University of Hong Kong's law faculty defends former dean Johannes Chan amid fallout from appointment row
Statement refutes accusations scholar at centre of appointment row was unqualified for the post, and 'reveals a sense of crisis among professors'
The University of Hong Kong's law faculty has spoken up for the first time in defence of its former dean Johannes Chan Man-mun, whose promotion to a top managerial post was controversially denied by the institution's governing council last week.
After the council voted in a secret ballot against appointing Chan to the post on Tuesday, some of its members were quoted as saying Chan was not qualified to be pro-vice-chancellor and had only been made dean of law as he was "a nice guy".
But in a strongly worded statement yesterday, a spokesperson for the law faculty called those claims "groundless".
"[The faculty] refutes in the strongest possible terms unfair criticisms that were said to have been made," the statement said. "Chan is internationally recognised as a leading scholar in his field. He was appointed dean of law for his vision, his leadership, his integrity, his passion for legal education, and above all his outstanding abilities. We have been fortunate to have him at the helm of the faculty."
The statement came days after students and alumni of the university said they were planning to boycott classes and launch a legal challenge against the council's decision.
Several well-known overseas public law scholars have dismissed reservations purportedly held by members of the council about Chan's qualifications.
Yesterday, a group of about 50 demonstrators, including alumni, gathered at HKU to protest against the council's ruling, saying that by refusing to promote Chan the council had compromised the university's academic independence.