Varsity warns against activism

‘Students associated with labour rights group will face arrests’

BEIJING: One of China’s top universities has warned students they face arrests if they associate with a labour-rights organisation that has drawn support in a recent surge of Chinese campus activism.

Peking University sent a message to all students on Wednesday accusing Jasic Workers Solidarity of “criminal activity”, according to a student involved with the group.

“After today’s message, if there are still students that want to defy the law, they must take responsibility,” said the note.

Chinese universities have historically been a wellspring for radical political movements and any hint of campus activism sparks deep concern among authorities.

The warning marks the latest move in a crackdown on Jasic Workers Solidarity after at least a dozen activist and student supporters in several cities were detained last week, according the group.

Rights campaigners said on Tuesday that five of the detained activists had been released.

Jasic Workers Solidarity rose to prominence this summer when student activists backed its efforts to form a workers’ union at the welding machinery firm Jasic Technology in Guangdong province.

In its warning, Peking University mentioned the case of graduate Zhang Shengye – a member of the group who last week was beaten on campus and taken away by people in dark clothing, according to an eyewitness and a statement from Jasic Workers Solidarity.

The university accused Zhang of participating in the group’s “illegal” activities and confirmed that he had been taken away by government security forces.

The school also accused student Yu Tianfu of conspiring with Zhang and interfering with his arrest.

Yu published an eyewitness account of Zhang’s abduction online.

Peking University did not respond to a request for comment.

The varsity is one of China’s most prestigious and has produced many top political leaders.

Student activists across China have recently reported increased pressure from authorities.

Many members of the Jasic Workers Solidarity belong to student-run Marxist societies, some of which say they have been unable to register with their universities.

Earlier this week, a university in Guangxi said it would check students’ and teachers’ phones, computers and external hard drives for “illegal” audio and video content, according to media reports.

The varsity later backed off after an online uproar and as lawyers contested the move’s legality.

In 1989, thousands of students joined workers in pro-democracy protests in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square that eventually provoked a bloody crackdown.