Chinese School Brands Expelled Students as ‘Terrorists’

Three teenagers in eastern China were labelled “terrorists” by their high school after being expelled a few weeks previously.
Chinese School Brands Expelled Students as ‘Terrorists’
Screenshot showing photos of the three expelled students with a message saying "terrorists" at a high school security office in Zhejiang Province. (Screenshot/Xinhua)
11/8/2013
Updated:
7/18/2015

Three teenagers in Zhejiang Province were labelled “terrorists” by their high school, after being expelled a few weeks previously.

One of the boys, whose surname is Liu, told the Wenzhou Metropolis Daily that the school in Wenzhou City had dismissed him two weeks earlier due to being in a fight, according to Want China Times.

“We did not do anything wrong. Why are we terrorists?” he added. “I dropped out. I just came by to see some of my classmates the other day. Then the class leader reported me to the school. I didn’t realize until the day that our photos were posted in the security room and there was this note that said that we were terrorists.”

A school security guard said that the photos were put up to help him and his colleagues recognize the teens, and prevent them from coming back to school, according to Nandu.com.

The schoolboy Liu posted the image of the three photos on Sina Weibo, and many netizens responded by condemning the school. 

One said: “Even if students violate school rules or class discipline, and affect the school management and classroom order, it’s not committing a crime, not to mention terror. Let’s see: by describing drop-outs as ’terrorists,' who is more terrible?”

Another commented: “Frequently and casually labeling students as ‘problematic youths’ or even ’terrorists’ does more harm than good to the healthy development of children.”

Research by Lisa Huang.