Australian student who led anti-Beijing protests suspended from University of Queensland for 2 years

An Australian student who led protests against Beijing at the height of the anti-government movement in Hong Kong last year has been suspended from the University of Queensland (UQ) for two years, in a move he claims is retaliation for his political activism.

Drew Pavlou, a 20-year-old philosophy student, said he was accused of 11 counts of misconduct, mostly related to claims he had damaged the university’s reputation through statements and activism concerning the protests in Hong Kong and the treatment of Uygurs in westernmost Xinjiang.

A 186-page dossier prepared by the university last month and seen by This Week in Asia highlighted social media posts by Pavlou condemning police violence in Hong Kong, an incident in which he wore a hazmat suit on campus to protest against Beijing’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic, and a “satirical event” in which the Chinese government-funded Confucius Institute at the university was depicted debating the treatment of Uygurs.