‘Treated like a criminal’: fury over Hong Kong student’s swift Australian deportation
Mother of 16-year-old demands answers after daughter was allegedly deported following row with homestay family and offered no alternative

The mother of a 16-year-old Hong Kong girl studying in Australia is considering legal action following her alleged deportation from the country less than eight hours after she was evicted from her homestay family following a dispute.
The mother told the Post late last month about her follow-up to the March incident, while Australian authorities said the welfare of international students was their top priority after concerns were raised over a lack of emergency accommodation for the student.
Jessie Cheung* said her 16-year-old daughter Maggie*, a student in Year 11 at a public school in Perth, Western Australia, had moved into the home of the host family in February and had her own room.
The “host mother” became emotionally unstable on the afternoon of March 3, Cheung said. The woman repeatedly slammed the teenager’s door at around 5.30pm and demanded that she come out immediately.
Cheung was on a video call with her daughter at the time and recorded the interaction. The Post has reviewed the recording.
“This is my notice, you are not accepted in this household any more for all of your behaviour,” the host mother said, slamming Maggie’s daily routine, which included studying late into the night.