Locked out: RCHK students deal with temporary exile abroad

By Eunie Jeong

Hong Kong has responded effectively to the coronavirus, but effectiveness has come at a cost. Those who are not residents cannot enter Hong Kong, and are stuck. Among them are some of our fellow RCHK students, who are currently either unable to return or have no choice but to stay in whichever country they are in. The most common place seems to be India.

We can consider three unfortunate cases. These three people are in secondary, where it is hard to catch up with work piling up if you are not in class. Though we can be confident everything will be done to help in regard to learning, it seems that all of them have many woes to tell. Among them are time difference, worries about learning, and quarantine.

One case is Ronit Sahijawani’s, a student from 7.3, Tang House. He is stuck in the northern part of India, specifically Lucknow. Lucknow is in lockdown, and though a cautious end is in sight, as Sahijawani expresses it, “I know that it won't be a situation that will have a simple solution.” The coronavirus, though getting better for some countries, remains a big threat to others. Even with a lockdown lift, travelling will be seriously affected, and likely this impact will last for months to come.

For all those abroad, the two week quarantine and an electric bracelet is mandatory when coming back to Hong Kong. This, of course, is not so inviting. However, Sahijawani is eager to come back to school, and says, “I would certainly love to get back to school. As learning will be much easier and I will be able to meet all friends and teachers and enjoy.”

Online learning, despite the efforts of the school, has still had difficulties, and Ronit is not cheered by the thought of a continuation of this while others go back to school. “It will be quite hard to learn as we won't have calls [online lessons] and almost everyone will be in school but me.”

Sahijawani , as well as many others, is worried that school will ”be different and it might take time to get used to,” and that they will not be on site to slowly adapt to the situation. It will be a surprise to people abroad when they get back to school and need to remember rules such as bringing three masks a day, and having to go to school through the emergency exit. Hopefully though, school and the world will be normal by the time these people join us again. Unfortunately, Sahijawani does not seem to have a hopeful view of returning: “I am honestly not sure or that hopeful of going back since this city is one of the very couple ones that is in lockdown.”

Sahijawani is, as mentioned above, certainly not alone in these problems. Another example is a female student in Year 8, who prefers to remain anonymous. She has been in India since January. Considered to be a model student by her friends, her first concern is her learning. “I am worried that if I am unable to come to Hong Kong and unable to attend school then my learning would be affected.”

What is the problem? You may ask. Can’t she just come home? From India, flights are yet widely unavailable. Also, she is also concerned with the coronavirus preventive measures. “After I reach Hong Kong they will keep me and my family in a quarantine building for fourteen days,” says this student.

Yet, as she says: “I want to see my friends.” With the coronavirus, the social life of many has been dimmed, and people have had to deal with bad wifi, different time zones and the inconvenience of online chatting. Still, with school returning, many have been eager to see friends again. She adds, “India is two and a half hours behind Hong Kong so it is very difficult for me.”

Ekaansh Arora, in fact, who is in 8.6, is in a similar situation to many people. He is currently situated in the Fo Tan Quarantine centre, having come back from India, and worries ”How [he] will cope with classes at school, when [he] is in quarantine…[he] won't be able to attend the physical lessons.”

These three cases are only a few of many that will be apparent as school has just started again. The challenges these students face are more than a slight inconvenience. The social and learning aspects of their life will be affected, though on different scales. Therefore, we can only hope that soon the coronavirus will lift, and students, not only from RCHK, but worldwide that are trapped abroad, will be able to return to their respective schools, families, and lives.