Talking points
Our editors will be looking ahead today to these developing stories ...
The bodies of the nine Hongkongers killed in a hot-air balloon explosion in Egypt last month are expected to arrive in the city today at about 5.30pm and be transferred to Kwai Chung Public Mortuary, according to the Immigration Department. The nine were among 19 killed after their balloon caught fire during a sightseeing trip in Luxor. Hong Kong's Civil Aviation Department said Egyptian authorities had turned down its request to help investigate the accident, which occurred on February 26.
Police are scheduled to begin wearing surveillance cameras clipped to their uniforms, at the start of a six-month trial for the devices. Senior superintendent Tse Sau-kong told a news conference last month that 50 of the surveillance gadgets, each about the size of a cigarette packet, would be deployed from today, in a project that has raised concerns among civil rights activists about police invasion of civilians' right to privacy.
The trial begins in Montreal of Luka Rocco Magnotta, dubbed the "Canadian Psycho", with the judge expected to rule whether there is enough evidence for a prosecution. Police say Magnotta, an occasional porn actor and male prostitute, used an ice pick to hack to death his 33-year-old victim Lin Jun in late May before carving up his body, sexually abusing the corpse, filming the act and posting the video online. Magnotta was arrested on June 4, 2012 in Germany and extradited after fleeing Canada. He has pleaded not guilty.
National lawmakers at their annual session of the National People's Congress will today review a government restructuring plan submitted to the national legislature by the State Council and also consider reports submitted by the Supreme People's Court and Supreme People's Procuratorate.
British rock icon David Bowie's new album will be officially released in British music shops today and in the United States tomorrow. Bowie astonished fans in January by breaking a decade-long musical silence when he unveiled a single, , from the album to coincide with his 66th birthday, and announcing the upcoming release of . According to his official website, the deluxe version of the album went to No 1 on the digital iTunes album charts in 11 of 12 countries where it was released on Friday, including Australia, Germany and Sweden.
