By Brian Wong

Copyright scmp

A Hong Kong mother has sued a primary school and education authorities for HK$2.95 million in damages, claiming her autistic son underwent “inhumane” treatment before being arbitrarily barred from attending classes.
The parent filed the lawsuit at the District Court on Thursday alleging that Yaumati Kaifong Association School had deprived her 10-year-old son of educational opportunities and mistreated him by locking him up in a room for several hours on multiple occasions.
She also took the Education Bureau to task over what she described as a systemic failure to provide adequate assistance for students with special educational needs, citing the school’s principal as saying it was “not suitable” for the boy because it lacked support from authorities.
The school declined to comment on the case, citing the need to protect the student’s privacy.
“In alignment with our core values of care and inclusivity, the school has proactively initiated internal measures to thoroughly assess the situation, with the paramount concern being the welfare and well-being of our students,” it said in a statement.
The Primary Four student was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder and mild intellectual disability and required specific educational support and accommodation, according to the statement of claim written by the parent.
The plaintiff argued her son had stopped going to school since February 18 after the school’s principal, Vince Wong Wing-sze, refused to let him in “arbitrarily and without lawful justification”.
She said she had earnestly pleaded with the principal to change his mind for more than two hours at the school’s premises but to no avail.
While the school’s former principal had sought a non-governmental organisation’s support to cater to the boy’s educational needs, Wong refused to do the same, the parent claimed.
She also complained that the school inflicted psychological harm on her child through “cruel, inhumane and degrading” disciplinary action, in which he was detained inside a “cottage bear room” and denied access to any teaching tools and amenities for several hours.
The writ did not explain the events leading up to the student’s suspension or expulsion and the circumstances of the boy’s alleged mistreatment.
An Education Bureau spokesman declined to comment on individual cases, but said it would maintain regular contact with the school and parent concerned and offer necessary assistance to the student.