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Bamboo scaffolding encases a building under repair in Hong Kong’s Sham Shui Po district on December 5. Hong Kong’s stock of ageing buildings presents a structural challenge. Photo: EPA
Hong Kong society

Letters | How government-led building repairs can work in Hong Kong

Readers discuss the safeguards needed to ensure fairness and effectiveness, and public demand for the coin collection service.

Diplomacy

Letters | China’s Latin America policy paper speaks language of multipolarity

Hong Kong society

Letters | Why lapses in the Tai Po tragedy are both shocking and familiar

Education in Hong Kong

Letters | New benchmarks for Hong Kong language teachers underline policy shift

Readers discuss the new requirements for native-speaking English teachers, the need to prioritise safety and well-being in building renovation, and the commercialisation of Christmas gift-giving.

Students sit for the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education English test on April 21, 2023 at a school in Hong Kong’s North Point district. Photo: Dickson Lee
Students sit for the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education English test on April 21, 2023 at a school in Hong Kong’s North Point district. Photo: Dickson Lee
Hong Kong society

Letters | Let 2026 be the year we are kinder to animals

Readers suggest what Hongkongers can do in the coming year to make a difference and reflect on the constant pursuit of gratification.

Social media

Letters | To kick our social media habit, let’s start with the adults

Readers discuss the missing link in efforts to restrict screen time for children, concern over the Jimmy Lai trial and verdict, and rampant illegal parking in Hong Kong.

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Education in Hong Kong

Letters | Hong Kong’s AI grant for schools shouldn’t leave out teacher training

Readers discuss the flaws of a hardware-first, training-last approach, shoring up accountability of owners’ corporations, and the aftermath of the Bondi Beach attack.

Primary students in class on December 10. Effective transformation of teaching and learning begins and ends with human capital. Photo: Sam Tsang
Primary students in class on December 10. Effective transformation of teaching and learning begins and ends with human capital. Photo: Sam Tsang
China's economic recovery

Letters | Shenzhen-Hong Kong special zone could better serve national economy

Readers discuss takeaways from the central economic work conference, native-level English proficiency, and how to honour those lost in the Tai Po fire.

Hong Kong society

Letters | Medical volunteers’ joint effort on Tai Po fire relief made a difference

Readers discuss the collaborative spirit of and bonds forged through the mobilisation, and smoking in public in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong society

Letters | Building renovation management should not be entrusted to laymen

Readers discuss the law that makes owners responsible for common parts of buildings, the opening of the Chinese Medicine Hospital, and a robot’s record-breaking feat of endurance.

A worker removes netting from a scaffold in Hong Kong on December 5, following the deadly fire at Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po. Photo: EPA
Extreme weather

Letters | Asia is not built for extreme weather. This must change

Readers discuss the urban planning features essential to climate resilience, the demise of Hong Kong’s Democratic Party, and the Legislative Council election.

Workers try to restore the damaged railway track after landslides in Badulla, Sri Lanka, on December 13. Many parts of the island were inundated in the wake of Cyclone Ditwah. Photo: EPA
Workers try to restore the damaged railway track after landslides in Badulla, Sri Lanka, on December 13. Many parts of the island were inundated in the wake of Cyclone Ditwah. Photo: EPA
Hong Kong society

Letters | Tai Po fire tragedy shows importance of disaster risk reduction

Readers discuss how addressing risk factors can save lives and minimise loss, the turnout of the Legislative Council election, and the Japanese prime minister’s controversial remarks on Taiwan.

Greater Bay Area

Letters | As Greater Bay Area shifts to carbon-free trade, Hong Kong must catch on

Readers discuss a key role for the city gleaned from China’s central economic work conference, promotion of indoor sports, and the mass shooting at Australia’s Bondi Beach.

China trade

Letters | World must learn to live with China’s manufacturing prowess

Readers discuss China’s record trade surplus so far this year, Hong Kong’s ambitions to be a cryptocurrency hub, and how to effectively curb social media overuse.

Vehicles intended for export are lined up at Longtan Container Terminal of Nanjing Port in Nanjing, east China’s Jiangsu Province, on December 7. Photo: Xinhua
Accidents and personal safety

Letters | Hong Kong’s ageing buildings need better care under stronger rules

Readers call on the government to revamp the city’s governance of building management and repair, and rethink its approach to teenagers’ social media use.

Workers carry out emergency repair works outside Po On Building in Mong Kok on July 5, 2023, after concrete chunks fell off the building for a second time in three days. Photo: Jelly Tse
Workers carry out emergency repair works outside Po On Building in Mong Kok on July 5, 2023, after concrete chunks fell off the building for a second time in three days. Photo: Jelly Tse
Hong Kong society

Letters | Hong Kong’s ‘coin carts’ are not serving residents who need them most

Readers discuss the city’s coin collection programme, Hongkongers’ response to the Tai Po fire, and why Russia can’t be framed through a Western or Eastern lens.

Nexperia

Letters | The case for separating the Dutch and Chinese arms of Nexperia

Readers discuss the fight for control over the semiconductor company, the case of two skirt-wearing Malaysian women barred from entering a police station, and a potential ban on smoking at construction sites.

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Japan

Letters | Japan overplayed its hand at the table of great powers

Readers discuss the broader implications of Tokyo’s miscalculation, Hong Kong’s entry requirements for native English-speaking teachers, and whether anything could have been done differently in Tai Po.

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi meets the press in Wajima, Japan on December 7. Photo: Kyodo
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi meets the press in Wajima, Japan on December 7. Photo: Kyodo
Hong Kong’s Tai Po fire tragedy

Letters | Uncovering truth of Tai Po tragedy not at odds with care for survivors

Readers discuss concerns raised about survivors’ psychological well-being, recognising migrant domestic workers’ contribution over the years, and stepping up efforts at disease prevention.

Hong Kong society

Letters | How Tai Po fire exposed weakness in Hong Kong contract governance

Readers call for steps to improve procurement and contract oversight, official accountability for lapses that led to the tragedy, and appreciation for donor generosity.

Scams and swindles

Letters | Cambodia is confronting the scourge of online scams head-on

Readers discuss the cross-border effort targeting the syndicates behind Cambodia’s scam farms, Malaysia’s first fully home-grown EV, and the investigation into the Tai Po fire in Hong Kong.

Suspects are detained during a police raid on a scam centre in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, on July 16. The operation was part of a nationwide crackdown on cybercrime networks, following Prime Minister Hun Manet’s order to shut down online scam operations often run like sweatshops. Photo: EPA
Hong Kong healthcare and hospitals

Letters | Hong Kong hospital fee rises a necessary step towards sustainability

Readers discuss the healthcare reform aimed at directing care to those most in need, recovering from a traumatic disaster, and AI’s impact on society.

Hospital staff attend to a patient at the accident and emergency department at Hong Kong’s Tuen Mun Hospital on January 10. Photo: Jelly Tse
Hospital staff attend to a patient at the accident and emergency department at Hong Kong’s Tuen Mun Hospital on January 10. Photo: Jelly Tse
Foreign domestic workers in Hong Kong

Letters | It shouldn’t take a tragedy for Hong Kong to treat domestic workers fairly

Readers discuss the wave of support for migrant helpers in the wake of the Tai Po fire, professionals who volunteer their skills, and the educational value of play.

Hong Kong society

Letters | Commercialisation of Hong Kong’s public venues must come with a caveat

Readers discuss the government’s bid to open up underused public venues, call for a Firefighters’ Day, and take issue with the sensationalisation of news.

Hong Kong’s Tai Po fire tragedy

Letters | Safety lapses in Hong Kong’s construction industry must be fixed

Readers discuss an overhaul of the project tendering process, more raids at renovation sites, high-rise building design, and deploying the emergency alert system.

People hug at a makeshift memorial outside the Wang Fuk Court apartment blocks in the aftermath of the deadly fire in Hong Kong’s Tai Po district, on December 1. Photo: AFP
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