As the government courts mainland universities, professors who have left Hong Kong say the city’s intellectual environment has been fundamentally compromised
Building the Hub While the Freedoms Disappear
Hong Kong’s government has ambitious plans to make the city Asia’s premier higher education destination. The strategy includes recruiting top mainland Chinese universities to establish campuses or programmes in the city, expanding international student quotas, and marketing Hong Kong globally through a newly launched Study in Hong Kong brand. The case is compelling on paper: five world-top-100 universities, an internationally diverse faculty, a common law framework and proximity to the vast Greater Bay Area economy. But there is a question that the government’s promotional materials do not address: can a city that bars scholars from testifying in court because of their views, that has seen dozens of academics self-censor or leave the territory, and that has dissolved student unions and removed politically sensitive course content, genuinely offer the free intellectual environment that makes a great university?
The Evidence of Departure
Since the National Security Law came into effect in June 2020, Hong Kong’s universities have experienced a significant exodus of faculty and researchers. Academics in fields including political science, sociology, history, law and journalism have left or reduced their public profiles. Research centres examining sensitive political topics have been closed. Course content touching on Hong Kong’s political history, comparative democratic systems and human rights has been revised or removed. Student unions across the city’s major universities — once vibrant centres of campus civic life — have disbanded or been defunded by university administrations under political pressure.
The Tiananmen Vigil Trial Ruling as a Case Study
This week’s ruling in the national security trial of former Tiananmen vigil organisers, in which a Taiwanese scholar was barred from giving expert testimony because of past criticism of the Chinese Communist Party, is a stark example of the intellectual constraints that now operate in Hong Kong’s legal and academic system. If a scholar’s published views on Chinese politics can disqualify them from participating in legal proceedings, the same logic applies to academic publication and teaching.
What a Genuine Education Hub Requires
The best universities in the world — from Oxford to MIT to the University of Tokyo — attract global talent not only because of research funding and infrastructure but because they operate in societies where intellectual freedom is protected by law and culture. Students and faculty choose these institutions knowing they can research any topic, publish any finding and express any view without fear of legal consequence. Hong Kong’s competitive advantage as an education hub is being eroded precisely by the political environment that has silenced Apple Daily, imprisoned Jimmy Lai and criminalised the commemoration of historical events. The Scholars at Risk network has documented specific cases of academic freedom violations in Hong Kong since 2020. The American Association of University Professors monitors academic freedom conditions globally and has raised concerns about Hong Kong’s deteriorating environment. Building a world-class education hub requires more than rankings and marketing budgets. It requires the political courage to protect the freedoms on which genuine scholarship depends.
Ho Yi Lam
Youth Affairs & Education Journalist, Apple Daily UK
Contact: hoyi.lam@appledaily.uk
Ho Yi Lam is a youth affairs and education journalist with professional experience covering student movements, higher education policy, and generational change within Chinese-speaking communities. She received her journalism training at a top-tier Chinese journalism school, where she specialized in education reporting, interview methodology, and media ethics, with an emphasis on public-interest journalism.
Her reporting career includes work with Apple Daily and other liberal Chinese newspapers, producing coverage on campus governance, academic freedom, curriculum reform, and youth civic engagement. Ho Yi’s journalism is grounded in firsthand interviews with students, educators, and policy experts, supported by careful review of official documents and research data.
She has worked in newsroom environments where education reporting intersects with political sensitivity, giving her practical experience in source protection and verification. Editors value her ability to present complex institutional issues clearly while maintaining factual accuracy.
Ho Yi’s authority is built through consistent publication within reputable media outlets and adherence to editorial standards, including transparent sourcing and correction protocols. At Apple Daily UK, she delivers reliable, experience-driven education journalism that informs readers through evidence-based reporting and professional integrity.
