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HONG KONG: A Hong Kong teacher was fired for allegedly promoting independence in class, a move hailed by the city’s leader on Tuesday (October 6) as a blow to the “black sheep” who work in the education system.
The decision marks the first time that the Hong Kong Bureau of Education has eliminated a teaching license due to lesson content, and it comes as the crackdown on democracy supporters in the city accelerates.
“Our work has to continue to get the black sheep out of the field of education,” Executive Director Carrie Lam told reporters.
“If there is a very small fraction of teachers who are using their teaching responsibilities to convey wrong messages to promote misunderstandings about the nation, to smear the country and the Hong Kong government, baseless, then that becomes a very serious matter.” . she added.
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The Education Office said the primary school teacher, who was not named, was expelled for “deliberately spreading messages in favor of independence.”
The office did not give details of the material or explain how the teacher had crossed the line.
But a report on the primary school from a pro-Beijing newspaper last year included photos from a question newspaper that it said promoted independence.
Two of the questions were “What is freedom of expression?” and “What would Hong Kong be without freedom of expression?”
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Another asked students to summarize the arguments made by a pro-independence activist during a television interview.
Education has become a key target for the Hong Kong administration after months of huge and sometimes violent demonstrations last year.
Many young people participated in the protests, which called for police responsibility and greater autonomy for the city.
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China’s central government imposed a comprehensive security law in Hong Kong in June, banning public calls for independence and other allegedly subversive political views.
Schools and public libraries soon removed books deemed illegal under the new law.
Beijing has also called for a more patriotic education, while the Lam administration is looking to revise parts of the curriculum that it believes are fueling discontent toward China.
Critics say the measures undermine Hong Kong’s reputation for academic freedom and excellence, fearing that the heavily censored education system in use on the authoritarian mainland could take over the city.
