Nine Hong Kong student organisations slam Baptist University for ‘suppressing freedom’ by suspending duo over protest

Fifth-year undergraduate Andrew Chan says calling his conduct ‘indecent’ is unfair, while governing council member says eight-day suspension is too lenient

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Former student union leader Lau Tsz-kei (left) and Chinese medicine student Andrew Chan Lok-hang meet the press regarding the disciplinary action taken against them. Photo: Felix Wong

Published: 11:37am, 3 Apr 2018Updated: 9:36pm, 3 Apr 2018

Nine student organisations in Hong Kong have criticised Baptist University for “suppressing freedom”, a day after it disciplined two students for their role in a rowdy protest against a Mandarin language graduation requirement.

The statement from the Federation of Students came as one of the two students, Andrew Chan Lok-hang, 22, insisted on Tuesday that it was “unfair” for the university to rule that his participation in the protest in January constituted “indecent behaviour”, which he understood as a sexual offence.

But Roger Wong Hoi-fung, a member of the university’s governing council, countered that Baptist University was already being too lenient by only suspending Chan for eight days.

In January, Chan and former student union president Lau Tsz-Kei, 20, were among about 30 students who stormed the university’s language centre demanding that management scrap the Mandarin requirement and calling for greater transparency around an exemption test.

On Monday, the pair warned of a chilling effect on the right to dissent as they were disciplined for a second time over their role in the protest. Lau was suspended from classes for one semester and Chan, a Chinese medicine student, was barred for eight days.

It was determined that Chan, a fifth-year student, had already served his suspension, as the university initially suspended the pair in late January but lifted the punishment as public criticism mounted.