Feel strongly about these letters, or any other aspects of the news? Share your views by emailing us your Letter to the Editor at letters@scmp.com or filling in this Google form . Submissions should not exceed 400 words, and must include your full name and address, plus a phone number for verification. I agree with your correspondent’s take on history in “Two systems will survive and prevail” ( February 16 ). As a result of Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping’s wisdom, Hong Kong was offered a clear path forward beyond 1997. That path required a capable leader, but unfortunately none of the four chief executives in the ensuing years have been able to maintain speed and direction. Since 2007, Hong Kong has drifted into inertia in many areas because of the undue influence of vested interests. The wealth gap widened and land and housing problems were ignored. Many undesirable happenings emerged in this vacuum and Hong Kong’s traditional optimism faded. It was only a matter of time before China asserted its authority to stop the slide. Has “one country, two systems” survived and prevailed? I think that rather than getting “back on track”, as your correspondent stated, it has surprised and derailed . Directions will now come from the mainland, and ordinary people will welcome President Xi Jinping’s policy of “ common prosperity ” and wave good riddance to laissez-faire economics. It has been obvious in the past year that the liaison office is more clued in to ordinary Hongkongers’ trials and tribulations than our administration and members of the Executive Council, who all have their heads in the clouds. The election of the next chief executive has been delayed until May . It will be interesting to see how the candidates’ manifestos reflect Hong Kong’s new reality. P.C. Law, Quarry Bay Ordinance on cross-border marriages a step forward The relationship between Hong Kong and the mainland has grown more closely intertwined in recent decades, not least in terms of business and trade but also in terms of cross-border marriages . Since the early 1990s, the number of cross-border marriages between Hong Kong and the mainland has increased. In 1991, only 1.6 per cent of newly registered marriages in Hong Kong were cross-border marriages. That percentage increased to 42.9 per cent in 2006. Around a third of all newly registered marriages in Hong Kong from 2016 to 2019, before the pandemic hit, were cross-border marriages. What if there is a cross-border marriage conflict? In the past, divorcing parties have found it difficult to enforce judgments and court orders from the mainland in Hong Kong, and vice versa. This was because of the differences in legal systems between the two jurisdictions. That is about to change with the enactment and promulgation of the Mainland Judgments in Matrimonial and Family Cases (Reciprocal Recognition and Enforcement) Ordinance. Under the ordinance, which came into effect on February 15, Hong Kong courts may now recognise “specified orders” rendered in mainland courts in matrimonial or family proceedings upon application. These include care-related orders, status-related orders and maintenance-related orders. A care-related order refers to orders concerning the custody, access or guardianship of a minor, as well as orders protecting a person from domestic violence. Status-related orders concern granting a divorce, invalidity or annulment of a marriage and parentage of a person. Maintenance-related orders relate to maintenance of a child or spouse and an order for division of property between parties to a marriage. However, there are hurdles to getting a mainland “specified order” registered in Hong Kong. The judgment must be rendered on or after February 15 and be effective on the mainland. Moreover, there is the time limit involved in the registration and enforcement process. Thus, while the implementation of the ordinance opens new doors, it also brings new challenges. Billy Ko, partner, Withersworldwide Official indifference lets down LGBT community It was refreshing to see Bernard Chan, convenor of Hong Kong’s Executive Council, write passionately about the unifying power of sport (“Eileen Gu is right about sport’s power to unite people”, February 25 ). Of note was his awareness of sexual orientation and the reality that many of the world’s leading athletes are now confident of their own sexual identity and proud to show it. It is a far cry from the acceptance of the LGBT communities in Hong Kong sports. The fact that Hong Kong has been forced to co-host the next Gay Games with Guadalajara, Mexico, was caused in part by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department refusing to allow the games organisers any leeway in booking facilities. I wrote to Director of Leisure and Cultural Services Vincent Liu Ming-kwong to tell him the organisers of the games, Dennis Philipse, who recently announced his resignation, and Lisa Lam, had highlighted to me that they still required the assistance of the department to secure venues. Despite three follow-up emails to Liu, there was never even the courtesy of a reply. Discrimination ends only when people speak up and confront homophobia and hatred in any form. One hopes the next chief executive of Hong Kong will embrace the diversity of our city and allow our youth the freedom to develop unencumbered by the shadows of prejudice and ignorance. Mark Peaker, The Peak