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Letters

Change rules to curb rowdy legislators
The Legislative Council has gone into recess until mid-October. We now have some time to reflect on its performance in the past year.
Legco president Jasper Tsang Yok-sing reported that of 29 bills tabled by the government this past year, half failed to get through Legco procedures.
Blame should be placed on the dysfunctional actions of several radical members who introduced in their filibustering many amendments to bills.
The president had to constantly remind radical speakers to stop being repetitive.
Another time-wasting filibuster tactic was the frequent demand for roll calls.
This year filibustering extended to legislative committees and panels.
The chairman of Legco's Finance Committee, which comprises all legislators except the president, took the brunt of the onslaught when he was on several occasions surrounded by pan-democrat lawmakers demanding his resignation; he calmly and quietly refused to step down.
It took four months for the financial secretary's budget, introduced in February, to be passed by the end of June, helped by continuous government lobbying.
At the close of the Legco session the chief executive came for a question-and-answer meeting. It had barely started when all pan-democrat members, except two, left their seats to go where the chief executive stood shouting for his resignation.
During the melee, a radical lawmaker grabbed a drinking glass and hurled it in the chamber. Luckily, no one was hurt when the drinking glass hit the ground and smashed.
For the first time in Legco's history, the chief executive's question-and-answer meeting had to be declared abandoned by Mr Tsang.
There is rising public concern that such disorderly scenes in the Hong Kong legislature are creating an unhealthy influence on the thinking and attitudes of the younger generation when seen on television, apart from the negative image of Hong Kong that is created abroad.
When the next session opens in October, the Legco president and all lawmakers whatever their political affiliation, should make it a priority to revise council rules of procedure to prevent filibustering from getting out control and end disorderly conduct so as to improve Legco's performance and integrity for the general good.
Hilton Cheong-Leen, To Kwa Wan
 
Mainland law has no place in Hong Kong
I was surprised that some Hong Kong police officers accused protesters who organised a sit-in in Central after the July 1 pro-democracy march of "provoking quarrels and making trouble". This is a mainland criminal charge often used against lawyers, academics and dissidents.
Under this charge various types of activity are prohibited, including chasing or intimidating others, assault and causing disorder in a public place. It is an ambiguous law, but on the mainland the central government can get the definition it wants accepted, because it has the relevant legal authorities on its side.
In 2009, a Chinese civil rights activist, Zhao Lianhai, whose son was one of the victims of the tainted milk-powder incident, was charged under this law and the following year was jailed for 2½ years. All he did was to form an organisation called "Home for Kidney Stone Babies" to bring the victims together and ask for justice for them.
If some members of the disciplined services in Hong Kong quote this mainland charge, I am concerned that some day it will become grounds for arresting protesters in Hong Kong. Such a charge can only be regarded as an evil law.
The disciplined services are on the front line and are there to serve the public. They should take the legal system and the freedoms it protects in Hong Kong seriously, before making any public statements. Copying laws from the mainland to please Beijing would damage Hong Kong's international reputation.
Tsang Wai, Sha Tin
 
Children put under too much pressure
I agree with those who argue that schools and parents in Hong Kong need to be less competitive and allow children more time to enjoy leisure activities.
While studies are important, leisure activities are also an important part of the learning process for children. They are able to spend time interacting with their friends and other peers. This helps them develop communication skills and having such skills will prove important when as adults they join the workforce.
When they are relaxing and playing children can often find out what they are really interested in or good at, such as, for example, music and sports.
If parents and teachers force children to be too competitive this can put them under too much pressure.
The principle of work less, play more is one that should be adopted in this city for our young people.
May Wong Pik-ching, Sha Tin
 
Loss of school bad for female students
I refer to the letter by Li Mei-fun ("Education Bureau working to support non-Chinese speakers", July 11).
It is distressing to see a principal education officer of the Education Bureau refer to "non-Chinese-speaking students". Many secondary students from ethnic minorities in Hong Kong speak and write Chinese as a second, third, or additional language and their efforts should not be denigrated by labelling them as "non-Chinese-speaking". How would Ms Li like to be labelled "non-English-speaking" because her first language was not English?
There is an interesting debate as to how best to cater for such students in our education system. Until recently, the government's policy was to concentrate them in "designated schools". This led to "ghetto schools" with almost exclusively ethnic minority students. This was good in that language resources could be focused on the target group, but bad in that there was little integration with local Chinese students.
Policy has now swung full circle and, as Ms Li said, the government is distributing ethnic minority students among 500 schools, where they will sink or swim depending on how poorly or sensibly individual schools spend extra government money to cater for what many principals may regard, unfortunately, as interlopers.
Meanwhile, a school that chose the middle way, catering to ethnic minority students wanting to learn Chinese, but also enrolling band two local Chinese students wanting more exposure to English as a medium of instruction and communication, and that never became a ghetto school, will close. The loss of St Margaret's Girls' College will significantly reduce education options for all female students. The bureau should do more than it is doing to save this important school.
S. Lee, Western district
 
Production lines need tight controls
The latest scandal regarding tainted food on the mainland has hit fast-food outlets there and in Hong Kong, including some of the biggest chains in the world.
McDonald's Hong Kong found that it had imported chicken from the Shanghai food processing plant at the centre of the "'rotting meat' scandal" ("McDonald's chicken nuggets off menu", July 25).
Food safety is a proving to be a very controversial issue on the mainland. Obviously all suppliers and the fast-food restaurants that are affected by this have to take responsibility for the problems they have found and deal with them effectively.
There must be much tighter regulation north of the border of production lines at those plants that are processing the meat. More thorough vetting of staff must also be undertaken before they are hired.
It appears that some people working at the Husi Food Company knew that some of the meat they were packing for distribution to restaurants was past its expiry date. Also, some of them picked meat up from the floor and threw it in a processing machine.
This is disappointing and shows a lack of moral standards. Apparently some are saying that they were told to do this by their superiors, but surely they must have realised that meat in this condition could make people ill. Where was their conscience?
Hopefully these continuing food safety problems are making mainlanders more aware when they eat meals. Also, they must have less confidence in the government and in food chains such as McDonald's and KFC.
This will be a long battle for the central government, but it is one it must win.
Candiz Ng, Lok Fu
 
MTR Corp is clearly on the right track
As the continued debate about 2017 rages and Scholarism threatens to occupy Central, damaging our city's international reputation, it was heartening to see that the recently- maligned MTR Corporation had secured a significant contract in the UK ("MTR wins £1.4b contract to run London Crossrail", July 19).
Awarding this contract to a Hong Kong company reflects the true spirit and capability of this city and perhaps reminds all of us what we should be focusing on - the ability to run world-class, locally-grown businesses that compete on a global playing field.
Hong Kong is a city filled with talent and an entrepreneurial spirit.
It can compete with any city within China and the rest of the world and it is here that our focus should be.
Clearly the MTR Corp is on the right track.
Mark Peaker, The Peak


Letters to the Editor, July 28, 2014

It is time for Jasper Tsang to get tough. Photo: Sam Tsang

Education Bureau is increasing support for non-Chinese-speaking students

St Margaret's Girls' College students and PTA members speak on their struggle for a permanent campus.

McDonald’s Hong Kong pulls chicken nuggets over supplies from rotten food plant

All of the chicken imported in May this year had been sold to customers, according to the Hong Kong government. Photo: Jonathan Wong

All of the chicken imported in May this year had been sold to customers, according to the Hong Kong government. Photo: SCMP Pictures

MTR lands £1.4b contract to run London Crossrail

The Crossrail service will increase rail transport in London by 10 per cent when fully operational.

Opinion

The Legislative Council has gone into recess until mid-October. We now have some time to reflect on its performance in the past year. Legco president Jasper Tsang Yok-sing reported that of 29 bills tabled by the government this past year, half failed to get through Legco procedures.
