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. It is madness for the Hong Kong government to require motorcycle riders to wear a face mask. They are either alone or at most with one other passenger who is usually a close contact. They are outside in the “fresh” air. They are, by definition – hopefully – socially distanced from other drivers, riders or pedestrians. Wearing a mask on a motorcycle in the heat or rain of Hong Kong is uncomfortable and dangerous as the mask can move around, make the skin itch and, most significantly, cause fogged glasses or visors. Looking out for ticket-happy police officers is also an unnecessary distraction. There are no conceivable Covid-related health benefits to wearing a mask on a motorcycle, while it is equally obvious that masks unnecessarily increase the risks for motorcyclists using an already relatively dangerous mode of transport. Can the Hong Kong government please immediately revoke the mandate to wear a mask while riding a motorcycle? J. Herbert, Sai Kung Getting Covid-19 is not a crime I refer to the letter “Don’t punish airlines, bill Covid-positive passengers” ( April 23 ). It implies that getting infected should be treated as a crime. Nobody actually wants to get Covid-19. The zero-Covid approach only shows ignorance and a lack of common medical sense. Fighting a viral disease is much harder than fighting a bacterial one. The local zero-Covid approach will lead to nothing but disaster for our economy. If you can win the battle against the common flu, then perhaps you may stand a chance with Covid-19. Joseph Lee, Ho Man Tin Living with Covid is better than feeling like a prisoner As the fifth wave ebbs, the government has begun to relax epidemic prevention measures. Of course, Omicron is extremely contagious, infecting an estimated third of Hongkongers, and more than a hundred cases are still being reported every day. Yet, a poll in February by the Hong Kong Public Opinion Research Institute, found 57 per cent of people believed Hong Kong should coexist with the virus . The closure of entertainment venues, like cinemas and party rooms, in February, and the loss of almost all forms of relaxation, is reflected in the results: we would rather get infected than stay home forever like prisoners. The pandemic has lasted more than two years, during which Hong Kong has seen case numbers rise and fall. Small and medium-sized enterprises are struggling, facing high rents and next to no revenue. How long can Hong Kong’s economy continue like this? Adopting the right Covid-19 policy requires careful consideration from different angles. It is clear by now whether the zero-Covid policy is suitable for Hong Kong, which is not like the mainland. We cannot blindly follow the methods adopted there without taking into account our own unique situation. Gloria Wong, Kwai Chung Threats and punishment rarely get results, Mr Lee You report that our prospective chief executive, Mr John Lee Ka-chiu, intends to push civil servants into finding solutions by a judicious mix of carrot and stick (“Hong Kong chief executive candidate John Lee to ‘take aim at civil service work culture, adopt new system of reward and punishment’”, May 2 ). It may be presumptuous to instruct a chief executive in matters he is expert in, but experience of the service sector – from strategy consulting to the arts – suggests to me that it is generally very difficult to get anyone to produce a creative or original solution to any problem by way of threat or punishment. Though films encourage us to think it is different in matters criminal, the creative mind responds best to opportunity, respect and encouragement, and tends to perform sub-optimally in negative or threatening situations. Paul Serfaty, Mid-Levels Can the UN fulfil the mandate of peace? According to my copy of World Book Encyclopedia , published in 1959, Ukraine was a founding member of the United Nations. It was among the original 51 nations that joined the UN when it was first established in 1945. The list also includes the United States, the USSR and China. The purpose of the United Nations was to work for peace and security. Its major work is social and economic, not military. Perhaps we should revisit the 200-word preamble to the United Nations Charter: “We the Peoples of the United Nations determined to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war which twice in our lifetime has brought untold sorrow to mankind and to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights …” These words were written at a time when warfare involved the use of guns, artillery, bombs delivered at a short distance by aeroplanes and ships, and even hand-to-hand combat. Warfare was extremely brutal but its effect was limited. Today, we are living in a much more precarious time of smart bombs delivered by missiles which have the ability to inflict damage with much greater precision. Unfortunately, human beings have not yet invented a way to escape from Earth and establish residence elsewhere, but we have the ability to destroy our unique home. A nuclear war is a lose-lose proposition. If there is any history written after the end of the human race, we will be labelled the only species on Earth responsible for its own demise. Is any conflict worth the price of Armageddon? We are told nuclear weapons are a deterrent because no one would be foolish enough to use them. However, if nuclear weapons are used, the price will be paid not only by our own generation but by future generations. In a war between nations with nuclear capabilities, who can guarantee the outcome? There will be no winners. Can an organisation such as the United Nations fulfil the mandate of peace? Harriet Tung, The Peak