White Terror Looms in Hong Kong as Schools Ask to Ditch Debate Topics on Anti-extradition Bill
White terror continues to loom among schools in Hong Kong. One of the debate topics selected by Hong Kong Schools Debate Federation this year was associated with Anti-Extradition Bill, and was then criticized by pro-Beijing newspaper and Hong Kong Federation of Education Workers, also a pro-Beijing organisation. Sources of Apple Daily revealed that Education Bureau has been calling down the list of participating schools, exerting pressure on them to withdraw, saying “its is not advisable to discuss sensitive issues amid a sensitive time”. It was also said that schools were asked to provide names of those students refused to quit.
Besides, major sponsoring bodies of schools, including Tung Wah Group of Hospitals, Roman Catholic Diocese of Hong Kong and Shun Tak Fraternal Association also made contact with and advised their respective subsidizing schools to withdraw from the contest.
The Federation confirmed that 17 schools has withdrawn from this year’s debate contest so far, among which 5 were Government Schools. The Education Bureau had not responded to whether they had been pressurizing participating schools to drop out. However, the Bureau did stress that students should not participate in any contest that is politically coloured, fearing that it may affect their wellbeing.
Source: Apple Daily
http://bit.ly/2QHxYLh
#Jan11 #WhiteTerror #Schools #EducationBureau #Debate #Academia
White terror continues to loom among schools in Hong Kong. One of the debate topics selected by Hong Kong Schools Debate Federation this year was associated with Anti-Extradition Bill, and was then criticized by pro-Beijing newspaper and Hong Kong Federation of Education Workers, also a pro-Beijing organisation. Sources of Apple Daily revealed that Education Bureau has been calling down the list of participating schools, exerting pressure on them to withdraw, saying “its is not advisable to discuss sensitive issues amid a sensitive time”. It was also said that schools were asked to provide names of those students refused to quit.
Besides, major sponsoring bodies of schools, including Tung Wah Group of Hospitals, Roman Catholic Diocese of Hong Kong and Shun Tak Fraternal Association also made contact with and advised their respective subsidizing schools to withdraw from the contest.
The Federation confirmed that 17 schools has withdrawn from this year’s debate contest so far, among which 5 were Government Schools. The Education Bureau had not responded to whether they had been pressurizing participating schools to drop out. However, the Bureau did stress that students should not participate in any contest that is politically coloured, fearing that it may affect their wellbeing.
Source: Apple Daily
http://bit.ly/2QHxYLh
#Jan11 #WhiteTerror #Schools #EducationBureau #Debate #Academia