As world institutions come under stress with the threat of war, in some respects it is more important than ever for local leaders to get their acts together, however far they may be from the battle zone. The forces set in motion by the United States and its allies could unleash worse attacks still than last year's Bali bombings or the September 11 attacks. Will Hong Kong be ready for catastrophe? How ready are its institutions to bear the impact?

Let's take, for example, Hong Kong's current nightmare, in which it has become a hot zone in the emergence of a new strain of atypical pneumonia, dubbed severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS).

According to the World Health Organisation, some 150 people have been affected, with nine deaths. Amazingly, over the weekend, in one hospital alone, the Prince of Wales, some 42 medical staff were diagnosed with the illness. Since the first Hong Kong death took place last Thursday, medical authorities might be excused for reacting slowly and trying to keep the public calm by playing down the severity of the outbreak. But what if something much worse comes Hong Kong's way, such as a bio-terrorist attack, a dusting of anthrax or release of sarin gas in the city's mass transit systems? What steps should the government take now to take into account the worst-case scenarios? Meanwhile, of course, we hope for the best-case scenario of things remaining pretty much the same whether or not the Middle East explodes.

One modest suggestion would be to establish a crisis management portfolio within the government. It would be this official's responsibility to co-ordinate across ministries and develop rapid response strategies for public disasters. Under Hong Kong's current system, problems are sorted out by category, so that the secretary for security handles problems of security, the secretary for health, welfare and food copes with the mystery virus, and so on.

Crisis management procedures may be excellent in one department, poor in another. The Hospital Authority should not have to handle the flu crisis all by itself. In a world this dangerous, we should try to do a better job.

Glossary

vaunted (adj) boasted or praised excessively

pinprick (n) a minor annoyance

unleash (v) to start something suddenly Example: The Solarside crew unleashed their song Infectious House Grooves with DJ Stevie B from London. (SCMP, March 14, 2003)

acute (adj) severe

play down (phrasal v) to try to make people believe that something is not likely to happen or is not as important as it may seem

portfolio (n) a minister's scope of responsibilities. It is different from an artist's portfolio or collected works

Discussion points

- What are your worries? Can you deal with them? How?

- Is there anything in society or in the world that worries you? Give reasons.

- 'The government had better establish a crisis management portfolio.' What does that mean? How can it help Hong Kong?