HONG KONG: Attempts to heal the wounds of mistrust between the university's management and students are high on his agenda, said "SARS hero" Joseph Sung Jao-yiu. Sung, the final candidate for the top post of the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK), is currently an associate dean of the university's faculty of medicine and head of Shaw College.

Facing more than 200 students for the first time after being selected as the finalist among candidates for the post of CUHK vice chancellor, the 50-year-old physician said he expects the road ahead will by no means be easy to navigate, but he will try to deal with the challenges ahead by striving for better communication.

In the three-hour open forum, many students complained about the lack of transparency of the university's current policy-making process.

Some said consultation is often insufficient when the university plans to give a facelift to the campus or when it is to choose its next president.

Seeing the worries voiced by students, Sung said, "I hope to heal the wounds but not to create more; I hope we can appreciate each other instead of making criticisms. We should respect others no matter whether we agree with them or not."

He said it will take time to restore the broken ties, just as "it takes a while for patients to recover".

In response to the controversial sex column of an issue of the university's student journal in 2007, Sung, a Christian, said, "Personally speaking, I prefer the article had never run. That is based on my religious belief and ethical background. Others may disagree with me."

The Court of First Instance last year ruled that the Obscene Articles Tribunal had been wrong in its decision to rule indecent a series of sex articles that appeared in the journal in 2007. If similar incidents happen when he heads the university, Sung said a panel will be set up to look into the issue but that it won't be a disciplinary committee.

While some thought the selection process of the vice-chancellor lacked involvement of students, Sung said rounds of consultation had been held before the select panel chose candidates.

Sung was named an "Asian hero" by Time magazine in 2003 for his work against SARS, including treatment he provided SARS patients in the earliest days of the 2003 crisis.

The university's council will meet next Tuesday to decide whether to appoint Sung.

(HK Edition 11/06/2009 page1)