Society & Politics

Munich, Germany April 18 – Around 2,500 protesters gathered on Saturday for an anti-abortion rally, March for Life, at King’s Square, with counter-protests supporting pro-choice unfolding along the route.  Under Sections 218 and 218a of the German Criminal Code, abortion is technically a criminal offence punishable by fines or up to three years in prison.  It is permitted within the first 12 weeks under certain conditions, including state approval from a counselling centre. Organised by a Munich group Voice of the Silent, the rally promoted messages like “protect life” and “every person is wonderful.” Event speaker Mathias von Gersdorff said broader abortion access overlooks what he described as “the killing of children” and fosters a “culture of death.” “Don’t give up on protecting the privileges of the unborn, and reject attempts to legalise abortion,” US Catholic bishop Robert Barron said in a video message.  “Keep on praying for the blessing from God when living in a secular environment,” he said. “It is my responsibility to speak up for unborn babies in the womb who have no voice of their own to say they don’t want to die,” Fritz, 38, a participant whose brother has Down syndrome. “My brother is a full and valued human being who is living a happy life even though he is sick. But if abortion is promoted, many babies with the same condition may not be born in the future as people would be influenced by eugenics,” she said. Fritz called for more financial support for pregnant women, restrictions on organisations funding abortions and options for doctors to opt out. “If public attitudes toward permitting abortion shift, that could directly influence individual decisions, given that the current legal restrictions are disregarded in practice,” Fritz added. Christina Karmann, 21, a promoter from the partnering organisation Sunday for …

Senior firefighters testified Monday at the Tai Po Fire public hearing, describing how the rapid spread of the blaze and the absence of working building alarms created major challenges in coordinating rescues during the inferno that killed 168 people.  Senior Station Officer Hui Kin-on, the first commander on the scene from Tai Po Fire Station’s B Team, told the committee he arrived at 2:56 p.m., just five minutes after the initial call reported scaffolding fire and explosions at Wang Cheong House.   He said the flames spread “extremely fast", shooting straight to the roof with loud explosions and collapsing bamboo scaffolding.   “When we arrived at the scene, we did not see any property management staff, nor did we hear the fire alarm bells ringing,” Hui said.  The public's reliability of on-site firefighting information systems has also been concerned. Hui said it is a common practice to install the mobile data terminal on every fire engine, which displays real-time incident details, including specific building information.   “During this fire, however, I cannot recall whether the terminal indicated exactly which fire safety installations had failed,” Hui said. “In every other incident I have attended, the terminal would always specify the faulty equipment.”  Hui said when he arrived on spot, he saw all exits were blocked by falling debris and bamboos, which prevented firefighters from entering to activate the internal alarm system.   “The entire building was surrounded by thick smoke and fire,” he recalled.  The team attempted to activate the fire alarm bells in nearby buildings but none of them were functioning properly, Hui added.   Hui also said firefighters had to rely on police assistance for evacuation and on radio communications with the control centre, while the committee counsel noted that there was no specific guidance for the estate’s pre-arranged fire plan for situations where the alarm failed to activate.  As fire alarm upgraded to fourth level in an hour, the Fire Services Department was in effort to arrange more manpower. Wong King-man, Deputy Director of Fire Services in New Territories North, said the command centre received over 300 help …