TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The government of Hong Kong is being accused of mounting brainwashing campaign targeting the city’s educators with mandatory training programs containing a “national development agenda.”
The Education Bureau recently issued a notice to new teachers requiring them to receive 90 hours of training conducted by the bureau. Thirty hours will be dedicated to the acquisition of roles, values, and morals as a teacher, as well as national and international education development, reported CNA.
Ip Kin-yuen (葉建源), a member of the Hong Kong Legislative Council who belongs to the pan-democracy camp, lashed out at the move, calling it a “thought control” approach to propagating the government’s ideologies. The Education Bureau pushed back against criticism by claiming the measure has been “demonized.”
Separately, a teacher surnamed Lee who has worked at Heung To Middle School (香島中學) in Kowloon for 12 years accused school management of sacking her for her political beliefs. She said in an open letter addressed to the students and staff of the school on Sunday (June 7) that the principal had notified her via WhatsApp in May that her contract would not be renewed next year, without specifying the reasons behind the decision.
Citing previous statements from the principal, Lee believes the termination of her contract was a result of her allowing students to play “Glory to Hong Kong” (願榮光歸香港) in music exams, wrote HK01. The song has been dubbed the anthem of the Hong Kong protests and deemed “inappropriate” by school management.
