GIVE GENEROUSLY
Andy Lau Tak-wah got it partially right by putting on a grim face for the camera while fellow local stars were all smiles in a recent photo printed in a Chinese magazine.
Earthquake and tsunami relief is no laughing matter.
It's nice that those in the entertainment industry feel it is their duty to show that they support aid efforts in the affected areas but - short of physical assistance such as the US$100,000 donated by American rock group Linkin Park - posing for photos isn't going to help much.
Jackie Chan donated $500,000, while Chow Yun-fat donated $200,000. Alan Tam Wing-lun is pledging a more respectable $800,000 and Li Ka-shing tops them all with a $24 million donation.
At the time of writing, Hong Kong has approved $30 million from its disaster relief fund to help the tsunami victims.
Japan is offering US$ 500 million.
Given that Hong Kong's GDP per capita is similar to that of Japan, our ability to give should be similar. The total amount donated should be proportional to population.
Latest estimates indicate that Japan's population is about 18 times that of Hong Kong. Japan's donation is about 130 times that of Hong Kong.
Doesn't our government seem kind of stingy by comparison?
I suppose you could argue that the city's relatively low tax rates mean less revenue for the government, but I'm sure we can spare some change from our huge reserves of foreign exchange and gold to help.
Besides, there are more important reasons to give generously.
1. Time is essence. Every second could mean another death.
2 . Money now is worth more than money later because of inflation, risk and other factors.
3. The more lives we can save now, the more money we can divert toward preventative measures. The outbreak of disease caused by drinking dirty water and living in unsanitary conditions is one of the main concerns following immediate disaster relief.
4. Minimising the economic impact of the disaster will have positive effects in the region. No one wants another financial crisis in Asia just when the economy has started to pick up.
Ms Yeung is a student at the University of Pennsylvania
