Some 200 students protested today at Hong Kong Baptist University, amid a growing furor over the suspension of two students who faced off with staff over a Mandarin-language test.
The demonstrators, packing a courtyard at the school’s Kowloon Tong campus, demanded the university drop the pair’s suspension. They also demanded the school’s Manadrin policy be reviewed.
“I don’t think they deserve to be suspended,” HKBU social work student Vicky Kwok told Coconuts HK by phone.
Kwok, who spoke at the rally, said the pair were “representing other students” when they confronted staff last week.
“It is not fair for some students to have to pass the Putonghua test because some exchange students and mainlanders don’t even need to take the core language of Cantonese,” she said.
“I understand that the school is trying to improve our career path, but I don’t think it is nice to put Putonghua as a must for graduation.”
The conflict began last week after it emerged that 70 percent of students failed a Mandarin proficiency test that, if passed, allows pupils to skip a compulsory Mandarin course.
Mandarin-language proficiency is a HKBU graduation requirement. Overseas, mainland and local students whose first language is not Chinese, however, are exempt.
Last week, about 30 students went to the school’s Language Centre to complain, leading to a heated eight-hour stand off with staff, the SCMP reported.
Video of the incident, showed student union president Lau Tsz-kei and others using profanity and confronting the faculty members aggressively.
Lau and Andrew Chan Lok-hang, a Chinese medical student also involved in the stand-off, were then temporarily suspended from their studies by university president Roland Chin Tai-hong, The Standard reported.
Chin said conduct resulted in the teachers “feeling threatened and insulted.”
Unions from several other universities released statements condemning the decision to suspend the pair prior to an investigation.
Lau vowed to continue to go to class. Chan, meanwhile, dropped an internship on the mainland after getting death threats.
The university, meanwhile, promised to review the Mandarin graduation requirement, following a discussing with students.
However, the backlash has continued throughout the week, with posters appearing at the university deriding the president, RTHK reported.
More than 700 HKBU alumni also signed a petition condemning the disciplinary action against the students, HKFP reported.
Kwok, the social work student, said she hoped the HKBU would heed their demands.
“I think they can feel the anger of the students after seeing almost 200 students fighting for something,” she said. “If they don’t accept it, it could very easily trigger another action.”
