CUHK's student union 'is now history'

The 50-year-old Chinese University student union has disbanded - the first student union to dissolve after the 15-month national security law came into effect.

CUHK said it regrets the union's decision but promises it will continue to communicate with students.

In a statement on Facebook yesterday, CUSU said it had been in a dilemma after the university demanded that it register through government agencies and bear legal responsibility for itself.

It sought professional legal opinion and was told "the ordinance does not apply to the union" for independent registration, leaving it torn between following the advice or complying with the university's demand.

"To serve the best interest of our students, CUSU convened [a meeting on September 10] to give the matter serious and deliberate consideration," the union said. "A motion was adopted to accept the collective resignation of the student representatives of the CUSU council and to dissolve CUSU."

It decided to announce the disbandment yesterday after organizing the orientation camps for new students last month.

The union, founded in 1971 by student representatives from the three colleges of New Asia, Chung Chi and United, had been the only organization mandated to represent the student body on campus.

The union said it had always maintained open channels of communication with the university administration.

"Even during the most severe challenges, the administration continued to recognize and affirm our legitimacy and legal status on campus," it said. But, it added, this ended when the university said in February that it will stop collecting fees from the union starting this academic year and demanded the union to register by itself.

It is "a matter of profound regret" that CUSU is now history, the union said. It thanked students and the public for their support.

"Although CUSU no longer exists as an organization, CUHKers are still here and we remain faithful to the ideals that have guided us throughout."

The university said it has engaged in "systematic and collaborative dialogue" with the union in the past eight months.

"The university believed that registration under the Societies or Companies Ordinance represented a well-established, legally mandated framework for CUSU to continue," it said.

"The university regrets that CUSU has elected an alternative course and has independently moved to dissolve its operations."

The student affairs office will take over activities managed by the union, the university said.

The University of Hong Kong earlier cut ties with its student union, whose leaders expressed appreciation for the "sacrifice" of a man who stabbed an officer before killing himself on July 1.

Other universities, including CUHK, City, Polytechnic and Baptist, also said they would stop collecting membership fees on behalf of their student unions. But none of those student unions made any comment yesterday or said whether they would disband after CUSU's announcement.

Former Legislative Council president Jasper Tsang Yok-sing said university students have independent judgment and he believes they will establish another union in the future.

Political party Third Side vice chairman Casper Wong Chun-long, who is also a former president of PolyU's student union, said it is a pity that CUSU decided to disband.

The student unions have a unique position in universities as they serve students and participate in the university's development, Wong said.

Pro-Beijing Hong Kong Federation of Education Workers president Wong Kwan-yu told The Standard it is hard to say whether student unions in other universities will disband as well.

But it is possible that some of them will have a fresh start by rewriting the union constitution, taking into account the national security issues, Wong said.

He said disbandment will not affect students' university lives because the unions have become politicalized.

But Ng Po-shing, student guidance consultant from Hok Yau Club, said disbandment will affect communication between students and the university and the youngsters may not be able to obtain information about university policies.

"When there is a union, students feel their opinions are heard by universities," Ng said.

He said students usually like to participate in their university's decision-making process and urged universities to find alternative ways to communicate with students.

wallis.wang@singtaonewscorp.com