Hong Kong to review letting more semi-private schools offer non-local curriculum
The Hong Kong government will review whether to allow more semi-private secondary schools to offer a non-local curriculum on a self-financing basis, the education minister has said.
Advertisement
Secretary for Education Christine Choi Yuk-lin on Wednesday also dismissed a call to let non-locals attend public primary and secondary schools amid a local student population decline, explaining that the language of instruction was Cantonese and the curriculum targeted Hongkongers.
Choi revealed the syllabus plan in a reply to lawmaker Peter Douglas Koon Ho-ming, who asked whether authorities would let schools under the direct subsidy scheme (DSS) allocate more places to those studying a non-local curriculum.
'We now let international schools and DSS schools offer the International Baccalaureate (IB), but parents, particularly those coming from overseas, find the places to be insufficient ... will authorities increase the relevant places in DSS schools?' Koon said in a Legislative Council meeting.
Choi said the government would only provide subsidies to public schools to offer the local curriculum.
Advertisement
The city's university entrance examination, the Diploma of Secondary Education (DSE), was for local students to pursue further studies, she noted.
But Choi said that authorities 'in the long run' would review whether more DSS schools, which are semi-private, could be allowed to provide non-local curriculum on a self-financing basis as part of the institutions' 'two routes' of curriculum offer.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
HKFP
5 hours ago
- HKFP
Lawbreakers to be ‘held accountable,' China says as US airs support for activist Joshua Wong after nat. security charge
China's foreign ministry office in Hong Kong has slammed the United States for voicing support for jailed activist Joshua Wong after he was charged under the national security law, accusing Washington of 'blatantly interfering' in the city's affairs. The Office of the Commissioner of the Chinese Foreign Ministry in Hong Kong on Wednesday expressed 'strong disapproval and firm opposition,' after Washington said it 'strongly condemns' a second national security charge levelled against Wong. Wong, who is serving a four years and eight months jail sentence over conspiring to subvert state power under a Beijing-imposed national security law, was hit with a foreign collusion charge last week. The 28-year-old activist – one of Hong Kong's most prominent pro-democracy figures – stands accused of conspiring with self-exiled activist Nathan Law to request foreign countries to impose sanctions or engage in hostile activities against Hong Kong or China. 'Hong Kong is a society governed by the rule of law, where lawbreakers must be held accountable,' a spokesperson for China's foreign ministry office in Hong Kong said in a statement, describing Wong as an 'anti-China element.' 'The Hong Kong police acted lawfully in handling anti-China forces, and the judiciary delivered fair rulings – this is entirely legitimate,' the spokesperson said. 'The US has repeatedly used 'human rights' and 'freedom' as pretexts to back its pawns, exposing its malicious intent,' the spokesperson added. 'Unjust sentence' Earlier this week, a spokesperson for the US State Department criticised the charge against Wong. He faces a maximum penalty of life imprisonment if convicted. 'Wong is already serving an unjust sentence under vague national security charges simply for engaging in peaceful political activity,' the US spokesperson told US state-funded outlet the Voice of America (VOA) on Monday. The activist was among 45 convicted last year under the national security law in a case linked to primary elections in 2020. 'This tragic assault on Hong Kong's future – including the future of Joshua Wong and other activists languishing in custody or exiled for defending their fundamental freedoms – only proves Beijing never meant to keep its promises to maintain Hong Kong's high degree of autonomy and civil liberties,' the US spokesperson said. 'We call on Beijing and Hong Kong officials to stop using bogus national security laws to target Hong Kongers, release all political prisoners, and drop these outrageous charges against Joshua Wong,' the spokesperson added. 'Erroneous slanders' In a statement issued on Wednesday night, the Hong Kong government also strongly condemned 'some Western countries, anti-China organisations and anti-China politicians… for making erroneous slanders and smears.' 'As the legal proceedings of the case involving Joshua Wong Chi-fung are still ongoing, it is inappropriate for any person to comment on the details of the case,' a Hong Kong government spokesperson said. The city judiciary exercises its power independently and defendants are entitled to ac fair trial, the Hong Kong spokesperson said. 'We are appalled by irresponsible remarks of some countries, organisations or individuals that seemed to suggest that people with certain political beliefs should be immune to legal sanctions,' the spokesperson added. Int't NGOs condemn charge The Hong Kong government statement came after international NGOs criticised the new charge against Wong. 'This latest charge against him underscores the authorities' fear of prominent dissidents and shows the lengths they will go to keep them behind bars for as long as possible – in so doing, continuing a chilling effect on civic activism in the city,' Amnesty International's China Director Sarah Brooks said in a statement last week, after Wong was brought to court to face the new allegation. 'While imprisoned under one trumped-up charge, Joshua Wong has been suddenly slapped with yet another as the authorities appear intent on keeping one of Hong Kong's most influential democracy leaders behind bars. This decision is arbitrary, cruel, and outrageous,' Maya Wang, associate China director at Human Rights Watch, said in a separate statement. Wong has already spent over 1,600 days in prison since being remanded in custody in November 2020 over an unauthorised assembly charge. He pleaded guilty to conspiring to subvert state power in the city's largest national security case and was sentenced to four years and eight months in jail last November. Beijing inserted national security legislation directly into Hong Kong's mini-constitution in June 2020 following a year of pro-democracy protests and unrest. It criminalised subversion, secession, collusion with foreign forces and terrorist acts – broadly defined to include disruption to transport and other infrastructure. The move gave police sweeping new powers and led to hundreds of arrests amid new legal precedents, while dozens of civil society groups disappeared. The authorities say it restored stability and peace to the city, rejecting criticism from trade partners, the UN and NGOs.
South China Morning Post
6 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
Xi-Trump phone call suggests ties are warming but the timing of a meeting is another thing
Despite an invitation from his American counterpart Donald Trump , sources indicate that Chinese President Xi Jinping will not travel to the United States in September for the UN General Assembly, which would be the earliest opportunity for such a trip. Advertisement Instead, China will send Premier Li Qiang to represent the country at the event in New York, according to several diplomatic sources. The bilateral relationship seems to have improved following a phone call between Xi and Trump on June 5. The US president later said he had received an invitation to visit China, which he then reciprocated. 02:09 China, US top negotiators agree on 'framework' that will need approval from Xi and Trump China, US top negotiators agree on 'framework' that will need approval from Xi and Trump 'He invited me to China, and I invited him here. We both accepted, so I'll be going there with the first lady at a certain point, and he'll be coming here, hopefully with the first lady of China,' Trump told reporters that day. Observers in Washington believe a visit would significantly stabilise one of the most critical bilateral relationships in the world. Such trips typically require months of preparation, making the United Nations General Assembly in September the most convenient opportunity. It would be ideal for Xi to speak in person to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the founding of the UN, an organisation China has staunchly supported. However, several diplomatic sources told the South China Morning Post this was unlikely. Advertisement 'The No. 2 will go to the UN,' said a source in Beijing who had been briefed on the arrangements, referring to the premier. Two other sources also told the Post that Li would attend on Xi's behalf.
South China Morning Post
7 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
Beijing hoping for closer ties with Vatican after Pope Leo names first Chinese bishop
China said it was willing to promote better relations with the Vatican after the appointment of the first Chinese bishop under the new pope. On Wednesday, the Vatican said Pope Leo had named Joseph Lin Yuntuan, 73, as an auxiliary bishop in Fuzhou, capital of the southwestern province of Fujian, on June 5. The appointment continues an agreement reached under Leo's predecessor, Pope Francis, that bishops must be approved by both sides. The announcement was made on the same day that Beijing recognised the appointment. The Vatican described Chinese recognition of the bishop as 'a further fruit of the dialogue between the Holy See and the Chinese authorities' and 'a significant step in the diocese's communal journey', according to Vatican News. Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said: 'In recent years, China and the Vatican have maintained communication and enhanced understanding and mutual trust through constructive dialogue. 'With the joint efforts of both sides, the provisional agreement on the appointment of bishops has been smoothly implemented.
