In Brief
Hon ordained as bishop by pope
A high-profile priest and theologian from Hong Kong was one of five new bishops ordained by Pope Benedict at the Vatican yesterday. Savio Hon Tai-fai (pictured) was elevated to the new position during a morning Mass at St Peter's Basilica, which began with a reading in Chinese. The 60-year-old prelate, who has been a priest for almost 30 years, is a member of the Salesian order in China and translated the catechism into Chinese. Observers say Hon's recent promotions may be aimed at easing tension between the pope and Beijing after the state-backed church's ordination of bishops without papal consent. Cardinal Joseph Zen Ze-kiun, who is also a member of the Salesian order, was not available for comment yesterday. Staff from his Shau Kei Wan office confirmed the former bishop of Hong Kong was in Rome this week, to return on Wednesday.
30 HK tourists injured in bus crash in Shandong
Thirty Hong Kong tourists were injured, with two women in a serious condition, in a road accident in Shandong province. Twelve males and 18 females, aged six to 70, were members of a Wing On five-day tour group. They were on a coach heading from Qingdao airport to Weifang when the bus crashed into a pit between two road sections on a highway. All were taken to a local hospital and 23 with slight injuries were discharged after treatment. Seven were admitted to the hospital with broken bones. The two tourists in serious condition are a 51-year-old woman, and a 37-year-old woman. They underwent operations last night but their lives are not at risk. Wing On sent two managers to Shandong to offer assistance last night and organised a flight to bring back the discharged travellers to Hong Kong today. A Wing On spokeswoman said the company was still investigating the accident. The tour operator had contacted relatives of the injured and expressed sympathy.
Pay rises unlikely, survey shows
Hong Kong people are confident about their job prospects and security in the Year of the Rabbit but many believe salary freezes will continue, according to a survey by the Hong Kong Association for Democracy and People's Livelihood. About 300 people polled by the group gave an average of 5.75 points out of 10 for Hong Kong's job prospects in 2011, representing an increase of 0.63 points compared with a similar survey last year. But 43 per cent said they did not expect to see any salary increases in the coming year. Only 32 per cent felt they would get a pay rise. Of these, nearly 70 per cent expected the rise would be less than 3 per cent.
Sixth swine flu death in 12 days
A 21-year-old woman died of human swine flu on Friday in Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Yau Ma Tei, the sixth death in twelve days, a Hospital Authority spokesman said. Three more human swine flu patients were transferred to intensive care units in critical condition, including a 23-month-old baby girl at Princess Margaret Hospital, Kwai Chung, a 13-year-old boy at United Christian Hospital, Kwun Tong, and a 38-year-old woman at Yan Chai Hospital, Tsuen Wan. As of 2pm yesterday, there were 32 influenza patients in intensive care at public hospitals.
