Politics

In last year’s Legislative Council election, Cindy Chan Yuk-sim, 55, an estate surveyor and civil servant, cast a vote for the Architectural, Surveying, Planning and Landscape functional constituency, one of 29 representing various industries of Hong Kong. Both candidates running for the single seat were men. “I wish there were more female candidates who can participate in the architectural constituency so that more female voices can be heard in the Legislative Council,” Chan said.  Though, in recent years, more women have taken up significant political roles, such as Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor and DAB Chairperson Starry Lee Wai-king, Hong Kong politics are heavily skewed in favor of men.   At the top levels of government, less than a fifth are women. And there has been little to no increase in this number for the last 23 years. Of the current 90 legislators, only 17 are women, about 19%. The percentage is the same for the Executive Council, the cabinet to the Chief Executive. Of the 32 current members, only six are women. “As most of the members in the Legislative Council and Executive Council are male, women opinions are relatively neglected, weakening their power in fighting for women rights in the council,” Joseph Chan, 62, a former professor from the Department of Politics and Public Administration of the University of Hong Kong, said. Entrenched gender stereotypes run deep in Hong Kong. Voters tend to favor men for political positions involving financial policy while women are preferred for social welfare and education, according to a survey by the Gender Research Centre at Chinese University's Hong Kong Institute of Asia-Pacific Studies. Joseph Chan said gender stereotypes may also cause male legislators to be judged on their accomplishments while women are judged on their appearance along with their achievements.   “Women should be …

Hong Kong will continue to invest billions in the biotechnology industry as it works to enhance institutional capacity with HK$10 billion earmarked for life and health technology, Paul Chan Mo-po, Financial Secretary, said in his budget address today.  The investment in the innovation and technology sector comes amid the Greater Bay Area development. The establishment of the InnoLife Healthtech Hub in the Hong Kong Shenzhen Innovation and Technology Park, announced in the 2021 policy address, will bring the research strengths and resources of laboratories to create greater synergy, Secretary for Innovation and Technology Alfred Sit Wing-hang said in October last year. Biotechnology plays a significant role globally as it will dominate important economic activities in the 21th century and firms or countries that control key biotechnology will be able to rule the market and the economic development, according to scholars. “With more than 16 laboratories and the eight relevant State Key Laboratories, we can pool together top‑notch research teams from all over the world and focus our efforts on R&D work as well as global research collaboration in the field of life and health sciences,” Chan said. There are more than 250 biotechnology‑related companies in Hong Kong, with the majority of them operating in pharmaceuticals, traditional Chinese medicinal, healthcare products or medical devices and diagnostics, according to the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. In the 2018-19 Budget Address, biotechnology was recognized as one of four priority sectors, which Chan had earmarked an additional $50 billion for developing innovation and technology in Hong Kong. “Continuous promotion of Innovation and Technology development is an important strategy to foster a more vibrant and diversified economy.  The 14th Five‑Year Plan supports Hong Kong's development into an international I&T hub,” said Chan.  The current-term government has invested more than $130 billion in I&T development, which …

The Financial Secretary has earmarked an additional $2.38 billion in this year’s budget to provide an extra half-month payment of Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA), Old Age Allowance, Old Age Living Allowance, and Disability Allowance, to Hong Kong’s most needy. But Sze Lai-shan, deputy director of the Society for Community Organisation said more needs to be done,  “There are very few measures for the elderly, but mainly giving money to the middle class. The budget should be allocated more to the grassroots like the elderly and the weak,”said Sze. “The government should spend more money on the healthcare services for the elderly as many of them are staying at home and no one can take care of them.”  As of Jan. 31 last year, nearly 37,000 elderly were waiting for a subsidised place in Care and Attention homes and Nursing Homes, according to the Social Welfare Department.  The budget sets aside an additional HK$19 billion to be spent on strengthening services for the elderly, the disabled and children. Part of the sum will go towards building eight new contract homes for residential elderly care service in the Kwu Tung North New Development area and Fanling, providing an estimated additional 800 places. On top of four existing neighbourhood elderly centres offering basic elderly support, one more will be constructed in Area 54 in Tuen Mun.  To help well off elderly people, the government will issue at least HK$35 billion worth of silver bonds in the coming year. That’s an increase of HK$10 billion from last year. Only people aged 60 years and above can invest in silver bonds and it will give them a fixed income on a half-yearly basis. A fixed rate of 3.5% per annum is given to silver bonds due 2023 and 2024, according to the key features …