Students begin city-wide class boycott

22-09-2014

One of the organisers of the Occupy Central movement Chan Kin-man

Student leaders at the start of the class boycott. Photo: Lam Hiu-tung Thousands of students attend a rally in the central campus of the Chinese University. Photo: Yeung Lok-yan Thousands of students attended a rally at the Chinese University Monday at the start of a city-wide, week-long class boycott to protest against Beijing's conservative plan political reform here.The students from more than 20 tertiary institutions gathered in the central campus of the university where student leaders addressed the crowd. At 4pm Monday, organisers say about 13,000 people were present at the rally. The Secretary General of the Federation of Students, Alex Chow, said their action marks the start of a series of disobedience actions, saying that if university students would only stay in their classrooms, they would be ignoring a crisis in society and their responsibilities. He said it's time to regain Hong Kong's future and not accept fate. One of the organiser of the Occupy Central movement, Professor Chan Kin-man, said the turnout showed that the spirit of democracy is alive and their movement won't be defeated. Another of the Occupy Central organisers, Benny Tai, said the turnout sent a strong message to the central government. "I think that clearly shows that the Hong Kong university students are very committed to the course of universal suffrage, and I think they will use this opportunity to demonstrate their determination about wanting universal suffrage for Hong Kong," he said. Leading academics in the territory have voiced support for the boycott, with some offering to record lectures and post them online for students who miss school to watch later. The students also hope to hold rallies at Tamar Park and outside the Legislative Council building on Tuesday. The class boycott coincides with a trip to Beijing by some of Hong Kong's most powerful business tycoons where they are expected to discuss Hong Kong politics with state leaders. A local delegate to China's top advisory body Charles Ho said young students should study political issues more thoroughly to understand how political reform can create national security issues. Mr Ho is in Beijing as part of the delegation from Hong Kong. Wong Kwan-yu, who heads the pro-Beijing Federation of Education Workers, expressed concern that boycotts would spread to secondary schools.