President of PolyU Student Council: The space for student autonomy is narrowed, and resistance is difficult. Before leaving, I am willing to consult with the school to listen

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Written by: Hu Jiaxin

2021-03-03 18:00

The last update date: 2021-03-03 18:08

The CUHK Student Union was "cut off" by the school. It officially took office on March 1, and all resigned on the same day. On the same day, the PolyU Student Union took office as scheduled. It was the only student union among the eight universities that successfully changed its term.

The new president of the PolyU Student Union, Hu Weiquan, bluntly stated that after the implementation of the National Security Law, the space for student autonomy has narrowed. "I don’t know if there will be a student union next year." Political activities must take into account the legal risks of affiliated associations and participating audiences.

Under the "red line" of the law, Hu Weiquan pointed out that the school promised to resume constant communication earlier. As long as it does not affect student autonomy, the student union is willing to communicate and negotiate with the school. "The first step will not be head-on, because it may not be interesting."

Among the eight university student unions, for the time being, only the PolyU Student Union has successfully changed its term.

(Photo by Yu Junliang)

The "Minato National Security Law" has been implemented for more than half a year, and the eight university student unions have fallen into a "broken house" trend. At present, only the cabinet of the Polytechnic University Student Union "Huan Yao" was successfully elected and took office this Monday (1st).

Unlike previous student unions, the current cabinet members are young. Among the 18 "Qizhuang" members, nearly 90% are first-year students, including the youngest chairman Hu Weiquan, who is studying building services engineering.

Hu Weiquan has maintained a bald head for ten years. He was dubbed "PolyU Uncle Bob" by the dealers. He has a mature appearance, but he is only 18 years old.

The freshman serves as the "Big Banner" of the Student Union, which is rare in the academic world. He is determined to shoulder heavy responsibilities. The main reason is that he followed the "Siege of PolyU".

As a student of this place, I have to do my part to defend this place and continue the spirit of sports.

Hu Weiquan

Hu Weiquan, known as "PolyU Uncle Bob", is only 18 years old despite his mature appearance.

He said that as early as 2014, he was inspired by the Occupy Movement and actively paid attention to and participated in social affairs.

(Photo by Yu Junliang)

The siege of a first-year student from PolyU Student Union triggers Shangzhuang

On November 17, 2019, when the conflict broke out on the first day of PolyU, it was Hu Weiquan’s birthday. The campus was full of smoke and scenes of conflicts, which made him unforgettable and triggered the idea of ​​Shangzhuang, “This place gathers several generations of people for civil rights. I am looking forward to fighting for the rights I deserve. I sacrificed my career and future for Hong Kong. As a student of this place, I must do my part to defend this place and continue the spirit of sports."

The anti-regulation incident is a moment of political enlightenment for this generation of young people. Zhang Xinyi, the first-year English department vice president of foreign affairs, is a freshman diploma candidate. She has experienced arrests of friends and suicides with family and friends. She bluntly said that the impact of the movement was so profound that she decided to go to the village.

She is full of ambitions and clearly understands the limitations of reality. "Just to be a student union is to change society. In fact, it's a vague (vague) and fluent and wild. If you don't change the people who come forward, you should change the people first. "

If you change the person who doesn't show up, you should change the person first.

Zhang Xinyi

Zhang Xinyi, the vice president of foreign affairs of the first-year English department, said that her family had opposed participating in the student union, but she still insisted that she hoped to use the student union to "deep cultivation and meticulous work" and organize campus activities so that everyone can learn more about local culture and think more about democratic development.

(Photo by Yu Junliang)

If you don’t want to do it anymore, hold an event and emphasize non-"depoliticization"

After the "Hong Kong National Security Law" was implemented in July last year, Hong Kong's political space has rapidly narrowed, and the student union cannot be spared.

The CUHK officials alleged that the cabinet "Suo Ye"'s declaration and platform for election were illegal and demanded to "cut seats", and suspended the collection of membership fees and the provision of venues. In the end, "Suo Ye" announced their resignation on Monday.

In November last year, the PolyU Student Union originally planned to publish a front-page statement in the newspapers, and held a film screening to commemorate the anti-regulation campaign. The PolyU school warned in a similar way that the student union was forced to terminate the original plan.

The two had planned activities at the time, and they had already experienced it.

Hu Weiquan believes that under the National Security Act, the autonomy of the Student Union has been significantly tightened. In July last year, the police entered the student union room to search for evidence. The government closely monitored the behavior of the student union, and even the university took its attitude towards the student union. Under the new "red line" of the National Security Act, the student union must be careful Be cautious, the protest model cannot "go ahead" as it used to be, and campus political activities will be reduced.

He said that the cabinet has long been prepared for arrest, but under the National Security Act, holding events "does not as if you want to do it before." Legal risks must be taken into consideration in implementation to avoid dragging down members of the membership or even the audience participating in the event.

Zhang Xinyi pointed out that the student union is not "depoliticized." The student union will still speak out for social affairs. However, at the low ebb of the student movement, everyone is exhausted. We must learn to "deep cultivation and meticulous work". In the future, local cultural festivals will be held to encourage more students. Understand the local culture and identity, and plan to hold exhibitions on the student movement and the history of democracy in various places in the middle of the year. Learn from the past to reflect on the way forward.

In addition, we will continue to strive for and protect the welfare and rights of students, unite students, and strengthen the sense of belonging to the student union.

There are 18 students in the PolyU Student Union, and nearly 90% of them are first-year students. The 18-year-old chairman Hu Weiquan is the youngest.

He smiled and said: "Thanks to the great love of the dealer...it is the wrong love." (Photo by Yu Junliang)

The president said that if communication with the school is not compromised, if it affects student autonomy, it must be defended

As for the relationship between the PolyU Student Union and the school, Hu Weiquan believes that the two sides are not necessarily opposed. He had contacted the school earlier and felt that the university was not tough on the student union and was willing to show goodwill to restart the communication mechanism two years ago and promised every one to two months. Regularly meet with the student union to exchange views on school politics and different topics. It is expected that there will be high-level participation, but not the principal.

"There is a low line, especially for activities or speech that violates the law. (The school) don't think that students will violate the law because of their speech, so that the university will act on the students. They don't think about it."

In the current political environment, Hu Zhi, the student union is willing to understand the position first and try to find breakthroughs and negotiation in dialogue. "The first step is not to head-on, because it may not be interesting. Everyone has no steps." But he emphasized that the student union is not a compromise. If the school's measures affect the autonomy of the student union, it will inevitably defend it.

"Everyone has to confide in formal meetings. I hope that there will be minutes of the meeting. The public will know that we confess and have conditions. When we feel that the school's opinions or suggestions are unreasonable, they can be made public." Zhang Xinyi believes that with Whether the school’s dialogue is effective or not depends on whether they "play officialdom." If they negotiate carefully, there will be room for communication between the two parties.

The student department is a more important part of PolyU. If even the students don’t want to see it, and even the students’ voices are unwilling to hear, it is not desirable to be the principal of a tertiary institution.

Hu Weiquan

The two are only 18 or 19 years old. The students participating in the student union have long been prepared for arrest, and they only hope to fulfill their mission.

(Yu Junliang)

The cabinet of the Student Union of CUHK resigns, fearing that Zhuangba University will be elected temporarily, the Student Union of Polytechnic University is successfully elected

CUHK Student Union elected to cabinet "Shuo Ye", please resign that members and family members have recently received death threats

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Hope that the president's university governance is student-oriented

Teng Jinguang became the president of PolyU in July 2019. Recently, he spoke for the first time in responding to the conflicts at PolyU. He also commented that he "behaves well". Zhang Xinyi said that depending on the principal's remarks, "I don't think he is a good principal", but the student union will fight for it. Dialogue to understand the voices of people outside the "strato".

Teng Jinguang never met with students during the anti-amendment turmoil. Only during the epidemic, he held online and physical meetings, a total of two meetings.

Hu Weiquan pointed out that he did not get an interview with the principal after taking office. He hoped that the other party’s university governance would be student-oriented. "Students are a more important part of PolyU. If even the students don’t want to see, even the students’ voices are unwilling to hear. The principals of colleges and universities are not desirable."

The cabinet of the Student Union of CUHK resigns, fearing that Zhuangba University will be elected temporarily, the Student Union of Polytechnic University is successfully elected

CUHK Student Union elected to cabinet "Shuo Ye", please resign that members and family members have recently received death threats

The Student Union of CUHK withdraws the declaration and political platform for election

Alleged by the school for illegal and misrepresentation, the candidate cabinet of the CUHK Student Union withdrew the declaration and platform for election

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The Hong Kong Polytechnic University University Governance