News
Light rail passengers worried about safety after a woman was pushed onto the track
- 2021-11-29
- Society
- The Young Reporter
- By: Kelly PangEdited by: BellaHuang
- 2021-11-29
Sarah Chan Miu-ching, 21, lives in Tuen Mun and takes the light rail transit three or four times a week. "I am definitely worried about falling on the track just like what happened to the woman yesterday as there is no platform screen door,” Ms. Chan said. A 47-year-old woman was walking on the platform at Tai Hing (North) station yesterday when a man whom she did not know suddenly pushed her onto the track. The woman’s left shoulder was injured. Police later arrested the suspect at Ching Chung station. Safety facilities at road junctions in the light rail system include traffic lights, road signs on light rail reserved area and vehicle height restrictions, yellow box marking and a bell before the light rail enters a road junction, according to the spokesman in the Legislative Council in 2011. Kitty Wong Yuen-yi, a secretary working in the MTR company, said that the automatic platform gates cannot be installed on the light rail because its operation system is different from other railway systems in the city. “When a train approaches a station, only the driver can stop the carriage and open or close the platform gates,” Ms Wong explained.”Since the road is shared with other vehicles, it’s technically difficult to install the gates.” “There are no platform screen doors like at MTR stations. It’s so easy to be shoved onto the track just like what happened to the woman yesterday,” Zoe Cheung Man-yi, 46, a Tuen Mun resident said. She urged the MTR corporation to pay more attention to accidents at railway stations and tackle them as soon as possible. In 2017, a man pushed a female cleaning worker off the track at the Yuen Long Light Rail Station. The worker had fractured elbows and injuries to her jaw and lips.
Man jailed for more than two years for rioting after throwing plastic bottle at police during 2019 protests
- 2021-11-22
- Society
- The Young Reporter
- By: KOO Chi Tung 顧知桐Edited by: Jasmine Tse
- 2021-11-22
A stone factory worker was sentenced to two years and four months in jail for rioting in a shopping mall in Shatin during the 2019 protests. Lai Chun-lok, 29, was arrested for unlawful assembly on Mar. 27, 2020. He was found guilty of rioting at Wan Chai District Court today. The court heard that Lai and four others threw objects at police officers at New Town Plaza when chaos broke out in the mall on July 14, 2019. Lai pleaded not guilty to the charge, but he admitted he threw a plastic bottle on the ground out of anger. He joined the crowd after netizens called for a protest in the district against the extradition bill. “I went to Sha Tin, but I did not do anything illegal,” Lai said previously under vigilance. Judge Ernest Lin Kam-hung said there had been violent protests in the mall and more than ten people had thrown umbrellas and plastic bottles at the police before the defendant threw his bottle. He did not believe Lai’s action was a lone wolf attack. Although Lai was not dressed in any protective gear nor did he cover his face, the judge said there were people delivering safety helmets, plastic bottles and umbrellas, and he believed Lai was at the mall for the same purpose as the others. The judge added that Lai may not have planned his action and was instead influenced by the social atmosphere at the time. However, he criticised Lai for being arrogant, greedy and irresponsible. He also said Lai not only took part in the rioting but was among the main participants. His goal was to cause harm to the police officers and “reasonable people” would be threatened by his action.
Mental health impact of quarantine under COVID-19
- 2021-11-19
- Society
- The Young Reporter
- By: Malick GaiEdited by: LI Chak Ho Samuel
- 2021-11-19
Charlene Flores and her husband nearly got divorced in the last two hours of a 14-day quarantine. “We ended up arguing. There were a lot of rules. It really affected our mental well-being," said Ms Flores. Those who have to be confined in a room for weeks report impacts on their mental health because of the resulting loneliness and anxiety. She is a French freelance photographer for Paris-based national newspapers and magazines and has lived in Hong Kong since January 2020. Ms Flores, her 14-month old daughter and her 36-year old husband stayed at the Iclub Ma Tau Wai Hotel. She arrived in Hong Kong on August 18. Hong Kong has some of the strictest quarantine requirements in the world. Depending on which risk level their originating country falls under, the Department of Health requires in-bound travellers to be quarantined at designated hotels for either two or three weeks. As of September, fully vaccinated Hong Kong residents from “high risk” (or Group A) countries, including the UK, France, India, and Thailand, had to be quarantined for 21 days. Fully vaccinated travellers arriving from “medium risk” (or Group B) countries must test negative for Covid-19 and quarantine for 14 days while the unvaccinated in this group must quarantine for 21 days. Currently, the only places that fall under the “low risk” (Group C) category include New Zealand, mainland China and Macao. Non-Hong Kong and Hong Kong residents are required to quarantine for seven days if vaccinated, and 14 if not. "It was a tough, expensive and stressful experience. We were always afraid that there might be a false negative test or being identified as a close contact," said Mrs Flores. Karman Leung, Chief Executive of the Samaritan’s Hong Kong, an independent non-governmental organisation, said they receive approximately three to five calls …
Government looks into tactics to handle “fake news”, says Chief Secretary John Lee
- 2021-11-18
- Society
- The Young Reporter
- By: Karmen LiEdited by: CHEN Bingyi
- 2021-11-18
Chief secretary, John Lee revealed today that the government is looking at how other countries tackle the spread of disinformation. Speaking on RTHK, Mr. Lee said a legal study is underway on how to deal with the problem and he has not ruled out the possibility of new legislation. The move comes after the government introduced new laws earlier to clamp down doxxing and hate speech. “The fake news legislation can stop destructive rumors from spreading in Hong Kong. Freedom must be exercised under law, which allows people to enjoy more freedom,” Mr. Lee said. Another proposal to manage fake news is to require publishers to self-regulate. Where information is not verified or fact-checked, publishers would be required to make a statement, Mr. Lee said. He added that he preferred to act on content management first to seek a balance between controlling misinformation and freedom of the press. Tang Tak-shing, chairman of Politihk Social Strategic, a local political organisation, believes it is necessary to introduce a fake news law because of the rise of online news media and unchecked reporting. “We prefer legislation since it is difficult to ask online media with low credibility to be self-regulated. The bill can make the boundaries clear toward news media,” said Mr Tang. A survey released by the Foreign Correspondent Club earlier this month found that 75.8% of the 99 respondents including correspondents and journalist members were very concerned about the possible introduction of a “fake news” law in Hong Kong. The chairman of the Hong Kong Journalist Association (HKJA), Ronson Chan Long-sing, said that the government often claims that news media smear police officers, but “they can clarify this immediately instead of waiting for rumors to spread and blame the media”. “It is hard to self-regulate as proposed by John Lee,” said …
Hong Kong stocks close higher, up 5 consecutive days
- 2021-11-15
- Business
- The Young Reporter
- By: Serena KongEdited by: Zhu Zijin Cora 朱子槿
- 2021-11-15
Hong Kong stocks rose slightly on Monday, with the blue-chip index closing higher for five consecutive trading days after China’s announced better than expected October retail sales but trading volume remained thin. The Hang Seng Index ended at 25,390, up 62 points or 0.25% on turnover of about HK$118.6 billion. The index moved between within a narrow range of 253 points for the day. China’s industrial production rose 3.5 percent year-on-year in October and retail sales increased 4.9 percent, both were slightly better than market expected, according to the South China Morning Post. The Hang Seng technology index edged up 0.5% to 6,601, while Tencent rose more than 1%. Mainland property and property management stocks fell, while the performance of financial stocks was mixed. Shares of HSBC eased 0.22% but AIA rose more than 2%. The Beijing Stock Exchange started its first day of trading on Monday and the total trading volume of 9.573 billion yuan. At the close, 59 stocks or nearly three quarter of the 81 listed stocks, closed lower and three were suspended. The Shanghai and Shenzhen stock markets fell. Lithium battery stocks weakened while meta-universe concept stocks and food and beverage stocks rose. The Shanghai Composite Index closed at 3,533, down 0.16%. The Shenzhen Stock Exchange Composite Index eased 0.19% to 2,462.39.
154 candidates to fight for 90 seats as nomination period ends in first LegCo elections after Beijing overhaul
- 2021-11-15
- Society
- The Young Reporter
- By: Nick Yang、Ziyu Bruce ZhaoEdited by: Summer Li
- 2021-11-15
The nomination period for the 2021 Legislative Council general election ended Friday with 154 candidates getting enough endorsements to run, according to official statistics. In the December election, 20 of the 90 seats will be directly elected by geographical constituencies. The Election Committee will appoint 40 seats. The remaining 30 are elected by functional constituencies. Though the overall number of lawmakers has increased from 70 in the city’s first Legco election since Beijing’s sweeping overhaul of the system earlier this year, the number of directly elected seats, chosen by residents from 10 geographic districts, decreased from 35. Motions in the Legislative Council need two-thirds consent to be passed, according to the Basic Law. Previously, many directly elected lawmakers were from pro-democracy parties. Most have been disqualified. “Hong Kongers’ enthusiasm for participating in politics was quenched,” Francis Chau Yin-Ming, a former legislative council member and current district councillor, said. This year’s hopeful candidates vied for nominations from the city’s Election Committee, in which most members are from pro-establishment parties. “I started from scratch. I have to work very hard to promote my political platform to the public and the election committee,” said Wong Wing-Ho, a candidate from the moderate Path of Democracy party. “But now the atmosphere of discussion in the reformed electoral system is much more rational now.” This year, every constituency will be contested for the first time. Some non-pro-establishment candidates are confident in the new system. “Fortunately, there are no swing voters. So, there is no conflict between us and pro-establishment candidates,” another candidate from Path of Democracy, Chan Chun-Hung, said. “So, I am very confident that more normal Hong Kong people can vote.” A handful of candidates are not from the pro-establishment camp, some with previous ties to the opposition or who define themselves as moderates. “In …
HK Philharmonic Swire Symphony Under The Stars back in-person after 2 year hiatus
- 2021-11-15
- Society
- The Young Reporter
- By: Malick GaiEdited by: Simran Vaswani
- 2021-11-15
The Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra returned to the Central harbourfront on Saturday for its annual Swire Symphony Under The Stars, after being moved online last year because of the pandemic and cancelled in 2019 because of pro-democracy protests. The orchestra presented an exuberant programme of classical dance music with four philharmonic musicians performing as soloists: violist Andrew Ling and trumpeters Christopher Moyse, Douglas Waterston and Robert Smith. "This year's event is very exciting because all the pieces are classical dance pieces," host Harry Wong said in his opening remarks. Hong Kong conductor Wilson Ng led the concert after music director Jaap van Zweden was denied a quarantine waiver by the Hong Kong government. All of his remaining 2021 appearances have been cancelled. About 12,000 people attended the concert live at the Central harbourfront on Saturday night and around 2,000 attended the live screening at the West Kowloon Art Park, Wong said at the concert. "It's a very artistic weekend in West Kowloon as the concert also coincides with the opening of the M+ museum of visual culture and other events," said Paul Tam, executive director of performing arts at the West Kowloon Cultural District. "West Kowloon is not just an entertainment hub, also for civic engagement, you actually enjoy both inside and outside and it's pet-friendly.” "It's good that the event is free and it is socially distanced to give people access to the orchestra," said Marcus Scarlett, who watched the live screening of the concert from the Art Park. "It's really nice that the host engaged the audience to be involved in the dance music," said Vanessa Kwan, who also attended the live screening at the Art Park. The concert was also shown online via Zoom and live streamed on the philharmonic website, official Facebook page and YouTube channel. …
Panic-buying Emerges Before Typhoon Kompasu Hits the City
- 2021-10-12
- Society
- The Young Reporter
- By: Jayde CheungEdited by: TUNG Yi Wun
- 2021-10-12
Hong Kong people scrambled for food after the Strong Wind Signal No.3 was in force, in order to have enough food before No.8 Gale or Storm Signal was issued today. Fresh meat and seafood in the Wellcome Superstore in Sha Kok Shopping Centre were sold out at noon, as Hong Kong people were panic-buying to get prepared for the approaching typhoon Kompasu. Chan Fung, a customer at Sha Kok Market, said she returned home empty-handed yesterday because of the stockout. She visited the wet market again this afternoon and bought more than usual, including two bags of vegetables, five oranges and a fish, which cost around HK$200. Prices were up for approximately 10%, Chan added. Still, she was not able to purchase any meat, as they were all sold out earlier. “I didn’t buy much, the food is just enough for tomorrow, because I guess the typhoon will only stay for one day,” Chan said. The second typhoon in the city this month is approaching after Lionrock’s visit on Saturday. Typhoon Kompasu will be nearest to Hong Kong in Wednesday's early morning, so the No.8 Gale or Storm Signal issued at 5:20pm will be in force at least before sunrise on Wednesday, according to the central briefing by the Hong Kong Observatory. “Strong to gale force north to north easterly winds, occasionally storm force offshore and on high ground,” said Yeung Kwok Chung, Acting Senior Scientific Officer of Hong Kong Observatory, in the central briefing at 9 pm. "Winds will moderate gradually tomorrow night, it will also be cloudy with heavy squally showers and thunderstorms." Queues in the Wellcome Superstore in Sha Kok Shopping Centre were extended to the back of the store. Tang Man-wai, a customer at the Wellcome Superstore, had only a box of sushi and four cup noodles …
Guangdong businesses can apply for quarantine-free permits to enter Hong Kong
- 2021-10-11
- Business
- The Young Reporter
- By: Phoebe LawEdited by: Jasmine Tse
- 2021-10-11
Employees of Guangdong companies can apply for quarantine-free business permits to visit Hong Kong starting today. The online booking system has a daily quota of 1,000 for entry via the Shenzhen Bay Port or the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge Hong Kong Port. This is on top of the existing scheme that allows non-Hong Kong residents from Guangdong province to enter the city without quarantine, which has been in effect since Sept. 15. Macau was removed from exemption on Sept. 25 because of its latest Covid-19 outbreak. Business owners welcome the new travel scheme. “Because of Covid and the quarantine policies, we were unable to meet friends and families, and I could not meet my business partners in Hong Kong,” said Feng Minliang, who owns a fashion exhibition-organising company in Zhongshan in Guangdong. “I think the new policy is very useful,” said Feng. “Although it is only a temporary solution, it is definitely a good start to help the economy recover from Covid.” Meanwhile, foreign businesses have expressed frustration with the city’s “zero-Covid” strategy. The American Chamber of Commerce said their efforts in lobbying the Hong Kong government to reopen its borders with the rest of the world has been fruitless, as reported by Bloomberg. “We’re at the point where it just feels like we’re talking to a wall,” Tara Joseph, president of AmCham in Hong Kong, told Bloomberg. “The longer the closing of borders goes on, the more vulnerable many businesses are,” said Brian King, the Associate Dean and Professor of the School of Hotel and Tourism Management at Hong Kong Polytechnic University. “There will be job losses.” The number of headquarters and offices of mainland Chinese companies in Hong Kong increased by 22% to 1986 between 2019 and 2020, according to latest statistics from the Census and Statistics Department. Meanwhile, …
Policy Address 2021 Key Takeaways: developing a metropolis and upholding 'one country, two systems'
- 2021-10-06
- Society
- The Young Reporter
- By: Jasmine Tse、Janice LoEdited by: Simran Vaswani
- 2021-10-06
Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor’s fifth and final policy address of her current term surpassed last year’s to become the lengthiest address ever. Reading her 80-page policy blueprint over a record span of two hours and 38 minutes, Lam spoke about her government’s commitment to the ‘one country, two systems’ principle and introduced the usual extensive list of economic and social measures. Here are five key takeaways from her speech today: 1.Increasing housing supply Lam said the government identified 350 hectares of land to produce 330,000 public housing units over the next 10 years, a slight increase from last year’s figures. Lam also announced the Northern Metropolis Development Strategy, a project to transform 30,000 hectares of the northern part of Hong Kong into a metropolitan area. Lam said the completion of the project will contain more than 900,000 residential units — including the existing 390,000 — to accommodate about 2.5 million people. However, local advocacy groups were disappointed by the policy address’ lack of plans in addressing housing needs in subdivided flats. 2. Bolstering Hong Kong’s position as an international hub Noting the financial services industry as “an important pillar” of Hong Kong’s economy, Lam aims to better position the city in bridging mainland China’s market with the international market by improving the stock exchange’s listing regime and expanding offshore business to using yuan currency. Lam seeks to further foster the city’s status in international trade by forming closer relations with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and seeking to join the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership. Lam also pushed for Hong Kong to become a leader in legal and dispute resolution within the Asia-Pacific. The Department of Justice will organise the Greater Bay Area’s legal professional exam and allow Hong Kong enterprises registered in Qianhai to adopt Hong Kong …