Hanshin University students slam school administration for 'forced' departure of Uzbek students

Hanshin University's campus in Osan, Gyeonggi [HANSHIN UNIVERSITY]

Hanshin University students are standing up to support the Uzbek students who were reportedly forced to leave the country by the university staff.

On Nov. 27, 23 Uzbek students at Hanshin University's Korean Language Institute were told to board a bus by university staff without knowing where they were going. The students were later dropped off at Incheon International Airport and told to leave the country or face the authorities.

On Tuesday, the university released a statement that “most of the students told to leave failed to meet the minimum savings account requirements needed to maintain their student visas or faced academic dismissal due to lack of academic integrity or having committed illegal acts.”

It added that the students weren't “forced” to leave. “The decision to leave the country was left for the students to decide, with one student not actually going back,” it said.

According to a report in a local newspaper, the Hankyoreh, one student didn't leave Korea due to health issues.

Despite the university's statement, students are demanding the school issue a formal apology and repair the damage it did.

A total of 15 student organizations at Hanshin University signed a statement of solidarity. The 15 include the university's emergency student council and student councils of the creative writing, social welfare and theology departments.

“The university holds no authority to force someone to leave a country in any situation,” read the statement issued Wednesday. “Even if students lost their legal right to reside in Korea, the university had the right to inform them to leave, not to deport them right away.”

“If the students committed illegal actions as the university says, the right thing to do is inform the police, rather than the university itself deporting them.”

Signatures of students who share the same opinion were also collected.

The groups also collected signatures from like-minded students.

Individual students also engaged in activities to show their support, with around 70 gathering at the university campus on Wednesday to pray for the involved international students.

BY LEE TAE-HEE [lee.taehee2@joongang.co.kr]