Zhao Feng is just like any ordinary healthy 23-year-old, except that he is hepatitis B virus carrier. On May 16 this year, Zhao and three of his schoolmates filed a lawsuit with the local court against the university. They claim that the university wrongfully and unfairly suspended them on account of their condition.

On May 23, the local court notified Zhao that their file had been registered. The following day, a spokesperson for the university told local media that they were preparing their defense.

The decision at the center of the row between Zhao and the university is the one that demanded the suspension of 55 students confirmed as HBV carriers. Zhao was one of the 55.

Zhao's case has aroused considerable media attention following an initial report that was published on the privately run www.hbvhbv.com website. The website is dedicated to hepatitis, providing information on the disease.

In September 2004, Zhao obtained admission to the Hebei University of Economics & Business. He paid his tuition fees and submitted himself to a medical examination as was required by the university. But when examination results showed that he was a HBV carrier, the university put him on suspension for a year and told him to go home.

Zhao dutifully returned home and received treatment for his condition. However, he did not notice any real difference to his health as a result of the treatment. He consulted a doctor and was told that he was actually in good health and did not require any treatment.

This left Zhao extremely confused. He decided to get a second opinion.

In October 2004, the Bethune International Peace Hospital issued a certificate of diagnosis that proved that Zhao was indeed a healthy HBV carrier and capable of leading a normal life without treatment for the time being.

Zhao showed the certificate to the university but they would not accept it.

Disappointed, Zhao then brought the case to the provincial education authority asking for the university's decision to be reconsidered.

On January 20, the authority held a hearing to discuss the matter. Present at the hearing were Zhao and his father as well as the university’s cadre, doctor and lawyer. The matter was not resolved at the hearing. In the months that followed, Zhao heard nothing more from the authority.

This was when Zhao decided to air his grievances on the www.hbvhbv.com website.

His story caught the attention of other users of the website who encouraged Zhao to take legal action against the university.

Zhao has demanded that the university revoke his suspension and pay him damages for his year away from college. In addition, he has demanded a public apology from the university and a nominal one yuan as spiritual compensation.

"I could have just waited out the one-year suspension and returned to continue my education. Although I might have created some bad feelings with the university as a result, I'm glad that I did take action because I want the discrimination to stop," Zhao said.

“Although there is no written requirement for the hepatitis test, many universities treat it as a required practice”, said one director in charge of the university’s student administration department. “We are meant to protect 20,000-plus students in the school”.

Statistics show that China currently has 130 million HBV carriers.

In China, HBV carriers are divided into two groups called da san yang and xiao san yang. Doctors consider the former to be active sufferers of the HBV virus, while the latter group carries the virus in a relatively stable state.

(China.org.cn by Wang Zhiyong May 30, 2005)