Hong Kong introduces sweeping national safety rules for schools

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For years, parents and students in the semi-autonomous city feared a shift to Chinese-style ‘patriotic education’, with an earlier attempt to introduce such a curriculum backfired by mass protests in 2012. The new rules, set in the aftermath of both the new security law and the crackdown on the city’s opposition movement go much further than previously claimed.

“Schools play an important role in this,” he added.

At a press conference on Thursday, Ip Kin-yuen, a former lawmaker and deputy chairman of the Professional Teachers’ Union, criticized the government for announcing the new policy without consulting teachers and parents.

“There is a lot of sensitivity and unpredictability when it comes to education on national security law,” he said. “It will cause tremendous pressure and concern among directors and teachers.”

New rules

The new policy is outlined in a series of circulars viewed by CNN, as well as new teaching materials, including videos, picture books and images, featuring Chinese cartoon soldiers and local police officers helping students understand their “responsibilities” under the security law.

They go into detail on how to teach national security issues in a range of subjects, from general studies and history to biology and music, as well as how administrators and educators should deal with disciplinary issues and failure to adhere to the new guidelines.

Both teachers and students who break the rules may be disapproved, with drivers advised to call the police in case of ‘serious’ violations, while books and other materials contrary to national security should be removed from school, although little precise guidance is provided for which materials are covered.

“If it is found that an employee does not respect the country, the school should give appropriate advice or warning and pay attention accordingly to the future performance of this employee,” the rules say.

Students, both college and high school, were at the forefront of anti-government and pro-democracy protests that rocked Hong Kong for much of 2019. During the turmoil and leading up to the introduction of the National Security Act, many pro-government figures blamed the city’s liberal education curriculum, as well as teachers, for allegedly radicalizing the city’s youth.

“We’ve lost two generations, we’ve lost them through the schools,” Carrie Lam, a top advisor to Chief Executive in Hong Kong, told CNN at the height of the turmoil.

“The fundamental problem is that you have a whole generation of young people who are not only dead to China, but who actually hate China,” the assistant said, on condition of anonymity. “How are you going to make ‘one country, two systems’ work when you have an entire generation that hates that country?”

While members of the city’s democratic opposition have rejected these claims, pointing out that many of them did not receive the supposedly radical lessons introduced only in 2009, this has not stopped pressure to “reform” Hong Kong’s education system.

In her annual policy speech last November, Lam, the Beijing-appointed leader of the city, said the 2019 protests had “prompted many to question the effectiveness of education in Hong Kong again.”

“We cannot bear that with the infiltration of politics on school campuses, students are thrown into political turbulence or even tricked into participating in illegal and violent acts, which require them to take legal responsibilities that affect their lives,” Lam said, adding that it was “the shared responsibility of the government, society, education and parents to find a way to protect our students.”

Political controls

Under the new guidelines will start early on inculcating the principles of national security.

Kindergartens – both private and public – are expected to instill in their students a greater knowledge of “ Chinese history, Chinese culture and moral education, ” which guidelines say will “ gradually build students’ identities as Chinese and thus the foundation for education in the field of national security. “

From the age of six, all students in Hong Kong will receive new lessons to help them “understand the country’s history and development, the importance of national security, the national flag, the national emblem and the anthem”.

Primary school students are taught how to sing the national anthem and hoist the flag, while older children discuss the rationale behind the law itself, and the importance of institutions such as the People’s Liberation Army.

Nor are international schools – which are popular with both foreign residents and wealthier local residents – exempt from the new guidelines.

While private educational institutions are not directly under the control of the EDB, the rules issued Thursday state that international and private schools “have a responsibility to help their students (regardless of ethnicity and nationality) achieve a correct and objective understanding … of … the concept of national security and the national security law, as well as the duty to cultivate a law-abiding spirit among their students. “

Hong Kong’s education system is already notoriously intense for students, while the city’s international schools charge high fees and are difficult to access, meaning the new rules could be the final straw for some parents already considering moving abroad.
This week, the UK launched its resettlement program for British Nationals (Overseas) passport holders, of which there are an estimated 3 million in Hong Kong. The Chinese government has responded angrily to the plan, saying it will no longer recognize BN (O) documents, yet an estimated 300,000 people are expected to move to the UK.

Others are moving to Canada and Australia, where many Hong Kongers have dual residency, while several prominent activists and politicians have applied for asylum in the UK, Germany and the United States.

“The (exodus) is already underway, especially for families with small children,” opposition lawmaker Lester Shum said last year. “If I put myself in their shoes, I can understand the fear and worry they have about the next generation. Children cannot reasonably have a good outlook or a bright future in Hong Kong, and so to protect that … understandable why people want to leave. “

Chinese young pioneers with face masks attend a flag ceremony in Tiananmen Square on October 1, 2020 in Beijing, China.

Concern for teachers

For school staff, both administrators and teachers, the new rules open the worrying possibility of being reported by students for violating national security, which could lead to them losing their jobs or, in extreme cases, being arrested.

Last year, the city’s former leader, CY Leung, launched a campaign to appoint and shame teachers he believes were involved in the 2019 protests by posting their personal details on his Facebook page and calling for dismissal.
In mainland China, such reporting of teachers who go against the party line is relatively routine, both in high schools and on college campuses, and there are regular campaigns to ensure the ideological purity of educators, while ‘student advisers’ compile files on teachers who deemed insufficiently patriotic.

While these practices have disturbing echoes of the Cultural Revolution for many older Chinese, in which teenage Red Guards often assaulted and even murdered teachers, such campaigns have intensified under Chinese President Xi Jinping.

On Thursday, the Chinese government released new guidelines for “strengthening the work of the Chinese Young Pioneers” (CYP), a youth wing of the Communist Party that “serves as a school for children to learn about socialism with Chinese characteristics and communism.”

“The directive emphasized maintaining the party’s leadership over the CYP work and pursuing the fundamental task of nurturing skilled young people who are well prepared to join the communist cause,” said Xinhua state news agency.

The Young Pioneers operate in the same way as the Scouts, but with a decidedly political slant, with a uniform red scarf tied around their necks. Under the new guidelines, they will be encouraged to work more closely with schools and youth groups in Hong Kong and Macao to strengthen the “national, ethnic and cultural identity” of young people in these areas.

CNN’s Eric Cheung contributed to the reporting.

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