bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

moreOnThisArticles

urlAlias

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

sponsorType

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

socialHeadline

headline

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

publishedDate

additionalInfoBoxes

quizIds

images

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

createdDate

sponsor

paywallTypes

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

SCMP Reporter

Q Has the government reacted adequately to the baby Wing-sum tragedy?

Last Saturday's article about the two-year-old girl who died after being tortured by her own father was probably one of the most tragic stories in Hong Kong's recent history.

What is worse is that this little girl did not have to suffer or die if the Social Welfare Department had done its job. Her nightmare and death was a direct result of the neglect of the department.

If the article's facts are accurate, her parents, who rarely visited her, were urged to take her back by the social worker - on what grounds? Cost cutting?

The people who claim to have loved her and cared for her as if she were one of their own never checked on her. Did the social worker who handled her case ever visit her? What about the parents? Shouldn't the department offer help and assistance to parents who abandon their  children at birth?

It is a very tragic story, for the little girl and even for the guilty parents. The bottom line is that it was avoidable, if social services had done a proper job.

In addition, 10 years for the man who tortured his  child is too lenient. It should have been the death penalty or, barring that, life in prison without probation. I can't see what possible contribution he can ever make to society.

Jean Liu, Discovery Bay

Why was Ng Wing-sum  allowed to leave the government creche in the first place? Did any government staff visit Wing-sum regularly after she left the government creche? If they had visited her within the first week of her life with her parents, they could have stopped Wing-sum's further suffering.

If Wing-sum's  parents didn't allow government workers to visit, then that was already a signal that they were trying to hide something, and that the government should send police to break into the flat to check on the child.

Wing-sum  seemed to be properly cared for in the government creche.  It seems certain government workers were negligent in this tragedy. At least Wing-sum  is now in heaven.

Name and address supplied

Q Are chickenpox parties for children a good idea?

I am a Braemar Hill Nursery School parent. I was utterly appalled by the response of Stella Lu,  the school's headmistress to the recent outbreak of chickenpox at the school.

Her excuse that the outbreak was caused by the desire of professional and open-minded parents, who intentionally exposed their children to the virus, is both questionable and demonstrates irresponsible behaviour.

My child who attends this school was unfortunately one of the 34 reportedly infected. We certainly were not invited to such parties, nor have we heard any indication that these events were  discussed among other parents.

You may say that catching chickenpox is no big deal, but what happens if it is passed on to a pregnant woman? The situation then becomes far more complex and potentially life-threatening.

In the face of Hong Kong's acute and constant awareness of contagious diseases, like Sars, bird flu and dengue fever, how could parents want to subject their child to such risks?

The  reason behind the outbreak is  that the school building was never designed to cater for community gatherings, let alone the demands of a school. The school's layout is largely an open floor plan, with only a select number of  partitioned rooms. The main problem is that there are few windows; one large section, which adjoins four separate classes, has no windows at all.

Clearly, proper ventilation in this school is a secondary consideration.  My greatest disappointment with Mrs Lu  is her failure to alert parents to the disease in the early stages of the outbreak.

Not until this week did she start to alert other parents that this situation had unfolded. By that time it was too late for my child.

Name and address supplied

I am writing in response to your story 'Come to the party - games include catch my chickenpox' (published on Thursday).  Shocked by this article, I wondered if parents in Hong Kong really love their children, or if they know what love is and how to show their love.

This article reports that 34 out of 170 kids in a kindergarten in North Point had contracted chickenpox, a common communicable disease among children, in the past six weeks. The reason for the outbreak may be attributed to an extraordinary 'chickenpox party' held by a mother, in which children could mingle to pass on the disease to one another so that they could get chickenpox in their early childhood.

Having been infected in early childhood and since affected children will have lifelong immunity to the disease, the children will avoid falling ill from the virus in future examination periods.

Falling ill is natural  in the course of life. Deliberate action to make children sick  to prevent them  being stricken with illnesses in future examination periods is ridiculous.

Even if the children don't contract chickenpox during examination periods, they may fall ill through other diseases.

Parents should think twice before they do anything which they think is in the interests of their children.

Karin Shui, Sha Tin

Q Should the Sai Kung waterfront be turned into a pedestrian area?

In the course of recent correspondences in Talkback, this question has evolved from one about waterfront development and valet parking into an even more serious question: should there be an official inquiry into iniquity and inequality in Sai Kung governance?

Given the ongoing concern from both police and members of the public about the involvement of organised crime and corruption in the affairs of Sai Kung, does the Independent Commission Against Corruption have any plans for launching a full-scale investigation? Indeed, has anyone officially asked it to intervene?

Perhaps some urgency in this matter is needed  to stop  criminal elements  manipulating the next election of local officials to their advantage.

Julie Beekman, Clear Water Bay

Q Will the government's rent bill give too much power to landlords?

The government seems to be under immense pressure to abandon the tenure clause in  the home tenancy agreement.

This new law is welcomed by landlords as it gives them control over their properties at the expense of the tenants.

The government must limit the scope  of this legislation to be applicable only in instances where the landlord has fully furnished and equipped the flats before leasing them to tenants.

In these cases, the lease will be accepted as fair by landlords and tenants irrespective of whether they are paying $3,000 or $30,000 in rent. It will also place the government in a win-win situation with landlords and tenants.

Lal Daswani, Tsim Sha Tsui

On other matters ...

I am writing with reference to the reported incident in which Josefa Almeda  encountered some difficulty in opening an account at our Hankow Road branch.

First, we would like to apologise for the treatment Ms Almeda  received, which, I am sure, must have been a very distressing experience for her.

I would also like to state categorically that there was no racial discrimination involved. However, clearly our branch staff could have shown more sensitivity in handling her  application.

Once again, I extend my sincere apologies to Ms Almeda.

S.C. Lau, assistant general manager, head of retail services and sales, Hang Seng Bank

We are a group of parents with young children living in Western and Central. The Leisure and Cultural Services Department  operates an excellent sports and leisure facility in Western Park.

In addition to a modern sports centre, it offers football pitches, basketball courts and additional playgrounds with grass and in hard surfaces.

This is the only place we know of on Hong Kong Island that has such a large playground for young children to cycle for fun. I was surprised on a recent visit when the park management told us cycling is now banned in the park.

My son and his friends are of course very disappointed that they will not be able to ride a bicycle in a neighbourhood park regularly any more. I would like to hear from the department why cycling has been banned for young children in the otherwise underused playground.

Lawrence Mo Wai Ming, Western

In recent weeks HSBC has introduced a new electronic queuing system at  their branches. This system separates people depending upon the nature of their activities at the bank.

Yesterday  I had to wait 35 minutes to deposit cheques into business accounts, while others operating on their personal accounts were only required to wait around one to two minutes.

If HSBC is going to discriminate against their business account holders, I suggest that all such account holders transfer their accounts to another, better managed, bank.

Name and address supplied

It was sad to read that 'You loosers' was written on David Beckham's portrait at the Royal Academy of Arts ('Dali fakes seized and Becks portrait defaced', published Thursday). I say this not because the perpetrator was a vandal or because England lost, but because he or she can't spell.

Rachel Sproston, North Point



talk back