesday of far-reaching implications for minors’ critical thinking if teachers increasingly avoided discussing controversial matters with pupils in class. The permanent disqualification of a teacher who allegedly asked Primary Five pupils at Alliance Primary... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3104441/veteran-hong-kong-educators-say-teachers-should-be-trained?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3104441/veteran-hong-kong-educators-say-teachers-should-be-trained?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 07 Oct 2020 02:00:26 +0000 A pair of hour-long lessons at a Hong Kong primary school on freedom of speech and independence are at the centre of a row over limits and relevant concepts in class, following the unprecedented move by authorities to strip a teacher’s registration over the matter. Education officials on Tuesday slammed the lesson plan at Alliance Primary School in Kowloon Tong as “biased and twisted”, and aimed at spreading pro-independence ideas. The teacher involved had prescribed 50 minutes of study on the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3104436/freedom-speech-or-hong-kong-independence-more-details?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3104436/freedom-speech-or-hong-kong-independence-more-details?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 06 Oct 2020 14:54:22 +0000 Discussions on independence are off-limits in schools and universities, and teachers pushing a separatist stance could face criminal investigation, Hong Kong’s education chief warned on Tuesday. Defending his bureau’s decision to deregister a primary school teacher for life, Secretary for Education Kevin Yeung Yun-hung said the unnamed person was spared a criminal investigation because the alleged offences were committed before a sweeping national security law came into force on June 30. But... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3104411/case-hong-kong-teacher-struck-promoting-independence-will?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3104411/case-hong-kong-teacher-struck-promoting-independence-will?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 06 Oct 2020 10:49:57 +0000 Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor has pledged to “weed out the bad apples” from the teaching profession, after a primary school educator became the first to be struck off for “promoting Hong Kong independence” in the classroom. The city leader said on Tuesday that her Secretary for Education Kevin Yeung Yun-hung had removed the teacher from the professional register following a “thorough probe”, adding he would provide more details on the case in the afternoon and respond to concerns... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3104324/hong-kong-leader-carrie-lam-pledges-remove-bad-apples?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3104324/hong-kong-leader-carrie-lam-pledges-remove-bad-apples?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 06 Oct 2020 04:21:54 +0000 A Hong Kong primary schoolteacher has been stripped of his teaching registration for purportedly spreading “independence” messages via the materials and worksheets he used in the classroom, education authorities announced on Monday. The school’s headmaster and a deputy were also reprimanded for lax supervision, according to the Education Bureau. It marks the first instance of a teacher being disqualified for introducing Hong Kong independence ideas in class, something the bureau said violated... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3104291/hong-kong-teacher-stripped-registration-spreading?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3104291/hong-kong-teacher-stripped-registration-spreading?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 05 Oct 2020 16:57:44 +0000 When other countries around the world celebrate their national day, you see people joyously showing their patriotism by waving flags in public or adorning their houses with them. You have street parties, anthem singing, re-enactments and celebrations of history, and well-attended displays of local culture. With the exception of a few killjoys, everyone participates in the enjoyment of celebrating the shared values of – and love for – their country. In Hong Kong last week, other than on public... https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3103962/where-was-love-hong-kong-marked-national-day?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3103962/where-was-love-hong-kong-marked-national-day?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 04 Oct 2020 23:00:09 +0000 The head of two elite schools has said Hong Kong independence and other sensitive topics are not taboo on campus under the national security law, as long as discussions refer to different perspectives and do not advocate concepts such as separatism. Wah Yan Hong Kong and Wah Yan Kowloon colleges also said they would incorporate national security education into their curriculum in adherence to guidelines the Education Bureau was expected to issue, while neutrality would be preserved in their... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3101364/national-security-law-hong-kong-independence-not-limits?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3101364/national-security-law-hong-kong-independence-not-limits?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 13 Sep 2020 23:30:21 +0000 A one-time Hong Kong independence activist has been sued by police for more than HK$170,000 (US$22,000) for allegedly injuring four officers during an Occupy protest six years ago. The District Court claim filed against Billy Chiu Hin-chung, 35, was calculated based on 148 days of sick leave granted to four senior constables and compensation for one of those officers’ permanent loss of an estimated 1.5 per cent of his earning capacity due to injuries. The case stemmed from a police clearance... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3100743/government-seeks-damages-against-hong-kong-activist?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3100743/government-seeks-damages-against-hong-kong-activist?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 08 Sep 2020 12:51:39 +0000 It’s easy to criticise your opponents, much more difficult to go against your own comrades in defence of the defenceless. It takes real courage for Henry Wong Pak-yu, a hardcore localist who won a seat on Yuen Long District Council as part of the election landslide in November by anti-government activists, to speak up for the family of Chan Yin-lam. The 15-year-old’s body was found floating at sea last year during the height of the anti-government protests. This week, as an inquest began to... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3099332/courage-shines-cruellest-times?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3099332/courage-shines-cruellest-times?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 28 Aug 2020 13:00:12 +0000 After the national security law was implemented for Hong Kong, serious concerns were expressed around the world about Beijing’s enactment of the law constituting an infringement of “one country, two systems” and of human rights in Hong Kong. It appears that Beijing would like to “Singapore-ise” Hong Kong – cultivating an authoritarian government while maintaining the city’s status as an international financial centre. Will it succeed? From a geopolitical perspective, although Singapore has... https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3098304/will-beijing-succeed-singapore-ising-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3098304/will-beijing-succeed-singapore-ising-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 23 Aug 2020 23:15:10 +0000 Last month, the American Political Science Association announced it would relocate an upcoming workshop, themed “Contentious Politics and its Repercussions in Asia”, to Seoul, South Korea, due to concerns Hong Kong’s new national security law would “limit free academic inquiry and exchange”. Also last month, the Association for Asian Studies, which has about 6,500 members worldwide, called on universities to be “extremely cautious” about recording, storing and transmitting recordings of... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3096370/national-security-law-hong-kong-scholars-fear-unknown?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3096370/national-security-law-hong-kong-scholars-fear-unknown?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 07 Aug 2020 23:30:08 +0000 Sometimes you are kept awake by things that don't affect you personally but affect you emotionally. That’s what happened to me last Wednesday after Hong Kong’s new police unit enforcing the national security law arrested four students for alleged secession. As I lay in bed, trying not to think about what ghastly fate awaits them if convicted, a question kept popping up: how can four youngsters aged 16 to 21 possibly pose a security threat to China, a superpower? The four belonged to the... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3096104/beijings-defence-national-security-hong-kong-should-be-open-and?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3096104/beijings-defence-national-security-hong-kong-should-be-open-and?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 05 Aug 2020 22:15:06 +0000 All of the four students arrested in Hong Kong for secession under the new national security law have been released on bail and ordered by police to remove messages they had left on electronic platforms that could constitute an offence. The authorities have also imposed a travel ban on the group, forbidding them to leave the city in the coming six months. They will also be required to report back to police late August. Tony Chung Hon-lam, 19, one of the four, left Yuen Long Police Station at... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3095539/three-four-suspects-arrested-hong-kong-police-under?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3095539/three-four-suspects-arrested-hong-kong-police-under?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 31 Jul 2020 09:31:34 +0000 Once a little-known name, the self-proclaimed and now-disbanded Hong Kong revolutionary group Studentlocalism has hit international headlines after police arrested its former leader and members in the first crackdown of its kind under the national security law. Tony Chung Hon-lam and Ho Nok-hang, Studentlocalism convenor and spokesman respectively before its break-up, were among three men and one woman, aged 16 to 21, detained on Wednesday on suspicion of organising and inciting secession. As of... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3095412/who-are-studentlocalism-and-are-they-really-national?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3095412/who-are-studentlocalism-and-are-they-really-national?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 30 Jul 2020 23:30:11 +0000 In the Bible, Joshua, the leader of the Israelites, fought the battle of Jericho and the walls came tumbling down. This is probably how Hong Kong activist Joshua Wong Chi-fung perceives himself – as a champion for freedom. My perception of him is somewhat different. In my eyes, he is rather the infamous Trojan horse, aiming to destroy the city, in this case Hong Kong, from the inside. By declaring his refusal to sign the declaration of loyalty (“Joshua Wong, other Legco hopefuls refuse to sign... https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3095114/joshua-wong-running-legislative-council-bad-faith?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3095114/joshua-wong-running-legislative-council-bad-faith?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 29 Jul 2020 22:30:12 +0000 Hong Kong’s new police unit enforcing the national security law arrested four student members of a pro-independence group on Wednesday after it announced its mission to build the city into a republic. The arrests of the suspects, aged 16 to 21, in Yuen Long, Sha Tin and Tuen Mun marked the first such crackdown on anti-government activists not at the scene of street protests. Police did not reveal the suspects’ identities, but images posted online showed Tony Chung Hon-lam, one of the former... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3095240/least-three-core-members-hong-kong-pro-independence?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3095240/least-three-core-members-hong-kong-pro-independence?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 29 Jul 2020 14:29:45 +0000 I wouldn’t mind being 20-something again. That was about the only time in my life that I considered myself blunder-immune, and – as best as I can recall – the only time I felt sure I knew just about everything I’d ever need to know. Oh, were they the good old days! Sometimes at 20-something, you do get things right. Consider the US invasion of Vietnam, for example. The truth was, president Lyndon Johnson made a terrible mistake. At 20 or so, I wrote the first scorching anti-war editorial in my... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3090970/national-security-law-hong-kongs-young-crusaders-should-stand-down?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3090970/national-security-law-hong-kongs-young-crusaders-should-stand-down?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 30 Jun 2020 01:30:12 +0000 A Hong Kong opposition activist barred from elections due to a jail term served for his role in the 2014 Occupy protests has failed in his bid to challenge electoral laws that restricted his constitutional right to stand in the polls. Mr Justice Anderson Chow Ka-ming of the High Court on Wednesday concluded that Raphael Wong Ho-ming had presented a reasonably arguable case, but ruled against the activist’s application for judicial review after finding the restrictions “lawful and... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3088495/high-court-swats-down-occupy-activists-challenge-five?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3088495/high-court-swats-down-occupy-activists-challenge-five?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 10 Jun 2020 15:11:58 +0000 For the past 30 years, thousands of people have gathered in Hong Kong on June 4 for a candlelight vigil to remember those who were killed in the 1989 Tiananmen crackdown. This peaceful and poignant memorial, in which a sea of flickering candle flames illuminates Victoria Park, has long been seen as a bellwether for the survival of the city’s freedoms after its return to China in 1997. This year, there will be no such vigil. Police have banned the gathering, citing public health grounds amid the... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3087224/june-4-vigil-hong-kongs-canary-coal-mine-will-it-survive-beijings?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3087224/june-4-vigil-hong-kongs-canary-coal-mine-will-it-survive-beijings?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 03 Jun 2020 23:30:12 +0000