New | Chair of student-government talks pledges to remain impartial despite past CY Leung links

The university president chosen to chair talks between Hong Kong’s protesting students and the government today pledged to remain impartial during Tuesday’s meeting on democratic reform – despite the fact he was an adviser to CY Leung’s election campaign.

Lingnan University’s President Cheng Kwok-hon, who has been picked by the city’s eight universities to moderate the meeting, said his role would have “nothing to do with what I said in the past”.

“It is their freedom to say something for or against the Basic Law provisions,” he said, referring to the framework within which the 2017 chief executive elections would operate.

“I cannot stop them unless they say things to attack others or they violate the principles that are agreed before the meeting.”

His declaration came as Hong Kong’s Occupy protest zones remained peaceful on Sunday, following a night of violent clashes in Mong Kok that left 20 people injured.