Strikes are afoot to restructure the Universities Service Heart for Chinese language Research on the Chinese language College of Hong Kong (CUHK), RFA has discovered.
The middle’s director Pierre Landry has apparently provided to resign amid plans to “reorganize” the middle, in line with an inside electronic mail seen by RFA’s Cantonese Service and folks working at CUHK.
Beneath the plan for 2021, the middle’s information can be built-in right into a university-wide digital database managed by the college library, whereas its tutorial actions will proceed beneath the aegis of CUHK’s China Analysis Institute, the e-mail stated.
“The looks could also be altering, however its DNA will keep the identical,” the e-mail stated, including that there can be no personnel modifications on account of the restructuring.
Nevertheless, the e-mail additionally introduced that the middle’s director Pierre Landry had “provided to resign,” and can be changed by Zhao Zhiyu, present dean of social sciences, in January.
A CUHK college member who requested to not be recognized stated the restructuring would probably break up the middle, and combine China-related analysis into current departments.
The middle has been an vital supply of information and facilitator of educational change for international analysis on China.
Analysis restrictions feared
Its college now concern restrictions on their analysis actions beneath the restructuring.
“It looks as if the top of an period,” the school member stated.
The transfer to restructure comes because the ruling Chinese language Communist Occasion (CCP) presides over a crackdown on dissenting opinions in Hong Kong beneath its draconian nationwide safety regulation, imposed on town since July 1.
The middle, which has been operating because the Mao period, is more and more being seen as a hotbed of “collusion with overseas powers,” a vaguely-worded offense beneath the brand new regulation that may embody lobbying actions or social media posts inside its scope, based mostly on current circumstances.
Folks aware of the matter stated that the CUHK authorities have obtained quite a few involved inquiries in regards to the transfer.
“Now will not be the time to be doing this,” one CUHK employees member informed RFA.
They stated the middle has been falsely accused of “collusion with overseas powers” and of spying.
The truth that Chan Kin-man, one of many initiators of the 2014 Occupy Central civil disobedience marketing campaign for totally democratic elections, is a former director, had executed little to endear it to Beijing, the employees member stated.
Nationwide safety regulation
CUHK confirmed the plan to restructure the middle, and stated claims that they had been linked to the nationwide safety regulation had been “fictitious rumor.”
“The reorganization of the Universities Service Heart for Chinese language Research goals to boost the middle’s current providers and make its collections extra broadly out there to native and worldwide students,” the college stated in an emailed response.
“The reorganization plan consists of digitizing its collections and opening them to students from all around the world,” it stated.
Jin Zhong, chief editor of Hong Kong’s Open Journal, stated the restructuring was probably linked to the nationwide safety crackdown, nevertheless.
“This has one thing to do with the general political local weather proper now in Hong Kong, particularly because the nationwide safety regulation took impact, and the prosecutions of Jimmy Lai and numerous protest leaders,” Jin informed RFA.
“It is a very unwise transfer for Beijing to take care of a analysis facility at CUHK on this manner,” he stated. “The middle has had no involvement in any of the political actions of current years, not the coed motion, the pro-democracy motion, Occupy Central or [last year’s] anti-extradition motion.”
“They solely deal in tutorial materials, and solely in goal materials at that,” he stated, including that the middle had at all times been very cautious about political involvement up to now.
Reported by Gigi Lee and Cheng Yut Yiu for RFA’s Cantonese Service. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.