27 February 2025 

The Hang Seng University of Hong Kong (HSUHK) will confer honorary doctorates on four outstanding individuals to recognise their remarkable accomplishments across their professional fields, as well as their contributions to society and the University. The four recipients are: distinguished scholar in psychology, Professor Fanny Cheung Mui-ching (張妙清) (Doctor of Social Science honoris causa); renowned industrialist, Dr Roy Chung Chi-ping (鍾志平) (Doctor of Social Science honoris causa); internationally acclaimed performing artiste, Mr Michael Hui Koon-man (許冠文) (Doctor of Social Science honoris causa); and world prominent economist, Professor Zhang Weiying (張維迎) (Doctor of Social Science honoris causa). The Honorary Doctorates Conferment Ceremony is scheduled to be held on the HSUHK campus on 3 June 2025.

Professor Fanny Cheung Mui-ching

A distinguished psychology scholar, Professor Fanny Cheung previously served as Pro-Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President for Research at The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK), and is currently an Emeritus Professor of Psychology and Honorary Senior Advisor at the Hong Kong Institute of Asia-Pacific Studies of CUHK.

As a pioneer in promoting gender equality in Asia, she led the War-on-Rape campaign in the late 1970s and established the first community women’s centre in the 1980s. She founded the first Gender Research Centre in Hong Kong and Greater China, followed by the establishment of Gender Studies Programme at CUHK. She was the Founding Chairperson of the Equal Opportunities Commission in Hong Kong where she led the Commission in conducting or commissioning a series of crucial baseline surveys and initiated policies against sexual harassment in tertiary education institutions in Hong Kong and mainland China, and instituted gender mainstreaming training in the public sector.

Professor Cheung has published an array of major research projects focusing on the progression, growth and development of Chinese and Asian psychology, as well as societal shifts in terms of gender, equality, public perception and more. In view of cultural differences between Chinese and Western cultures, she pioneered the development of a culturally relevant personality assessment measure for the Chinese people, providing a role model for personality assessment in non-Western cultures. She has held several leadership roles across various professional associations, such as the International Test Commission, the Hong Kong Psychological Society and the International Association of Applied Psychology, among others. Her accolades include the American Psychological Association Award for Distinguished Contributions to the International Advancement of Psychology, the International Association of Applied Psychology Award for Distinguished Scientific Contributions and Elected Fellow of The World Academy of Sciences.

Professor Cheung chaired the HKSAR Advisory Committee on Eliminating Discrimination against Sexual Minorities and served on various government committees, including the Electoral Affairs Commission, the Urban Renewal Authority Appeal Board, the Hong Kong Advisory Council on AIDS, the HKSAR Women’s Commission, among others. She has led the New Life Psychiatric Rehabilitation Association for decades, promoting holistic mental health to the public. Professor Cheung was appointed a Justice of the Peace, and was made an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, and received the Silver Bauhinia Star award.

Dr Roy Chung Chi-ping

Dr Roy Chung is a renowned industrialist. He is the Co-Founder of Techtronic Industries Co Ltd, and the Founder and Chairman of Bright Future Charitable Foundation. He is an Honorary President of the Federation of Hong Kong Industries and a Board Member of the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority. He is also an Industrial Professor at the University of Warwick, UK. Dr Chung was awarded the Gold Bauhinia Star and Bronze Bauhinia Star by the HKSAR Government, and was appointed as a Justice of the Peace. He was also awarded the Young Industrialist Awards of Hong Kong, and was named Industrialist of the Year.

As a staunch supporter of education, Dr Chung founded the Bright Future Charitable Foundation to support educational development and related disciplines in different regions. The Foundation not only makes generous donations to local educational institutions, it also sponsors students’ participation in the WorldSkills Competition and Outward Bound programmes, offers scholarships in the Mainland, and sets up a Scholarship Scheme at the University of Warwick. To widen students’ horizons, the Foundation has in previous years sponsored students to travel to the South Pole, the North Pole and the Everest.

In recent years, the Foundation has partnered with two local universities to establish the Academy for Bright Future Young Engineers and the Bright Future Engineering Talent Hub and worked with other educational institutions on training projects to nurture engineering talents in Hong Kong and the Greater Bay area. The Foundation has also offered scholarships for grassroot students and children with chronic illness to encourage them to proactively learn to overcome difficulties. The Foundation is also concerned about the ageing issue in Hong Kong, and resources have been allocated to elderly services to improve the health and quality of life of the elderly.

Dr Chung has consistently supported HSUHK. In addition to making substantial donations to the University, he is one of the founding members of HSUHK—Foundation Management Committee, and served as the Co-chairman of HSUHK FunD Run Organising Committee in 2018 and 2021.

Mr Michael Hui Koon-man

Mr Michael Hui is a renowned movie director, screenwriter and actor in Hong Kong, whose works not only changed the Hong Kong film industry but are also considered classics.

In the early 1970s, Mr Hui co-created and performed the TV programme The Hui Brothers Show (雙星報喜) with his brother Sam Hui, which became very popular. In the 1970s and 1980s, Mr Hui directed and starred in a series of highly popular comedies, including Game Gamblers Play (鬼馬雙星), The Last Message (天才與白痴) and The Private Eyes (半斤八兩), which broke the Hong Kong box office record three times.

Mr Hui continued to act in and produce his comedies throughout the 1990s and 2000s, and his work has received international acclaim. For his leading roles in Security Unlimited (摩登保鑣) and Chicken and Duck Talk (雞同鴨講), Mr Hui won respectively the Best Actor award at the first Hong Kong Film Awards, and the Best Performance Actor by the American Film Institute. Mr Hui also received the Golden Mulberry Award for Lifetime Achievement at the 13th Far East Film Festival, as well as the Best Supporting Actor award at the 41st Hong Kong Film Awards for his role in Where the Wind Blows (風再起時). In 2024, The Last Dance (破．地獄), with leading actors Mr Hui and Dayo Wong, became the highest-grossing Asian film in Hong Kong’s history.

With a passion to serve his industry, Mr Hui became the founding Chairman of the Hong Kong Performing Artistes Guild and is now its Honorary Chairman. Mr Hui was awarded the World Outstanding Chinese Award, the Award for Outstanding Contribution in Arts by the Hong Kong Arts Development Council, and the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 40th Hong Kong Film Awards. He was also appointed as Justice of the Peace and was the first artist to receive this honour. He has also served on various public bodies, such as the Hong Kong Tourism Board.

Professor Zhang Weiying

Professor Zhang Weiying, a prominent Chinese economist known for his advocacy of free markets and entrepreneurship, is currently the Boya Chair Professor of Economics and Senior Professor of Economics at the National School of Development, Peking University (PKU). He co-founded the National School of Development at PKU, and served as Dean, and Professor of Economics at the Guanghua School of Management in PKU.

Professor Zhang is regarded as a leading advocate of the free market in China, as well as an authority on the theory of the firm and ownership reform. He was a research fellow at China’s Economic System Reform Institute, where he played a pivotal role in economic reform, proposing the “dual-track price system” in 1984 for which he was awarded the China Economic Theory Innovation Award in 2011. Over the last four decades, his research focused on entrepreneurship, through numerous articles, papers and books, has almost single-handedly changed the public image of entrepreneur in China. His insightful and provocative opinions about China’s reforms have been widely reported both in Chinese and international media and covered by prestigious business magazines.

According to Report on Academic Impact of Chinese Books in Humanity and Social Sciences published in 2012, the three most-cited books on the topic of management in the past decade were published by Professor Zhang. In economics citation rankings, two of his books were ranked first and sixth. Professor Zhang has received numerous awards such as the Ten Persons of Year in Chinese Economy by CCTV, 30 People of Economic Reform in China for the 30 years by China Economic Reform Association, The Most Influential Economist of Year 2013 (Netease Finance). His publication Re-Understanding Entrepreneurship: What It Is and Why It Matters is a finalist for the 2025 Hayek Prize.