The Chaser has found that among the organisations receiving aid under the BNO Welcome Programme, Manchester-based Wai Yin Society, granted nearly £40,000 by the local authorities, is chaired by someone who attended via video an event marking the centennial anniversary of China’s Communist Party in 2021. Twenty-nine organisations issued a joint-statement demanding the society respond to public queries and clarify suspicions about any close links between its chairperson Juanita Yau and the Chinese Communist Party as well as China’s institutions in Britain. Meanwhile, the society’s vice-chair Karen Wang is also the deputy director of the Confucius Institute in the University of Manchester.
The statement slams Wai Yin Society for not sticking to its claims of political neutrality. Hongkongers’ organisations in Britain worry that the society’s ties to the CCP and its affiliations in the UK are in conflict with its services to Hong Kong people. That would render it impossible to protect users’ rights or even jeopardise their personal safety in the UK.
According to information on the internet, Wang is currently the deputy director of the Confucius Institute, a joint project between the University of Manchester and Beijing Normal University. She relocated to the UK from China in 1996. Previously, she was stationed in Singapore working as an administrator for an overseas college programme. Now with the Confucius Institute in Manchester, she is mainly responsible for strategic planning and operation.
China’s ambassador to the UN Zheng Zeguang visited the Confucius Institute in Manchester last April when he met with its director Zhang Hui. Wang was present at the meeting. At present, there are 30 branches of the Confucius Institute in the UK, run by UK universities partnering with Chinese universities and an NGO named “Chinese International Education Foundation”.
A Tory think tank “China Research Group” released a report last June, saying that most of the Chinese language education fund paid by the government was funnelled to branches of the Confucius Institute in different universities. From 2015 to 2024, the sum is projected to add up to at least £27 million. The 29 organisations urged Wai Yin Society to give a public answer and clarify Hongkongers’ doubts before Wednesday (5 July). “If your organisation fails to alley our fears, we will consider calling on all parties to avoid using your services so as to minimise possible risks.”
Wai Yin Society issued a statement via Chairperson Juanita Yau’s blog on 30 June, addressing the recent concerns on social media about the organisation’s aims and its staff members’ past services and engagements. To further public’s awareness of what the society has been doing, it repeated a brief self-introduction and founding ideas, saying, “Through years of dedication and commitment to the community, Wai Yin Society has earned the trust of service recipients, funders, partners, stakeholders, and statutory bodies. We have been nominated for and received various awards, recognising the contributions of Wai Yin Society and its team members.”
