Letters

Many people want to see Thaksin back

I refer to the article on the resurgent role of the Thai military in its blighted country's politics ('Climbing on the ruins of Thai democracy', September 6). I am a frequent visitor to the residence of my Thai partner, which is located on Kuborn Road, an increasingly well-to-do part of the capital. Yet, in one year of regular soundings of a considerable number of local residents - whom I come across in the normal course of a day - I have not found one person who does not abhor the presence of this useless military government.

Without exception, they all long for the return of former premier Thaksin Shinawatra and when I point out that he is accused of evading tax, they look at me with amused wonderment.

This is because, from their experience, the traditional governing classes, throughout the bureaucratic police, legal and governing bodies, are riddled with self-serving men, who seem to regard it as their right to take backhanders to get anything done in the normal course of their duty.

In their view, Thaksin earned all his money quite legitimately, but proved himself to be the only guy, who ever stood up to the oppressors of the easy-going majority of Thais. The support for Thaksin must run deep throughout the whole of the urban Thai lower-middle-class and working-class communities, as well as throughout the rural areas. By contrast, soundings taken from the well-to-do 'chattering classes' yield an entirely opposite view. For them, Thaksin was a high-handed autocrat who needed to be cut down to size, so they could get on with their comfortable lives, living off the backs of their under-rewarded compatriots.

This ridiculous state of affairs has persisted for so long because of the near-universal belief in Thai Buddhism and reverence for its king, thus ensuring a subservient population, despite poor prospects for financial betterment for many. It is a tragedy that Thaksin did not have the sense to be open in his corporate dealings and pay the resulting tax, and that the king failed to see that he was supporting yesterday's men.

An autocratic prime minister should have found his comeuppance ultimately through the ballot box.

Antony Wood, Central

Why China is a huge polluter

I refer to your September 5 editorial, 'It's easy to forget upside of China's growth'.

Yes, it is easy to forget, particularly when you say that 'western companies are thriving because their products are made at little cost'. The cost for cleaning up our environmentally ravaged planet will run into trillions of dollars, and there's no question that China is rapidly becoming the world's biggest polluter, which is hardly surprising as the west has sent most of its manufacturing there.

That 'little cost' of cheap labour is derived in large part from China's indifference to any worker protection, safety standards, pollution controls, medical care and access to a legal system that works - costs that we in the west would normally have to bear.

Companies in China can and do pollute at will in a system rotten to the core with corruption. The west has, in effect, exported much of its pollution and environmental degradation to China, while complaining about the growing toxicity it generates and ignoring the lack of standards and violations of human rights in China that enable this cheap production to take place.

I hear the same hypocrisy from my government in Australia, which talks about going 'green' while exporting billions of tonnes of coal to China every year.

Peter Sherwood, Discovery Bay

Bag levy a good idea

I refer to the letter from Alex Tam, 'Plastic bag levy will do nothing to ease pressure on our landfills' (September 8).

According to Mr Tam, plastic bags only contribute less than 0.5 per cent of the total waste volume. He feels that the levy on plastic bags will not reduce the volume of solid waste in our landfills, and says that other forms of waste should be tackled, too.

The levy is the first step, not just to reduce waste disposal, but also to raise public concern over our impaired environment and our dwindling energy supplies.

A great deal of fuel could be saved if fewer plastic bags were produced.

By the time the levy is brought into force, people will have got into the habit of having a shopping bag ready before they go out, rather than getting one at the supermarket.

I, therefore, disagree with Mr Tam that it will cause hardship to people on low incomes. I welcome the levy of 50 HK cents.

I am glad to see that the government has eventually done something.

Lam Yin-tung, Wong Tai Sin

History lesson on Taiwan

Letters from Peter Lok ('Muddling the Taiwan debate', September 7) and Andrew Tay ('Fanciful claim', September 3) call for some clarification.

Whether under the Ming or Qing rule, Taiwan was part of China from 1662 onwards after a Ming general, Zheng Chenggong, alias Koxinga, drove out the Dutch, before the Qing ruler took over in 1683.

Japan colonised Taiwan for 50 years but, after the second world war, surrendered it back to China, then known as the Republic of China (ROC), so that by 1945, without dispute, Taiwan had been under Chinese rule for 283 years since 1662, except for a brief break.

From 1945 to 1971, the UN recognised the ROC as the ruler of all China, while the People's Republic of China was deemed a rebel regime (1949- 1971).

In 1971, the PRC replaced the ROC in the United Nations, while the ROC immediately became a breakaway regime.

It is this breakaway regime which still occupies Quemoy and Matsu.

Taiwanese autonomy never came into the picture, even in the ROC's own official protest to the UN, upon being expelled.

Tony Ngan, Causeway Bay

Elderly must get more support

The elderly are not getting enough help from the government.

Also, although they are entitled to subsidies, some elderly people are not applying for them. Some are intimidated by the official jargon on the forms they have to fill in.

It is clear that the Hong Kong government is not doing enough, because I still see old people collecting waste paper and aluminium cans for recycling.

There should be more help available to the elderly, from volunteers and social workers, people who can understand the needs of old folk and help them. The government should also make more money available to the Social Welfare Department, so that it can appoint more staff.

I also think that pensioners should be entitled to free transport in order to reduce their financial burden.

Tsoi Yee-man, Lam Tin

Everyone wins in car park plan

I think it would be a good idea to allow foreign domestic helpers to use underutilised car parks on their days off.

I have fond memories of Central being quiet on Sundays, which is no longer the case.

If the helpers could use the car parks, it would enable them to shelter from the rain and sun, and Central could be quiet again.

Pang Chi-ming, Sheung Shui