SHIRLEY ZHAO AND TONY CHEUNG
PUBLISHED : Thursday, 01 October, 2015, 12:55pm
UPDATED : Thursday, 01 October, 2015, 12:55pm
Dr William Cheung Sing-wai (far left), posing earlier this week with lawmaker Ip Kin-yuen and student representative Billy Fung Jing-en, said the poll would start next week and take at least two weeks to finish. Photo: Felix Wong
Staff at the University of Hong Kong are planning an opinion poll to help determine whether to boycott classes as anger reverberates across campus after the university council’s controversial decision to reject a liberal scholar’s appointment to a senior management post.
Dr William Cheung Sing-wai, chairman of the university’s academic staff association, said his group would prepare 500 questionnaires to gauge staff members’ acceptance of the council’s decision. He said the poll would start next week and take at least two weeks to finish.
The poll will also help the association and students decide whether to initiate a boycott of classes, Cheung said. But he noted they had not sorted out details on how they would reach a decision.
“If I were not the [association’s] chairman but just a staff member, I would definitely support a boycott,” said Cheung during an appearance this morning on Commercial Radio.
The council set off a storm by voting 12-8 in a secret ballot on Tuesday night against a search committee's recommendation that former HKU law dean Johannes Chan Man-mun be made the pro-vice-chancellor in charge of academic staffing and resources.
Professor Johannes Chan has close ties to colleague Benny Tai Yiu-ting, a co-founder of the pro-democracy Occupy Central movement. Photo: Sam TsangOpposition to Chan's appointment had been linked to the liberal scholar's close ties to colleague Benny Tai Yiu-ting, a co-founder of the pro-democracy Occupy Central movement.
After the closed-door discussions on Tuesday night, angry student representative Billy Fung Jing-en abandoned confidentiality rules and revealed the reasons pro-government members had given for rejecting Chan, ranging from his not having a PhD degree to his failure to “show sympathy” to a council colleague who collapsed in July when students stormed a meeting.
Fung was immediately criticised by several pro-establishment figures, including those mentioned in his revelations, with some calling him “a liar” or having “no integrity”.
Cheung stated that if those mentioned by Fung had said nothing wrong, they should not have been afraid of their remarks being revealed.
“I’m very proud of a student who can speak out on behalf of justice,” he said.
Cheung said he was worried that the council’s handling of Chan’s candidacy would deter teachers from freely expressing their views as many are on contracts that need to be reviewed every three years.
Leong Che-hung, chairman of the university's governing council, said the body's deliberations were to be kept confidential. Photo: Felix WongMeanwhile, the university’s vice-chancellor has declined to say whether Beijing was behind the council’s decision.
Speaking after the official National Day reception this morning in Wan Chai, Professor Peter Mathieson stated, “The council made the decision based on a thorough debate of all the issues.”
When asked whether he believed Beijing interfered with the council members’ deliberations, Mathieson said only that council members could speak for themselves.
“Everybody has their own reason,” he said. “The principle should be that decisions are made in the best interest of the university, and that’s certainly the principle I bring to all my decisions.”
Also on the sidelines of today’s reception, council chairman Leong Che-hung was asked to comment on Fung’s public disclosure of what was said at Tuesday’s meeting. He reiterated that councillors’ speeches are supposed to be confidential, and said he is not in a position to decide whether or how Fung is to be punished.
http://m.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education-community/article/1863143/staff-university-hong-kong-consider-boycotting
