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Letters

Kai Tak the wrong place for cruise terminal

That the Development Bureau is proposing to spend HK$2 billion on site work at the proposed Kai Tak cruise terminal - in order to make the project more attractive to developers - is a clear indication that this is yet another white elephant trophy project. It will leak tax dollars for little in return while occupying a prime harbourfront site that could be put to better use.

Financial experts have been advising for years now that the cruise business gives returns to the liner operators only.

The short and controversial visit of the Queen Mary 2 to Hong Kong in February 2007 and the revelation that its passengers spent only a few hours in port while sleeping - taking their meals and doing most of their shopping on board - should have been a wake-up call for the administration.

A berth at Kwai Chung for large cruise liners would suffice, while the current Ocean Terminal should continue to be at the service of smaller vessels.

With HK$2 billion, this Kai Tak site could be developed to offer well-planned resort-like facilities that would attract well-heeled business visitors.

It could provide large and imaginative function and party space currently in short supply, and encourage Hong Kong people to chill out and spend their cash at home instead of heading to the airport every public holiday and long weekend.

That two of our most canny developers, Cheung Kong (Holdings) and Sun Hung Kai Properties, see no revenue potential in developing a cruise terminal per se says it all.

The government should have learned a lesson from Disneyland that promoters of tourism projects can put their money, not ours, where their mouth is. It is evident that no cruise liner company is prepared to invest in the Kai Tak project.

The government will be seeking Legislative Council approval for the HK$2 billion later this year.

Voters who are opposed to seeing more of their tax dollars that could be better spent on the needy, health care and education, flushed down the Kai Tak nullah should ask some hard questions of prospective Legco candidates, both geographical and functional, in coming weeks.

Proactive rather than rubber stamp or narrow interest representation should be the goal.

Mary Melville, Tsim Sha Tsui

Mugabe should be condemned

Dave Diss, of Australia ('US scapegoat', July 11), calls the media attention currently focused on Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe, 'humbug'.

While Mr Mugabe may not be guilty of a full-scale, illegal invasion or the 'sprinkling' of cluster bombs beyond his borders, why should he not be regarded as an arch-villain?

Does Mr Diss want the media to only focus its attention on one theatre of conflict?

Too often the dreadful conflicts which have arisen in some parts of Africa have been passed over by the rest of the world because they have somehow been seen as 'par for the course' in that continent.

The exposure of all manner of tyranny, whatever its scale, wherever its location, is newsworthy, Mr Diss; whether it be in Zimbabwe, Iraq or in the Australian outback. May the media continue to pour scorn on Robert Mugabe - he has earned it.

Pauline Bunce, Chai Wan

We must help quake victims

I support the government's proposal to give aid to help those who suffered as a result of the Sichuan earthquake as long as a detailed plan is provided and close monitoring ensured.

The Hong Kong government has in the past donated to the Philippines, Indonesia and Peru when there have been natural disasters and there is nothing wrong with showing that we care for our country and our people.

Hong Kong does not pay tax to the central government but is well taken care of when in need.

The quake, with its massive destruction and casualties, is the biggest disaster our country has ever suffered from in 30 years and cannot be compared with other floods and landslides.

We always call for companies to fulfil corporate responsibility.

Isn't it time for Hong Kong, which is China's most affluent city, to fulfil its responsibility to its country? We should not confuse the issue with helping the poor in Hong Kong. Otherwise we can go on arguing that the West Kowloon project should be scrapped and the money be spent on helping the disadvantaged.

During the colonial era, we were forced by the British government to take in Vietnamese refugees and the UN still owes us a substantial amount of money. Maybe we should find some way to get this back from either the UN or the British government so that we can help our people.

Susan Chan, Wan Chai

Pan-democrats losing support

Anson Chan Fang On-sang announced she would not run in the September Legco election.

The July 1 march addressed such a hodgepodge of issues unrelated to democracy that it would be farcical to call it a democracy march.

The pro-democracy movement is in tatters. The reason is that the people of Hong Kong have now developed such strong allegiance to China that they ill suffer the democrats who pursued separatism under the guise of democracy and patriotism.

Emily Lau Wai-hing has criticised the National People's Congress Standing Committee for ruling out direct elections in 2012.

However, the committee would not do so, since Annex II to the Basic Law states that the geographical constituency seats shall be returned by direct elections and they already are.

We do have democracy in Hong Kong.

By contrast the seats of the upper house of the UK parliament are not even returned by election.

What the standing committee did rule out for 2012 was universal suffrage, which could be in the form of either direct or indirect elections but which some democrats chose to interpret it as direct elections only.

The pan-democrats must cease to be sham democrats and patriots if they are to win back the hearts and minds of Hong Kong people.

Peter Lok, Chai Wan

Promiscuity a serious risk

Barry Lee has told us that the spread of HIV in Hong Kong, 'including transmission through homosexual contact', has been rising and that a caring and supportive environment for those affected is one of the keys to effective prevention ('Narrow-minded', July 10).

I agree that we should provide a caring and supportive environment for all.

However, while Mr Lee criticises the discrimination in love hotels, he misses the point that the main reason for the spread of HIV is largely because of promiscuity, whether through heterosexual or homosexual sex.

Encouraging either the activities of homosexuals or heterosexuals in what are known as 'love hotels' will just risk increasing the spread of HIV.

Andrew Hung, Kowloon Bay

Race query

How will the Racial Discrimination Bill [which was passed by Legco last week] affect the government's localisation policy when it comes to appointments in the Hong Kong civil service?

Inquiring ex-civil servants would be interested to know the answer to that.

Ian Dubin, Kingston, Ontario, Canada

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