On Friday October 13, the university’s Party committee disciplined Zhao Siyun, deputy dean at the School of Liberal Arts of Communication at the University of Zhejiang, also known as Zhejiang University of Media and Communications (ZUMC), with a “severe warning,” for mentioning the social responsibility of citizens and intellectuals in his speech at the commencement ceremony.
According to the disciplinary decision from the ZUMC Party committee, Zhao Siyun’s commencement speech at the College of Liberal Arts on September 30 contained inappropriate words. In addition, between 2013 and 2015, Zhao reposted and made “wrong statements” that had a negative impact.
At the welcoming ceremony for new students on September 30, Zhao Siyun delivered a speech in which he encouraged the students to embrace an independent personality. He also inspired qualities such as self-discipline, self-respect, human dignity, critical thinking and a moral obligation, and called for the students to shoulder responsibility for the country and the nation. Zhao later posted the speech to his personal blog on his WeChat account. On October 8, a local newspaper Qianjiang Evening News also carried the article.
In recent years, China has continued to cleanse colleges and universities under a left-wing ideology. So far, several scholars including Yang Shaozheng from Guizhou University and Tan Song from Chongqing Normal University have been expelled from school. Since the beginning of this year, students have reported several college teachers who were punished for delivering speeches that were out of line.
Source: Radio Free Asia, October 12, 2018
https://www.rfa.org/cantonese/news/university-10122018071015.html