Chinese students flee HK over fears of violence
HONG KONG: Mainland Chinese students have begun fleeing Hong Kong campuses over security fears, police and university officials said on Wednesday, as the city’s political crisis saw some of its worst violence this week.
The most intense clashes on Tuesday occurred at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, where pitched battles were fought with the police firing tear gas, water cannon and rubber bullets and protesters throwing petrol bombs and bricks, paralysing the campus and the area around it.
A group of mainland students at CUHK attempted to depart the campus Wednesday morning over safety concerns but had to be shuttled away by a police boat because they were unable to leave via obstructed roads.
“The police decided to deploy a police launch to assist the group of students to go to a safe location,” the force said.
Images on local outlet Stand News showed dozens of people standing next to a vessel with police markings, purportedly fleeing the campus. The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology arranged a special bus service to ferry students from its campus to a station that offers services to the mainland.
“While we are not aware of any imminent threat to campus safety, we understand some staff and students have the desire to leave campus,” the university said in an email to students.
It was not immediately clear how many mainland Chinese students have left Hong Kong during the latest escalation of violence.
Separately, the Taiwanese government said it was making arrangements to help Taiwanese students in Hong Kong return home.