HK students get priority for mainland crossing

Hong Kong students will have priority booking for crossing into the mainland so they can enroll in schools there in time for the new academic year on September 1.

That was settled yesterday with a series of measures to assist students.

Secretary for Education Christine Choi Yuk-lin said the people's government of Guangdong Province designated some 3,000 SAR students enrolling in mainland schools as a priority group under the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office's "care corridor," allowing an unlimited number to bypass the randomly selected daily border-crossing quota of 2,000 people.

Students must by Friday complete an online form and provide copies of official documents proving their identity as students such as offer confirmation letters, enrollment records or student identity cards. Students can contact authorities via e-mail at nbs@edb.gov.hk, Whatsapp or Wechat at 5191-3760 or via a hotline at 3698-4466.

After applications have been received by the Education Bureau the forms will be handed to mainland authorities for verification, who will then arrange flight itineraries based on enrollment dates and the number of applications.

Students will be notified via e-mail 24 hours before a departure.

The application portal will remain open for one to two weeks after Friday in case students miss the deadline.

But Choi said no official figures on the availability of flights and quarantine hotel places will be announced until after a review of student travel applications as authorities are unclear on the precise whereabouts of 18,000 Hong Kong students studying in the mainland at present.

About half are in Guangdong, 20 percent are in Fujian, and the rest are scattered across various provinces. Authorities have also made arrangements with mainland schools to allow late or deferred enrollments in case students are unable to arrive in time given that quarantine regulations remain in effect.

The mainland's current quarantine policy for travelers from Hong Kong includes seven days of compulsory quarantine in a designated hotel followed by three days of self-surveillance at home. And there may be more requirements depending on provincial rules.

Students will, however, be allowed to undergo quarantine in Macau before flying to mainland destinations.

But authorities have vetoed the idea of Hongkongers quarantining in the SAR before crossing the border.

Mainland-bound students will also have to bear the costs of surging prices of hotel and air fares, Choi added. There will not be any subsidies. Still, by cooperating with the central government local authorities have increased the frequency of flights from Hong Kong to various cities.

Although there will be no chartered flights, Choi said, authorities are ensuring extra flights will be available to meet the surge in demand.

"It's not easy being so far from home, and with no flight tickets or border quotas, the journey up North has caused a lot of stress,' said Michael, a third-year student at the Guangxi University of Chinese Medicine. "Under the new measures, we can at least get to our destination."

He added that quarantining in Hong Kong would have been even more convenient for students.

The Ministry of Education and a task force from the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office backed by regional and provincial authorities will be responsible for the travel and quarantine arrangements to make sure students get to school on time.

Separately, legislator Dennis Leung Tsz-wing of the Federation of Trade Unions said the FTU has asked transport provider Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge Shuttle Bus to take 80 SAR students to the mainland.

He also called on the administration to set up a temporary task force to take care of these students as 350 people have sought help from the FTU on matters such as people needing to visit sick relatives without leaving it up to chance.

"The current lottery system doesn't acknowledge the severity of the situation," he said.

Meanwhile, Hong Kong Airlines has said it will resume flights between Hong Kong and Chongqing on August 30. But the service will be limited to one flight a week.

A spokesman from the Hong Kong Federation of Education Workers said it welcomed the arrangement and thanked the central government for its concern for Hong Kong students.

The federation also said it was confident the SAR government would be able to adopt and follow up on feedback and opinions in a timely manner.

David Yu Chak-wai - a representative for a student union for Hong Kong students studying in Beijing which has been campaigning for special arrangements for weeks - said the newly announced scheme "inspired hope in the SAR government under the new electoral system."

He also said previously: "Flight tickets were hard to come by and students had failed to get a spot in the daily lottery for 18 days straight."