How young Hongkongers feel about compulsory military training for Hong Kong and Macau students at Tsinghua University

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South China Morning Post, with additional reporting by Edmund Ho
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Hong Kong students worry about having to take part in mandatory military training at a mainland university

South China Morning Post, with additional reporting by Edmund Ho |
Published: 
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First-year students march in line during military training at Tsinghua University.

Hong Kong students are not happy about the idea of having to take part in a three-week military training programme at top Beijing university Tsinghua.

The programme was previously only compulsory for mainland students.

It is the first time Tsinghua University has required Hong Kong and Macau students to do it. The university currently has 645 students from Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan enrolled.

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Professor Lau Siu-kai, vice-chairman of the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macau Studies, a semi-official think tank, believed that the university created the new rule to encourage patriotism in the students.

“The point of military training across the whole world is to teach people a sense of responsibility to their countries, and to strengthen their love for their countries,” he said.

Students from Hong Kong, however, disagreed.

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Yung-yee Chia, 14, from Kiangsu-Chekiang College, International Section, believes that universities shouldn’t make things that aren’t academic mandatory.

“I think this rule is completely unnecessary since joining the military doesn’t really directly help the students on their academic results.”

Others, like Zoe Taylor, 17, from Clifton College, said that while they didn’t have plans to go to Tsinghua, news like this would only dissuade her even more.

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“I don’t want to go to a mainland university because I don’t speak Mandarin, and this news has deterred me further, especially if I have the option to go to overseas universities.”

The website said the three-week training last year contained two parts – military techniques and theories. Students were taught to march, shoot live rounds and perform first aid.

Two worried Hong Kong teenagers admitted to the top Beijing university told the Post on Sunday that the training would begin this Friday at the university’s campus but they still didn’t know programme’s details.

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“I am afraid that I am not physically strong enough,” said Carrie Li, 17, who was admitted to Tsinghua’s law school and only found out about the military training requirement from an information booklet they received from the university.

Another teenager, Leung Kwok-sum, 18, who is enrolled in the economic and management school, was also anxious.

“I am worried that I will become a burden to my classmates because I have never tried any military training and I may not be strong enough,” said Leung, who also got the message from the school.

He added students should be given the choice whether to take part or not.

Edited by Nicole Moraleda

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