29 RUG students in Hong Kong affected by protests

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RUG students in Hong Kong affected by protests

‘Rubber bullets in the student residences’

Twenty-nine RUG students in Hong Kong have been affected by the schools and universities closing in the former British colony. Student of arts, culture, and media Noralie Leidinger is one of the students who is trying to get home.
Rob Siebelink, Christien Boomsma and Anne de Vries
14 November om 14:08 uur.
Laatst gewijzigd op 22 November 2020
om 16:18 uur.
November 14 at 14:08 PM.
Last modified on November 22, 2020
at 16:18 PM.

On Wednesday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced a ‘code yellow’ for Hong Kong, warning of security risks in the region. There are protests and roadblocks, especially around police stations, government offices, universities, and underground stations, often leading to violent confrontations between protesters and the police. There were some violent confrontations between police officers and protesters around the universities as well.

Student of arts, culture, and media Nora Leidinger is on an exchange at the City University of Hong Kong. ‘The situation is really difficult right now’, she says. ‘The universities are shut and the police is shooting with teargas and rubberbullets on campus and in the student residences.’

Refugee camp

The campus currently looks more like a refugee camp than university property, says Leidinger. ‘We are going to bring some first aid supplies and food to the campus.’

She is trying to book the quickest flight home, but it’s not easy. It’s also difficult to obtain any reliable information. ‘Almost all news we receive here goes via Instagram, but that means I will open my feed and not only see the necessary Hong Kong updates, but everydays posts about fashion, 11.11 and the likes. Which creates a surreal mental splitscreen on the current events in Hong Kong versus back home.’

Financial aids

The university has been contacting students through letters and emails. They’re advising them on what to do and where to go if they get into trouble, said RUG president Jouke de Vries during a university council meeting this Thursday. The RUG will also help out financially if students need money because of the situation, for instance to book an earlier flight home. ‘We’re closely monitoring the situation.’

The protesters in Hong Kong are fighting for more democracy and less influence from the central government in Beijing. Since the unrest started, approximately three thousand people have been arrested.

Vertaling Sarah van Steenderen

Dutch

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