Hong Kong's Largest Teachers' Union Announces Voluntary Dissolution "Feeling Tremendous Pressure"

Chinese Authorities and State Media Condemn as "Malignant Tumor"
Hong Kong Police to Investigate Potential National Security Law Violations

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] The Hong Kong Professional Teachers' Union (PTU), the largest single union and teachers' union in Hong Kong, has announced its voluntary dissolution after failing to withstand pressure from Chinese authorities. This decision is interpreted as a judgment that continuing to exist is difficult following fierce criticism from the Chinese government and state-run media, and the announcement by Hong Kong police to investigate violations of the Hong Kong National Security Law.

According to the South China Morning Post (SCMP) on the 11th, PTU held a press conference the previous day and declared its voluntary dissolution. At the press conference, Fung Wai-wah, chairman of PTU, said, "We are very sad to announce the dissolution of PTU," adding, "We felt tremendous pressure. We sought ways to continue our activities, but unfortunately, there were no options."

PTU, with 95,000 teaching staff members as union members, was the largest single union in Hong Kong and had represented Hong Kong teachers for the past 47 years. However, recently, the Chinese government and state-run media have fiercely criticized PTU as an anti-government organization, making its continuation difficult.

Earlier this month, state media such as the People's Daily and Xinhua News Agency criticized PTU as a "malignant tumor," claiming that it incited students during the 2019 Hong Kong protests, causing chaos, and called it an organization that must be eradicated. Shortly after these comments, the Hong Kong Education Bureau issued a statement declaring, "PTU is an anti-government political organization," and announced that it would sever all administrative relations and strip all union positions.

Subsequently, the Hong Kong police threatened to "investigate whether union members have violated the Hong Kong National Security Law," leading PTU to decide to dissolve in order to protect its members.

SCMP reported, "Since PTU owns various real estate properties, medical centers, and large supermarkets, with annual sales reaching 300 million Hong Kong dollars (approximately 44.5 billion KRW), the dissolution process will continue until the end of the year," adding, "This will be a huge blow to Hong Kong's pro-democracy camp."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.