Hubei university prof sacked by party and banned from teaching for supporting Hong Kong protest and Wuhan Diary
Liang Yanping taught literary criticism at Hubei University’s School of Chinese language and literature. She defended writer Fang Fang and expressed sorrow over the death of a Hong Kong student.
Beijing (AsiaNews/Agencies) – A professor at Hubei University lost her job and was expelled from the Communist Party for voicing support for Hong Kong’s pro-democracy protests and for defending writer Fang Fang’ Wuhan Diary.
Liang Yanping, 59, taught literary criticism at Hubei University’s School of Chinese language and literature. Three days ago, the university’s party committee kicked her out of the party for publishing “wrong remarks concerning Hong Kong and Japan”. The university followed by banning her from teaching and supervising students.
Liang’s trouble began in April, when she defended the Wuhan Diary, by novelist Wang Fang, known as Fang Fang, which documented life under strict lockdown in Wuhan caused by the coronavirus outbreak.
In her posts, Fang Fang spares no criticism to the way the government handled the crisis. For this reason, she was branded a "traitor" after news spread that her posts would be published soon in the United States and Germany.
Fang Fang and all those who defended her in some way have been caught up in the wave of nationalism sweeping over China.
As some "keyboard warriors" began looking into Liang's past posts and online writings, they discovered an article in which she expressed grief for a young Hong Kong protester who died during an anti-extradition protest.
In another, she posted a photo of herself in a black mask, which many protesters wore in the former British colony. In one dated 2013, she forwarded posts about China during the Japanese invasion.
For Liang, “A normal society without a voice of criticism would be horrifying.”
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