HONG KONG • The president of a Hong Kong university that has been the site of a stand-off between protesters and police said some 100 protesters remained on campus.

Meanwhile, a record number of more than 200 people charged in connection with the protests at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) on Monday were brought before six courts across the city yesterday .

The rare move saw court hearings being held from morning till evening.

The 213 defendants were among the more than 1,000 people who were arrested or who surrendered at or around the campus in Hung Hom on Monday.

Most of them were arrested for rioting, an offence punishable by 10 years' jail.

Among those still inside PolyU were 20 students from the institution, Professor Teng Jin-Guang told reporters outside the school yesterday afternoon.

Reiterating the hope for a peaceful resolution to the situation, Prof Teng said the biggest concern is for the remaining protesters to leave the campus safely.

He also repeated the assurance that he or his team members will accompany protesters who leave the campus for the police station, to ensure that their cases are "processed peacefully, fairly and humanely".

When asked by the media, Prof Teng said he was not aware of any deadlines for people to leave the campus before police would enter the university.

Earlier yesterday, Hong Kong Security Secretary John Lee urged protesters still on campus to surrender to the police "in a peaceful and orderly manner", adding that the incident "cannot drag on forever".

Almost 900 people had surrendered themselves to the police, 300 of whom were under the age of 18, Mr Lee told reporters outside the Legislative Council chamber.

Mr Lee also said the authorities had arrested 730 people for various crimes on Tuesday, although he did not say whether that included the PolyU protesters.

Those leaving the campus who are above 18 years old would be arrested on suspicion of rioting, but police would investigate each case thoroughly before deciding what to do next, said Mr Lee.

Meanwhile, those aged under 18 who leave the campus are required to be photographed and have their personal particulars registered. They will not be arrested at the scene but the police reserve the right to take any legal actions in the future.

The last band of protesters in the besieged university were weighing a narrowing range of options early yesterday as police outside appeared ready to wait them out.

Food supplies are running out, but local media reported that the canteen still has frozen meat and instant noodles.

BLOOMBERG, REUTERS