Awarding "Meaningless" Titles for Money

There are questions why Oxford University is making up titles for donations

Wealthy people donating to institutions is not new, but the latter doing it shamelessly is at another level altogether.

The Guardian reports an academic at Oxford University gave a "meaningless" university qualification to a Chinese businessman who has ties to Beijing in a high profile ceremony last year in Shanghai and raises questions about how easily institutions can be influenced by Chinese money.

Hudson and Chan at the ceremony in Shanghai last May

Alan Hudson who has since retired, was director of programmes in Leadership and Public Policy at the University of Oxford. Previous to that he was director of Social and Political Science at the Oxford University Department for Continuing Education.

Last May, Hudson awarded the title "Belt and Road Academician from Oxford University" to Chan King-wai, who is a businessman based in Hong Kong and is a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Consultative Conference, among a string of other titles.

"I looked up the meaning of 'academician' and it is absolutely meaningless, it means anybody involved with the university, of any description. So I said there you go, we can put that on the certificate. In recognition of his contributions to the programme.

Hudson said the title was an incentive for a donation

"The incentive for this was a potential donation to the university or the department, and for a number of programmes," Hudson said. He added that he did not plan the lavish ceremony that was attended by an official from the British consulate. Hudson was surprised it was such a big event.

However, if you're getting money from a rich person, surely you have to pull out the stops?

"I was contacted by the Hong Kong development office [of Oxford University] who wanted to approach Chan King-wai... from the point of view of a substantial donation to the university," Hudson added.

Neither Oxford University nor the Oxford Chinese Studies department responded to The Guardian's requests for comments or if Chan did indeed donate money.

Chan was born in Shantou City in Guangdong province and in 1979 migrated to Hong Kong. He set up King Wai Group in 1982 and it focuses on property and construction in Shanghai, Tianjin, and Bangkok.

Chan made money in construction and property

Like many mainland Chinese, Chan loves having a long list of titles and associations on his name card. They include: chairman of the Hong Kong China Chamber of Commerce; vice chairman of the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce; vice president of the Chinese People's Association for Peace and Disarmament; and chairman of Bauhinia Valley Innovation and Development Center.

Oh and Chan is also a member of the election committee that chooses the Hong Kong chief executive.

MP Neil O'Brien, who is also a founding member of the China Research Group, which brings together Conservative politicians who are critical of Beijing, said British universities needed to be more careful about fundraising in China.

"Universities need to fundraise but the fear is that if academics are prepared to hand out fake academic qualifications to chase money what worse are they prepared to do? There have been a number of concerning cases of UK universities being easily politically influenced for a bit of cash," O'Brien said.

O'Brien questions the political influence of donations

"I'd welcome a deep look by the Department of Education at where corporate and individual donations are from, and what political impact this is having," he added.

The award for China was also condemned by Benedict Rogers, co-founder and chair of the campaign group Hong Kong Watch.

"This sorry episode is yet another example of the growing influence the Chinese Communist party has in our leading academic institutions, which remains largely uncontested and free from scrutiny," he said.

Now that it has been revealed the title "Belt and Road Academician from Oxford University" is "meaningless", how does Chan feel about it? Would he be too embarrassed to have this "title" on his name card, knowing now it was just conjured up to get money from him? 

Or maybe he thinks no one will notice?

Joshua Wong's Preferential Detainment

Joshua Wong speaks to the media after returning from Bangkok yesterday

Why is Demosisto activist Joshua Wong Chi-fung considered a dangerous person by Thai authorities?

On the invitation of Thai student activist Netiwit Chotiphatphaisal to speak to students at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok about the 2014 Umbrella Movement, Wong flew to the Thai capital on Tuesday evening.

But the 19-year-old was detained by Thai authorities even before he reached the terminal -- he says he was surrounded by 20 police and immigration officers at the air bridge.

When he confirmed his identity, his passport was confiscated and he was detained in a cell for 12 hours where he was not told what he was being held for, had no access to a lawyer or could not notify the Hong Kong Immigration Department or family members.

Thai student activist Netwit Chotiphatphaisal invited Wong

Chotiphatphaisal was waiting at the airport to pick up Wong, but when he didn't show up, he asked airport authorities who told him hours later that student activist was detained, and so the Thai student immediately contacted Demosisto of the situation.

It turns out that Wong was detained at Beijing's request.

"Officials there have requested to take him back. It's Chinese officials' business. Don't get involved too much. They are all Chinese people no matter Hong Kong or mainland China," said junta leader and Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha.

It's shocking to hear Thailand is so keen to do Beijing's bidding, but perhaps even more so is Hong Kong Secretary for Justice Rimsky Yuen Kwok-keung's passive response to the matter.

"I personally do not believe such a matter would... require international pressure," he said, adding the incident was "purely Thailand's own handling" of an individual's entry into the country as a tourist.

So much for being concerned about Hong Kong citizens in other countries...

The Thai authorities were skittish about allowing Wong in because he would be speaking at Bangkok's leading university to mark the 40th anniversary of a student massacre, a highly sensitive time for the junta, who took power in 2014.

Thai junta leader and Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha

Prayuth's office said the junta was "aware that Mr Wong had been active in resistance movements against other foreign governments, and that if such actions were taken within Thailand, they could eventually affect Thailand's relations with other nations".

China washed its hands of the matter, only saying it "respects Thailand's exercise of immigration control in accordance with law".

While Wong criticized the Hong Kong government for not looking into this case, he also felt "very fortunate" that he had been able to return home, compared to missing bookseller Gui Minhai who was taken from Pattaya and then resurfaced on the mainland under detention.

Will other Hong Kong citizens be detained in this way too if they travel to Thailand? Will the Hong Kong government show any interest in helping them out?

This only reveals the pettiness of the government for not seeing everyone equal under the law and allowing other countries to do what they want to Hong Kong citizens.

How is this just?