https://www.scmp.com/rss/266613/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com With a decline in young Hongkongers becoming blood donors, the Hong Kong Red Cross urged more volunteers to come forward on World Blood Donor Day on Tuesday. The blood bank is in greatest need of blood types A and O. How blood donation saved a Hongkonger’s family “We see more middle-aged donors at the moment,” Dr Lee Cheuk-kwong, service chief executive and medical director of the blood transfusion service, said. “This is partly because the birth rate was lower in the past two decades, which... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/1974988/numbers-decline-red-cross-calls-more-young?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/1974988/numbers-decline-red-cross-calls-more-young?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 14 Jun 2016 03:33:40 +0000 Temperatures in most parts of Hong Kong dropped to 8 degrees Celsius on Tuesday, prompting weather officials to issue their third cold weather warning this year. The warning was issued at 6am on Tuesday morning as temperatures dropped several degrees from Monday’s readings. The mercury plunged to around 8 degrees in the rural New Territories and 10 degrees in urban Kowloon and Hong Kong Island. The Hong Kong Observatory said an intense winter monsoon was bringing cold weather to the coastal... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/1908664/hong-kong-officials-issue-third-cold-weather?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/1908664/hong-kong-officials-issue-third-cold-weather?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 02 Feb 2016 08:47:06 +0000 The US Department of State said the disappearances of five Hong Kong booksellers known for producing titles critical of China raised serious questions about the “one country, two systems” framework. At a daily press briefing on Monday, department spokesman John Kirby said it remained deeply concerned by the cases, which involve five Hong Kong residents associated with Mighty Current Media and Causeway Bay Books. “We continue to follow closely the developments of these cases,” Kirby said. READ... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1908572/us-state-department-says-disappearance-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1908572/us-state-department-says-disappearance-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 02 Feb 2016 02:29:13 +0000 Pro-government lawmaker Chan Kin-por, who chairs the Legislative Council finance committee, said he cut the pan-democrats’ filibuster against extra funding for a bridge linking Hong Kong, Macau and Zhuhai because much of the debate time had been spent on irrelevant questions. Chan has been accused of acting in an “arbitrary” manner after he last week blocked pan-democrats’ filibuster by cutting the time for questions on the HK$5.4 billion extra funding request for the project. The funding... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1908101/legco-finance-committee-chair-cuts-pan-democrat-filibuster?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1908101/legco-finance-committee-chair-cuts-pan-democrat-filibuster?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 01 Feb 2016 06:42:34 +0000 First we froze, now we’re soaked – Hong Kong is suffering its wettest January since records began in 1884. Up to Thursday and with three days remaining before the month ends, a total of 233.8mm of rainfall was recorded in the city, surpassing the previous record of 214.3mm reported in 1887, according to the Hong Kong Observatory. The amount is also more than double that for the third rainiest January, when 110.2mm was recorded in 1925. READ MORE: Three ways to stay dry in the rain without a... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/1906555/wet-blanket-ice-umbrellas-hong-kong-endures-most?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/1906555/wet-blanket-ice-umbrellas-hong-kong-endures-most?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 29 Jan 2016 02:30:45 +0000 Hong Kong lagged behind its neighbours such as Taiwan, South Korea and the Philippines in terms of rights and freedoms enjoyed by individuals, an annual study by a US-based organisation said. The city is listed as a “partly free” territory, with an aggregate score of 63 out of 100 points in the Freedom in the World 2016 report by Freedom House. The report evaluated the state of freedom in 195 countries and 15 territories in 2015 by assessing political rights and civil liberties enjoyed by... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1906385/hong-kong-rated-only-partly-free-us-study-rights-and?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1906385/hong-kong-rated-only-partly-free-us-study-rights-and?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 28 Jan 2016 03:45:00 +0000 The University of Hong Kong’s vice-chancellor has condemned as “mob rule” the siege of a governing council meeting on Tuesday night. Professor Peter Mathieson said the scenes would not bring credit to those involved and that HKU students “should be capable of better”. He has offered to hand over videos of those involved to police. About 200 student protesters surrounded and besieged the council meeting held at the Sassoon Road campus in Pok Fu Lam. They were pressing for an immediate review of... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education-community/article/1905859/we-cannot-condone-mob-rule-university-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education-community/article/1905859/we-cannot-condone-mob-rule-university-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 27 Jan 2016 04:15:00 +0000 Macau’s top court has rejected Hong Kong property tycoon Joseph Lau Luen-hung’s appeal against his money laundering conviction in a bribe-for-land scheme involving former Macau public works minister Ao Man-long. Lau, Hong Kong’s fifth richest man, had sought to quash the conviction on the grounds that a lower court had not used the same principles it had applied in a previous bribery case that also involved Ao, the Macau Daily News reported on Tuesday. In the previous case, the defendant was... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1905336/hong-kong-property-tycoon-joseph-laus-appeal-against-money?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1905336/hong-kong-property-tycoon-joseph-laus-appeal-against-money?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 26 Jan 2016 03:21:49 +0000 A website selling coupons was the toast of social media on Monday, for telling staff they didn’t need to go to work in the cold weather. The company Group Buyer announced to its employees on its Facebook page late on Sunday that they did not need to go to work the next day because of the chilly weather, except those with appointments with clients. “Put on more clothes and take care of your health. You can still go back to the office if you need,” it told employees in the notice. READ MORE:... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/1904906/hong-kong-firm-group-buyer-praised-letting?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/1904906/hong-kong-firm-group-buyer-praised-letting?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 25 Jan 2016 08:58:15 +0000 Kindergarten and primary school classes were suspended on Monday thanks to the city seeing its coldest weather in ­nearly six decades, with temperatures staying around 3 to 4 degrees Celsius in urban areas. But not all children stayed at home. Caritas Ling Yuet Sin Kindergarten was still open, and two students were dropped off by their parents for the day on Monday morning. “The kids don't have anybody to look after them at home, that's why their parents still brought them to school today,” said... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/1904797/nowhere-else-go-hong-kong-working-parents-take?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/1904797/nowhere-else-go-hong-kong-working-parents-take?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 25 Jan 2016 02:00:15 +0000 Customs officials smashed a counterfeit goods syndicate in a popular tourist destination in Mong Kok when they closed down six stalls and six warehouses on Thursday. In the operation codenamed “Torpedo”, officers netted 10,000 fake goods worth HK$5 million along Tung Choi Street, popularly known as Ladies’ Market. Customs officials said the fake goods included handbags, watches, leather goods and sunglasses and were of medium to high quality. They were priced at about one-third that of the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1903920/hong-kong-customs-officers-arrest-nine-people-and-seize?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1903920/hong-kong-customs-officers-arrest-nine-people-and-seize?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 22 Jan 2016 11:57:00 +0000 Temperatures will drop to as low as six degrees Celsius early next week, even as clothing stores see their sales figures rising, all thanks to an intense cold surge from the north. In its nine-day weather forecast updated this morning, the Observatory expected the mercury will dip to seven degrees on Sunday and drop further to six degrees the next day. “It will be windy and very cold over the region this weekend and early next week,” the Observatory said. Weather information website... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/1903606/mercury-heads-south-hong-kong-low-six-degrees?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/1903606/mercury-heads-south-hong-kong-low-six-degrees?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 21 Jan 2016 05:15:45 +0000 A rural leader hopes a proposed new political party to represent indigenous villagers’ interests can win four seats in two constituencies in the coming Legislative Council election. Bowie Hau Chi-keung, an ex-officio member of the Heung Yee Kuk and chairman of the Sheung Shui rural committee, said the ideal case would be the new party fielding candidates in the New Territories East and West constituencies, and winning two seats in each. Hau, speaking during a Commercial Radio talk show on... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1903583/hong-kong-rural-leader-hau-chi-keung-hopes-new-party-will?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1903583/hong-kong-rural-leader-hau-chi-keung-hopes-new-party-will?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 21 Jan 2016 03:38:53 +0000 Residents across some mainland cities are frantically stocking up food in preparation for a front of very cold weather that has already caused traffic chaos and closed schools. Temperatures in Yakeshi in Inner Mongolia (內蒙古) dropped to minus 28 degrees Celsius yesterday, while Harbin (哈爾濱) in Heilongjiang (黑龍江) province experienced minus 19 degrees. Beijing is expecting minus 17 degrees on Saturday and the cold front is expected to head south. The National Meteorological Centre predicted... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/society/article/1903533/incredible-scenes-mainland-shoppers-strip-supermarket-shelves?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/society/article/1903533/incredible-scenes-mainland-shoppers-strip-supermarket-shelves?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 21 Jan 2016 02:00:30 +0000 The transport secretary on Wednesday renewed calls for legislators to approve extra funding for the high-speed rail link to Guangdong, saying failure to do so could lead to the project’s suspension. Anthony Cheung Bing-leung told an RTHK talk show the government would consider suspending work on the Hong Kong portion of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong rail link in late February if no fresh capital was in sight. The government has sought the Legislative Council public works subcommittee’s... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1903414/transport-secretary-steps-calls-extra-cash-high-speed-rail?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1903414/transport-secretary-steps-calls-extra-cash-high-speed-rail?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 20 Jan 2016 06:00:56 +0000 The case of Hong Kong’s missing booksellers has sparked further concern on the international stage after it emerged that one of them, publisher Gui Minhai, has no record of leaving Thailand before appearing on Chinese state television in mainland custody. At the same time, Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying prompted more scepticism yesterday by insisting it was not unusual that it had taken Guangdong security officials 20 days to inform Hong Kong that bookseller Lee Bo, who disappeared from the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1902800/thai-authorities-investigating-case-missing-bookseller-gui?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1902800/thai-authorities-investigating-case-missing-bookseller-gui?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 19 Jan 2016 04:09:32 +0000 Financial Secretary John Tsang Chun-wah said on Friday morning the central government had responded favourably to the city’s intention to join the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. Tsang on Friday flew to Beijing to attend an opening ceremony and the inaugural meeting of the bank over the weekend. Tsang was to be part of the Chinese delegation for the meetings. Speaking at Hong Kong International Airport before departing for Beijing, Tsang said the bank’s board of governors would... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1901315/finance-secretary-says-beijing-very-positive-about-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1901315/finance-secretary-says-beijing-very-positive-about-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 15 Jan 2016 05:04:09 +0000 Thieves hacked into computers at high-end Hong Kong hotels, harvesting customers’ credit card details for almost four months, it has been revealed. Three hotels operated by Hyatt in Hong Kong and 22 on the mainland were affected by malware designed to steal customers’ card data, the hotel chain said. Hyatt Hotels said its investigation identified signs of unauthorised access to payment card data from cards used at certain Hyatt-managed locations, primarily restaurants, between August 13, 2015... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1901248/three-hyatt-hotels-hong-kong-hit-malware-designed-steal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1901248/three-hyatt-hotels-hong-kong-hit-malware-designed-steal?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 15 Jan 2016 02:15:00 +0000 About 70 residents were evacuated from their homes in Mid-Levels, Central on Wednesday night after a fire started in one unit and sent burning debris to another apartment 12 levels below. The blaze started in a unit on the 24th floor at Roc Ye Court on Robinson Road. Burning debris soon fell into another unit on the 12th floor and ignited objects inside. Some of the nearby streets were closed as a fire engine and an ambulance were called in to fight the blaze. READ MORE: ‘Hoverboard’ electric... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1901077/residents-evacuated-after-fire-hong-kong-mid-levels?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1901077/residents-evacuated-after-fire-hong-kong-mid-levels?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 14 Jan 2016 02:54:13 +0000 Police have arrested three staff members of a care home over allegations of abusing residents suffering from autism. Two women, aged 23 and 28, and a 24-year-old man were detained by police on Wednesday. Earlier, a parent who called a radio talk show said staff had previously failed to respond to complaints. The man, whose autistic son lives in Harmony Manor care home in Sha Tin, described finding multiple scratches and bruises on his son’s face and body, which no member of staff reported to... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/1900647/three-staff-members-arrested-hong-kong-care-home?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/1900647/three-staff-members-arrested-hong-kong-care-home?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 13 Jan 2016 08:00:15 +0000 Hong Kong fencer Au Sin-ying recalled the terror she felt when she was hundreds of metres away from the site of Tuesday’s suspected suicide bombing in Istanbul, which killed 10 people and injured 15 others. Au was sightseeing in the Turkish city after participating in a satellite tournament there over the weekend. The 27-year-old said on her Facebook page that she head a loud bang while taking photos near the Blue Mosque, not far from Sultanahmet Square, where the explosion took place. READ... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1900577/my-heart-jumped-out-hong-kong-fencer-describes-terror-after?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1900577/my-heart-jumped-out-hong-kong-fencer-describes-terror-after?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 13 Jan 2016 03:49:10 +0000 A rock about the size of a hand struck a moving car with as much as 300lbs of force, smashing through the windscreen and killing the driver. Police said the rock – measuring 10cm by 15cm by 10cm and weighing 3 to 4kg – may have fallen from another vehicle. It went through a corner of the windscreen before hitting retired policeman Tam Chi-keung, 59, on the right side of his face. He was declared dead at the scene. READ MORE: Man, 70, killed by Hong Kong school bus in morning spate of road... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1900057/hong-kong-driver-killed-when-rock-smashes-through?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1900057/hong-kong-driver-killed-when-rock-smashes-through?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 12 Jan 2016 03:49:09 +0000 An ambitious plan to transform Lantau Island into a new tourism and recreation hub of Hong Kong had been met with heavy scepticism by community activists in the city yesterday, while two major businesses operating on the island gave no immediate views towards it. The plan, which will see the development of 14 recreational and tourism areas in Hong Kong’s “backyard”, was unveiled on Sunday in a report by the Lantau Development Advisory Committee, a government-appointed group which spent two years... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/1899915/quite-bit-space-hong-kong-development-adviser-says-lantau?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/1899915/quite-bit-space-hong-kong-development-adviser-says-lantau?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 11 Jan 2016 07:45:45 +0000 Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Greg So Kam-leung hit out at the pan-democrats for paralysing Legislative Council meetings over the controversial Copyright Ordinance amendment bill. In an article published in several pro-government newspapers on Monday, So said the action by the pan-democrats – forcing the council meeting to be adjourned by repeated calls for quorum – led other proposals to be stuck in the queue. “No one can see the end of the dark tunnel,” he said in the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1899865/hong-kong-commerce-minister-says-standoff-over-copyright?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1899865/hong-kong-commerce-minister-says-standoff-over-copyright?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 11 Jan 2016 03:09:04 +0000 The American Chamber of Commerce suggests Hong Kong consider joining the Trans-Pacific Partnership and matching trading services within the pact to relevant areas under the mainland’s “One Belt One Road” initiatives. The suggestion was made in the chamber’s submission to the upcoming Policy Address 2016, to be delivered by Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying next Wednesday. The chamber said Hong Kong would benefit by adopting an international approach to capture opportunities offered by the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/1899098/amcham-suggests-hong-kong-join-trans-pacific-partnership?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/1899098/amcham-suggests-hong-kong-join-trans-pacific-partnership?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 08 Jan 2016 08:18:07 +0000 The European Union yesterday broke the silence and urged authorities in the mainland, Hong Kong and Thailand to investigate and clarify the mysterious disappearances of five Hong Kong booksellers. In a statement issued late on Thursday, the EU said the continuing lack of information about the well-being and whereabouts of the shareholders and staff at Causeway Bay Books, which sells publications critical of the Chinese Communist Party, was “extremely worrying”. The development came as the house... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1898997/vanishing-hong-kong-booksellers-extremely-worrying-says-eu?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1898997/vanishing-hong-kong-booksellers-extremely-worrying-says-eu?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 08 Jan 2016 02:30:00 +0000 Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Greg So Kam-leung on Thursday hit out at tour operators for launching a non-compliance campaign against new measures aimed at better protecting visitors’ rights. The commerce minister was responding to two tour operators’ groups that had refused to join a refund protection scheme and comply with stricter rules implemented by the Travel Industry Council on January 1. So said such behaviour upset the order in the tourism industry and would cause... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/1898588/its-time-comply-hong-kong-commerce-minister-tells-citys?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/1898588/its-time-comply-hong-kong-commerce-minister-tells-citys?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 07 Jan 2016 08:58:56 +0000 More than a month before he went missing last weekend, Hong Kong bookseller Lee Bo, whose store publishes titles critical of the Communist Party leadership, expressed confidence that no harm would come to him as long as he stayed in the city and did not venture onto the mainland. He did not think he would face the same fate as four of his colleagues who had vanished without a trace, he told the Post in an interview then. In a portion of the interview not previously published, Lee said he felt... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1898370/he-vanished-hong-kong-bookseller-thought-no-harm-would-come?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1898370/he-vanished-hong-kong-bookseller-thought-no-harm-would-come?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 06 Jan 2016 08:15:45 +0000 Pro-government lawmaker Ng Leung-sing apologised on Wednesday for repeating an unsubstantiated online rumour that the missing bookseller Lee Bo and his four associates were caught by mainland officers while having fun with prostitutes, but Lee’s wife rejected the gesture. Yet Ng insisted that his aim was to provide another theory for the disappearances of the five Hong Kong booksellers. Ng read out a message from his friend at a Legislative Council meeting on Tuesday afternoon, saying the Hong... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1898288/hong-kong-lawmaker-apologises-saying-missing-booksellers?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1898288/hong-kong-lawmaker-apologises-saying-missing-booksellers?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 06 Jan 2016 03:04:25 +0000 While mystery looms over the disappearance of bookseller Lee Bo, more details are coming to light about the quiet, 65-year-old Hong Kong native who, as his acquaintances remembered, was a “low-profile, intellectual-looking” figure, along with his writer wife. “The last time I saw Lee Bo, I remember, was when he visited our bookshop over last Chinese New Year and gave us packs of chocolate as gifts,” said Paul Tang, owner of People’s Recreation Community, a book cafe also selling banned books.... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1898230/missing-hong-kong-bookseller-lee-bo-doesnt-do-evil-things?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1898230/missing-hong-kong-bookseller-lee-bo-doesnt-do-evil-things?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 05 Jan 2016 17:15:15 +0000 A letter said to have been written to his wife by the missing Hong Kong bookseller reassuring her of his safety in the wake of his mysterious disappearance has sparked more questions than it has provided answers. Although Sophie Choi Ka-ping, wife of Lee Bo, a shareholder in Causeway Bay Books, which offers a range of titles banned on the mainland, said yesterday she believed the letter was real and that Lee had not been under pressure to write it, lawmakers feared otherwise. “He has resisted... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1898221/letter-wife-vanished-hong-kong-bookseller-lee-bo-throws-more?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1898221/letter-wife-vanished-hong-kong-bookseller-lee-bo-throws-more?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 05 Jan 2016 15:22:36 +0000 The disappearance of Lee Bo took a diplomatic twist in Beijing last night when China’s Foreign Minister, Wang Yi, described the missing Hong Kong bookseller as “first and foremost a Chinese citizen”. Wang was responding to questions during a joint press conference with British Foreign Secretary, Philip Hammond, who is in the capital to sign business deals as the economic relationship between the two nations grows. READ MORE: Letter to wife from vanished Hong Kong bookseller Lee Bo throws up more... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1898106/first-and-foremost-chinese-citizen-chinas-foreign-minister?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1898106/first-and-foremost-chinese-citizen-chinas-foreign-minister?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 05 Jan 2016 07:00:15 +0000 Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying said investigations into the disappearance of shareholders and staff of Causeway Bay Books would continue, reiterating that the government was highly concerned about the situation. “I hope anyone, especially Mr Lee Bo, can contact the police and provide information,” Leung said after the Executive Council meeting today. Leung did not comment on the latest developments, including the letter allegedly written by Lee that was released to the media last night, and the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1898005/missing-booksellers-mystery-cy-leung-vows-hong-kong-will?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1898005/missing-booksellers-mystery-cy-leung-vows-hong-kong-will?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 04 Jan 2016 16:30:45 +0000 It doesn’t do any good to engage in political speculation over the disappearance of five booksellers, said a commentary published by the state-run conservative newspaper Global Times today. This would include wondering if the five people were taken away by mainland law enforcement personnel while in Hong Kong. The author, Shan Renping, said the central government upheld the “one country, two systems” principle and speculation that it would change its stance was groundless. READ MORE: Anonymous... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1897908/dont-engage-speculation-over-missing-hong-kong-booksellers?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1897908/dont-engage-speculation-over-missing-hong-kong-booksellers?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 04 Jan 2016 04:57:43 +0000 Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying said earlier today that it was unacceptable and unconstitutional for mainland agencies to take law enforcement action in Hong Kong. Leung was responding to the mysterious disappearance of Lee Bo, a shareholder of Causeway Bay Books, and four associates involved in publications critical of the mainland. Leung said he and his government were highly concerned about case and would follow up on it comprehensively. READ MORE: My Take: Mystery of Hong Kong bookseller Lee... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1897784/cy-leung-hong-kongs-missing-booksellers-mainland-china-law?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1897784/cy-leung-hong-kongs-missing-booksellers-mainland-china-law?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 03 Jan 2016 10:15:00 +0000 A manhunt was under way last night for two men and one woman after a car burst through a police roadblock, knocking down an officer who then fired two shots through the car’s windscreen. The trio made a daring escape bid from two plainclothes detectives, who had stopped another man acting suspiciously at Choi Wan Estate shortly after 2am yesterday. The police officer fired two gunshots after the car allegedly rushed towards him and a colleague, and fled at an intersection on a Wong Tai Sin... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1896921/residents-left-reeling-after-police-open-fire-oncoming-car?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1896921/residents-left-reeling-after-police-open-fire-oncoming-car?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 01 Jan 2016 01:30:45 +0000 Officials last night admitted they had bungled the release of news that a controversial former education chief had been given a key job at Hong Kong’s troubled top university – after internet users leaked the story three hours before it was officially announced. The Government Logistics Department apologised and said it was “highly concerned” over the way the announcement of the appointment of former education minister Arthur Li Kwok-cheung to the position of head of the council of the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education-community/article/1896738/arthur-li-appointment-hku-council-chairman?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education-community/article/1896738/arthur-li-appointment-hku-council-chairman?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 31 Dec 2015 04:00:30 +0000 An overseas study shows an influenza virus strain commonly found among pigs in China has the potential to transmit efficiently to humans and urged governments to take immediate action to prevent an outbreak. The study published on Monday by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America said the swine flu virus, identified as the Eurasian avian-like H1N1 strain, were found in 139 of 36,417 pigs taken for tests from 10 provinces. This strain has been... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/1896062/swine-flu-new-strain-virus-found-china-puts?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/1896062/swine-flu-new-strain-virus-found-china-puts?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 29 Dec 2015 11:45:30 +0000 A think tank’s proposal that government triple an endowment fund for local universities to boost the city’s research capabilities seeks to encourage more young people to go into innovation and technology. Our Hong Kong Foundation suggested that an additional HK$50 billion be injected into the Research Grants Council’s fund, currently valued at HK$23 billion. The think tank was founded by former chief executive Tung Chee-hwa. Edwin Cheung, a senior researcher at the think tank, said the plan... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/1895508/hong-kong-think-tank-urges-hk50-billion-more-universities?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/1895508/hong-kong-think-tank-urges-hk50-billion-more-universities?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 28 Dec 2015 05:13:09 +0000 A 38-year-old woman was hospitalised for smoke inhalation and about 40 residents evacuated from a Kwun Tung public housing estate after a flat caught fire early this morning. The 26th floor flat in Tsui Cheung House at Tsui Ping North Estate in Kwun Tong was engulfed in flames, television footage showed. An air conditioner also caught fire and fell to the ground from the flat during the blaze. Its exterior walls and window frames were also blackened and heavily damaged. The Fire Services... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1895489/hong-kong-apartment-fire-hospitalises-resident-40?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1895489/hong-kong-apartment-fire-hospitalises-resident-40?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 28 Dec 2015 03:05:09 +0000 Single mothers from the mainland who have children residing in Hong Kong urged authorities to allocate surplus one-way permits to them so they can settle and take care of their children in the city. At a Legislative Council subcommittee meeting on Wednesday, several single mainland mothers and groups helping them told officials that in many cases the women had divorced their Hong Kong-based husbands but still had to take care of their children. The situation rendered them unable to apply for a... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education-community/article/1894098/single-mothers-mainland-china-seek-one-way?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education-community/article/1894098/single-mothers-mainland-china-seek-one-way?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 23 Dec 2015 09:33:11 +0000 A radical localist group whose members were among six people arrested over the blast outside the city’s legislature took part in other protests against mainlanders and parallel trading this year. Two of the six arrested people were understood to be members of radical localist group Valiant Frontier, according to an initial police investigation. The pro-Hong Kong independence group had rallied online against the pending copyright bill, which it claimed was a means by the government to abridge... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1893841/radical-hong-kong-group-tied-legco-explosion-participated?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1893841/radical-hong-kong-group-tied-legco-explosion-participated?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 22 Dec 2015 04:05:21 +0000 Five people arrested in connection with the blast outside the Hong Kong Legislative Council two weeks ago have been jointly charged with one count of conspiracy to commit arson. A sixth person arrested has been released on bail. The five charged will appear in Eastern Magistrates’ Courts today. If convicted, the maximum sentence is life in prison. Among them is a former part-time policeman-turned-Occupy movement protester last year. Joe Yeung Yat-long, now 22, was among six men arrested Monday... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1893802/former-part-time-policeman-turned-occupy-protester-among?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1893802/former-part-time-policeman-turned-occupy-protester-among?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 22 Dec 2015 02:15:00 +0000 A controversial businessman was believed to have been injured in an attack while having afternoon tea at a five-star hotel on Sunday but denied his injuries were caused by the assault. Alleged triad faction boss Kwok Wing-hung, 57, was in the ground-floor café in The Peninsula Hotel in Tsim Sha Tsui at about 5.15pm when a man approached him and allegedly punched him in the face. The victim, also known as “Shanghai Boy”, sustained facial injuries and sought medical attention at a private... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1893698/alleged-hong-kong-triad-leader-punched-face-peninsula-hotel?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1893698/alleged-hong-kong-triad-leader-punched-face-peninsula-hotel?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 21 Dec 2015 07:29:11 +0000 A Cathay Pacific Airways flight bound for Delhi arrived one hour late after experiencing brake issues on Saturday evening in a journey described as a “near death experience”. CX695 carried about 250 passengers and landed at Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi at 10.17pm, about one hour later than scheduled. No injuries were reported. The flight had departed from Hong Kong International Airport at 5.22pm on Saturday. READ MORE: Close calls: Five other times Cathay Pacific flights went... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/1893676/cathay-pacific-hong-kong-delhi-flight-was-near?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/1893676/cathay-pacific-hong-kong-delhi-flight-was-near?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 21 Dec 2015 05:06:09 +0000 A former student arrested on Thursday for conspiracy to defraud as part of an investigation into a private institution accused of forgery and fast-tracking degrees was released on bail early today pending further investigation, police said. The 50-year-old Hong Kong man was required to report back to police in February, according to a police spokesman. It was understood that the former Lifelong College student completed a PhD 10 months earlier than scheduled. READ MORE: Hong Kong educational... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1892612/police-investigate-man-linked-hong-kong-colleges-alleged?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1892612/police-investigate-man-linked-hong-kong-colleges-alleged?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 18 Dec 2015 06:42:53 +0000 Three local medical professional associations have condemned a lawmaker’s remarks which they said disparaged mentally ill patients and those tending to them, prompting her to express regret. Without naming Legislative Council member Ann Chiang, who spoke yesterday at the chamber, the Hong Kong College of Psychiatrists said it regretted hearing an “untrue and derogatory” statement from a lawmaker about psychiatrists and patients with mental health problems. During a Legco discussion of an... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1892301/hong-kong-psychiatrists-issue-strongest-condemnation-over?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1892301/hong-kong-psychiatrists-issue-strongest-condemnation-over?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 17 Dec 2015 02:25:42 +0000 The idea of setting up immigration checkpoints separately on both sides of the mainland and Hong Kong along a cross-border high speed rail was unfeasible, the city’s top official said today. Speaking before the Executive Council meeting on Tuesday morning, Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying commented on the suggestion that a separate checkpoints model could be adopted first in the ongoing dispute over immigration clearance arrangements for the rail. The idea had been floated on concerns that the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/1891297/cy-leung-calls-separate-rail-link-immigration-checkpoints?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/1891297/cy-leung-calls-separate-rail-link-immigration-checkpoints?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 15 Dec 2015 03:53:44 +0000 Education secretary Eddie Ng Hak-kim yesterday admitted the decision to issue a guideline to primary schools that banned them from training students for a controversial citywide examination was "too rushed" and "lacked communication". But Ng dismissed the suggestion that such a guideline should be withdrawn, despite two associations of primary school principals jointly issuing a statement yesterday saying they were "furious" over the call. The latest outcry stemmed from a letter the bureau... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education-community/article/1891115/hong-kong-principals-slam-education-bureau?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education-community/article/1891115/hong-kong-principals-slam-education-bureau?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 14 Dec 2015 09:15:45 +0000 The government should wait until the completion of a bypass in Central before making drivers pay for entering certain of the district’s congested roads, a member of the legislature’s transport panel said. Chan Han-pan of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong said traffic jams could possibly be eased after the Central- Wan Chai bypass was completed. Speaking today on an RTHK talk show, Chan said no new roads had been built on Hong Kong Island for years and that “it... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/1891042/no-electronic-road-pricing-until-central-wan-chai?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/1891042/no-electronic-road-pricing-until-central-wan-chai?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 14 Dec 2015 04:02:05 +0000