No full backs at this game, please

A young man is found guilty of disrespecting the national anthem…

Lau Pun-hei, a 19-year-old student in politics at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, was convicted on Wednesday for turning his back to the pitch while the Chinese national anthem, “March of the Volunteers,” played ahead of the match at the Hong Kong Stadium on June 6, 2024.

…[Magistrate Kestrel] Lam rejected the defence’s argument that some other people in the stadium, including the police officers who filmed the spectators while the national anthem was being played, also had their backs facing the pitch.

…Lau’s offence was of a “minor nature,” Kwan [Lau’s lawyer] said, as his act was “quiet, peaceful, and did not involve any violence.”

Kwan urged the court to adopt a non-custodial sentence given the defendant’s young age.

Would the court really jail someone for this? Since you can get seven years for writing ‘seditious’ graffiti, it’s possible – though the anthem-insulting thing is not a NatSec offense.

Also, how many cops in the stadium are actually monitoring the crowd looking for people facing in the wrong direction?

What if you turn 90 degrees to the side?

HKFP reports that publicly funded universities in Hong Kong are signing up to an ‘accountability agreement’ requiring alignment with Xi Jinping’s remarks…

Local media reported on Monday that this was the first time the UGC agreement had explicitly required local universities to follow the guidance of the central government since they began signing the three-year contracts in 2019.

The new agreement instructed universities to strengthen education on China’s Constitution, Hong Kong’s Basic Law, and the national security law. This, the agreement said, would help nurture future leaders with “a strong sense of integrity, law-abidingness, civic responsibility, work ethics, and mutual respect.”

A very quick skim through the agreements suggests that all universities have signed identical documents. The wording allows the institutions to stop short of direct, wholehearted reciting of some distinctly Mainland-style political slogans. For example…

CUHK acknowledges the six strategic directions which the Government has established for the 2025-28 triennium and accepts the continual responsibility to pursue and implement them throughout the triennium, namely – 

(a) Supporting Hong Kong’s integration into the overall development of the country and creating impetus for Hong Kong’s growth The UGC-funded universities should be bold and innovative in their institutional visions that dovetail with the strategic development of our nation and Hong Kong over the longer horizon. They should proactively examine their strategies and priorities to seize opportunities for contributing towards Hong Kong’s integration into the overall development of our nation, particularly “invigorating China through science and education”, the National Five-year Plan, the GBA Development and the Belt and Road initiative. They should also strive to follow the advice and guidance of the Central Government on the future of Hong Kong, particularly in light of the “four musts” and “four proposals” and observe President Xi Jinping’s remark on creating strong impetus for Hong Kong’s growth and nurturing young talents for Hong Kong’s stability and prosperity.