South China Morning Post
Advertisement
Advertisement
Coronavirus Hong Kong
Get more with myNEWS
A personalised news feed of stories that matter to you
Learn more
SCMP Series
Most read Letters to the Editor of 2021
2 of 10
1
Australia making a big mistake taking on China
A visitor looks at a display of Australian wines at the China International Import Expo in Shanghai on November 5. Disputes over issues ranging from Xinjaing to 5G and Australia’s support for a probe into the origin of the coronavirus have sparked a trade spat and higher Chinese import duties or outright bans on Australian products, including wine and coal. Photo: AP
2
Zero-Covid Hong Kong could mean ‘World City’ Singapore
People dine in the Boat Quay nightlife area in Singapore on September 24. The country has reopened its borders to vaccinated international travellers. Photo: Reuters
3
Why Australia will regret making an enemy of China
Protesters at a demonstration in Sydney on June 23 call on the Australian government to boycott the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics over China’s human rights record. Photo: AFP
4
In Canadian police’s refusal of street checks, a lesson for Hong Kong
Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers wearing masks stand outside the Senate of Canada in Ottawa, Ontario, in September 2020. Many police forces in Ontario have resisted a re-introduction of street checks to combat Covid-19. Photo: Bloomberg
5
Hong Kong hotel quarantine rules: a plea for common sense and mercy
Coach registration counter at the Hong Kong International Airport, for passengers to be transported to designated quarantine hotels, on December 22. Photo: Nora Tam
6
UK’s ‘green list’ for travel: why is Singapore in and Hong Kong out?
People spend time in a Hong Kong park on April 30. Diplomats in both China and Britain should lobby for Hong Kong to be included in the UK’s green list of quarantine-free travel. Photo: AP
7
Think twice before leaving Hong Kong on BN(O) visa
About 300,000 Hong Kong citizens are expected to apply for a new British National (Overseas) visa route to settle in the UK, despite nearly 3 million being eligible. Photo: Bloomberg
8
Harsh Covid-19 rules raise risks of Hong Kong expat exodus
Hong Kong’s once-bustling nightlife district of Lan Kwai Fong wears a deserted look, in Central on June 14. Photo: Edmond So
9
Hongkongers moving to Canada for democracy are in for a shock
Friends and relatives take photos before boarding a London-bound flight at Hong Kong airport on August 8. Photo: EPA-EFE
10
There are worthier Bible lessons than ‘mark of the beast’
Anti-vaccination protesters take part in a rally against Covid-19 vaccine mandates in Santa Monica, California, on August 29. Photo: AFP
People dine in the Boat Quay nightlife area in Singapore on September 24. The country has reopened its borders to vaccinated international travellers. Photo: Reuters
OpinionLetters

Letters | Move over zero-Covid Hong Kong, make way for ‘World City’ Singapore

  • Readers discuss Hong Kong’s alienating pandemic policy, the quarantine exemption for JPMorgan’s CEO, the essential work done by pilots, and an issue with the vaccine record QR code
Coronavirus Hong Kong
Letters
Letters
Why you can trust SCMP

The Hong Kong government has recently revoked most quarantine exemptions to clear the roadblocks to reopening the border between Hong Kong and the mainland. While reopening the border is undeniably important, because it could give our economy a boost, as almost the only territory which enforces a “zero-Covid” policy along with mainland China, Hong Kong faces the increasing risk of alienating our international trading partners. This policy could also discourage expats from working in Hong Kong.

The government’s measures effectively bar foreigners from Hong Kong, and could lower our competitiveness vis-à-vis other financial hubs. Take Singapore, for example. A major competitor to Hong Kong, Singapore started out enforcing a strict zero-Covid policy similar to Hong Kong’s. However, even as the Delta variant was sweeping through the nation, Singapore abandoned this policy and switched to a “living with Covid” strategy, reopening its borders to vaccinated international travellers.

The government promotes Hong Kong as “Asia’s World City” but the current policies go in the opposite direction, eroding the difference between Hong Kong and mainland cities.

With many places reopening their borders and adopting the “living with Covid” strategy, even as Hong Kong isolates itself, and with Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor insisting that reopening the border with the mainland is the priority over the rest of the world, maybe the Hong Kong government should concede the title of “Asia’s World City” to Singapore and reposition Hong Kong as “China’s Ordinary City” instead.

T.P. Man, Kwai Tsing

Quarantine-free entry for bank CEO slap in face of SMEs

Does Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor not comprehend that one person does not define the economic interests of Hong Kong? That responsibility has been the burden of the residents of Hong Kong who have, despite the government’s draconian and scientifically unproven quarantine restrictions, battled daily to ensure that our economy survives.

That she panders to JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon, who was granted a quarantine exception by the government, telling reporters, “After all, it is a huge bank and it has important businesses in Hong Kong”, is a slap in the face of every small and medium-sized business leader, the true leaders of economic development in Hong Kong.

Mark Peaker, The Peak

Thank you, Cathay pilots

Pilots and crew at Cathay Pacific (and other airlines) are the lifeblood of our city. They bring us home. They bring us food. They have been working ­– or not working – in increasingly difficult conditions since the start of the pandemic, literally putting their own lives on the line pre-vaccine. Now they are putting their sanity on the line with the increasingly ludicrous government lock-ups.

This government has a lot to answer for and our officials may not be listening, but ordinary people should stand up and be counted too. Let’s all thank our brave Cathay pilots and crew and make sure they understand how much we appreciate what they do for our city.

Sarah Fairhurst, Tuen Mun

QR code doesn’t reflect vaccine third dose

Perhaps someone within our illustrious administration can figure out how to have the QR code on the paper vaccination record that is handed out after the third jab reflect that one has had three jabs and which jab was received on which date.

At present, my QR code when scanned shows I had one vaccination dose in April (in fact my second, although that is not indicated) and the other in November (my third but not indicated as such). So for the next few days it will look like I am within 14 days of my second jab when in fact I have had three jabs. If the “Leave Home Safe” app uses this QR code, then it shows only two doses and no indication of whether it is the first, second or third dose.

The vaccination programme hotline says it is not their problem and if one calls eHealth, they say it is the vaccination programme that handles this.

The eHealth app does at least show the correct vaccination dates and doses but only after some work to update the records within the eHealth app.

Please fix this.

T.J. Bardwell, Lantau

4