By Zhang Xi (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2007-11-16 11:52

The death of mainland doctorial student Ge Weiwei at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) sparkled a mixed response on campus after the 27-year-old PhD student commited suicide in his dormitory last Saturday.

Originally from eastern China's Jiangsu Province, Ge was in his third year of pursuing a doctorial degree at HKUST and he was president of the university's soccer club, according to earlier reports. Nobody thought he would end up hanging himself in his room.

File photo of Ge Weiwei. [Guangzhou Daily]

Ge's friend found his body that evening.

The next day, president of HKUST Paul Ching-Wu Chu wrote an open letter to students, in which he disclosed Ge died of depression because he had received psychological and physical treatments in the university clinic, the Guangzhou Daily reported.

However, Chu's explanation did not end the students' discussions on campus. They opened a forum about him on the university's website and many contributers agreed Ge was an extrovert.

A student named "Seeu" wrote, "Ge often organized soccer activities and commented on games on the website. I think he was an active person." Although "Seeu" admitted he saw Ge in a bad mood at times, he does not believe Ge suffered from depression.

"The explanation of his death does not hold water. Can you imagine such an active person was suffering from depression? What forced him to kill himself?" the student asked.

Many others, especially mainlanders, echoed "Seeu." They said the university did not hold a neutral attitude toward the issue. "Please do not blame it on his personality," they wrote on the website.

In response to the students' concerns, president Chu on Tuesday wrote a second open letter to invite all the students to discuss the issue with him and other teachers.

The following evening, the president, several management staff and up to 500 students met in the university hall. But the two sides held opposite views. The president expressed his sorrow for Ge’s death and stressed the issue had nothing to do with the management of the university or Ge's supervisor, Xu Bing.

But many students suspected the supervisor influenced Ge and claimed he was irresponsible in his duties which may have caused his death. They also pointed out the university didn’t care much about the psychological problems of mainland students.

During the three hour meeting, students mentioned a post of a web viewer named "Gifter" who alleged Xu was going to work in the United States and told the graduate students he was supervising to choose another research topic, go to America with him or seek jobs.

The students said these three choices were bad for Ge and the others. If they went to the US, they would have to give up their studies in Hong Kong and started all over again, which would cost them another five to six years of study. But without the supervisor, PhD students could not continue their research. They would have to find another supervisor or finish their studies without getting degrees.

"Gifter" also wrote Ge was a chemistry major who tried to find a job for several months, but did not get any interviews.

Ge’s grief-stricken father confirmed his son was facing tough decisions when he called the family two days before his death.

"I told him to talk with his supervisor or follow him to the US to study," Ge senior said. "But I never thought my son would commit suicide. He was an active boy and was in a good mood when he phoned us. I don’t believe he suffered from depression."

Ge's friends also claimed another reason for Ge’s pressure may come from his failure to pass the Qualification Examination for Doctors. They say his supervisor may have asked Ge to quit studying.

But Ge's supervisor did not appear in Wednesday's meeting, nor the other students under Xu. According to the university, Xu never applied to work in America and was too distraught to attend the meeting. They also confirmed Ge did not pass the qualification exam.

The president of HKUST promised to organize a committee to investigate Ge's death and pay more attention to mainland students' psychological health.

In his last blog titled "Invisible Spring", Ge said: "Am I pushing myself too hard? Is my life only to stay in the laboratory and the dorm? No pay no gain, but does that mean I have to give up all of my life to my success on studying? When I abandon spring, it abandons me too."