A government official of China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) on Thursday warned of punishment for students involved in irregularities, such as deliberately obstructing closure of Mass Transit Railway (MTR) train doors.
Secretary for Education Kevin Yeung told a joint press briefing that a number of students obstruct closure of train doors and stand on roads to disrupt traffic at a few locations on Wednesday.
"Such behaviors were very dangerous, which endangered safety of the students themselves, affected other citizens and probably already violated law of Hong Kong," Yeung noted.
He appealed to the students to take good care of themselves and others, and also appealed to the parents to tell their children not to participate in any dangerous or illegal activities.
In case that students are found to be involved in such irregularities, the Education Bureau will support schools in taking serious follow-up actions, imposing appropriate penalties according to school regulations, and providing proper counselling at the same time so that students can reflect on their misconduct and correct it, Yeung said.
He reiterated that schools are places for studying and should not be used as platforms to express political demands and affect others' study. Students should not hold or participate in political events or distribute political publicity materials inside schools, Yeung said.
It is also not appropriate for students wearing uniforms to participate in political events outside schools, he added.
Since Wednesday, primary, secondary and some special schools in Hong Kong have resumed classes while kindergartens and other special schools remained closed.
Schools in Hong Kong began to suspend classes last Thursday as rioters paralyzed traffic and vandalized school vans and threatened schools.
