https://www.scmp.com/rss/321871/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com In December, the District Court sent three men to prison for illegally providing paid TV channel content through video streaming devices. However, illegal streaming devices have continued to thrive and threaten the survival of the local creative industry. The local copyright industry discovered last September that about 20 brands of infringing streaming devices were on sale in 87 shops across the city. Most of these devices have pre-installed infringing apps for unauthorised access to copyright... https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/2139304/internet-piracy-streaming-devices-threatens-hong-kongs-creative?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/2139304/internet-piracy-streaming-devices-threatens-hong-kongs-creative?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 28 Mar 2018 09:11:36 +0000 A former Hong Kong auxiliary policeman, who quit the force following the 2014 Occupy protests, was jailed for two years on Wednesday for setting fire to a bin outside the city’s Legislative Council complex. Joe Yeung Yat-long, who was also a former president of the Shue Yan University’s student union, was earlier found guilty at the District Court of one count of conspiracy to commit arson. He was involved in setting fire to the rubbish bin on December 9, 2015, while legislators debated the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/2081132/former-hong-kong-auxiliary-policeman-jailed-stupid-and?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/2081132/former-hong-kong-auxiliary-policeman-jailed-stupid-and?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 22 Mar 2017 05:50:46 +0000 A former president of Shue Yan University’s student union, who quit the auxiliary police after participating in the Occupy protests, was found guilty on Thursday of helping set off an explosion outside the Legislative Council. The District Court convicted Joe Yeung Yat-long, 23, of one count of conspiracy to commit arson. He had denied involvement. The court also said his co-defendant, Ip Cheuk-yin, 20, who admitted acting as lookout and pleaded guilty to the same charge early this year, would... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/2075455/man-found-guilty-causing-hong-kong-legco-bin-explosion?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/2075455/man-found-guilty-causing-hong-kong-legco-bin-explosion?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 02 Mar 2017 06:49:00 +0000 An Open University student arrested near a Legislative Council protest against amendments to the copyright bill was sentenced to three months in jail on Wednesday for possessing 16 “smoke cakes”. In passing judgment in Eastern Court, the magistrate emphasised the need for a sentence with a deterrent effect, but believed it was “not the end of the world” for the student. Kwan Ka-hei, 21, who had spent the past fortnight behind bars, would be allowed to reunite with his family after a request for... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/2067228/hong-kong-student-caught-smoke-cakes-near-legco-protest?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/2067228/hong-kong-student-caught-smoke-cakes-near-legco-protest?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 01 Feb 2017 13:06:13 +0000 An unemployed man has admitted his involvement in an incident in which a handmade explosive device blew up inside a rubbish bin outside the Legislative Council in 2015. Ip Cheuk-yin admitted in the District Court on Thursday that he was the lookout when his accomplice ignited a gas canister outside the Legco complex on December 9, 2015 before shoving it into a rubbish bin. Legco explosion: Six men arrested over rubbish bin blast outside Hong Kong legislature The canister exploded, damaging the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/2059638/unemployed-hong-kong-man-admits-involvement-rubbish-bin?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/2059638/unemployed-hong-kong-man-admits-involvement-rubbish-bin?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 05 Jan 2017 10:30:00 +0000 A university student caught with 16 “smoke cakes” in his rucksack near a protest at the Legislative Council complex last year was found guilty of possessing an explosive on Friday. Open University of Hong Kong student Kwan Ka-hei was found with the offending devices while lawmakers inside the Legco building discussed the controversial so-called Internet Article 23. He became the first Hongkonger convicted of the crime over an item more akin to pyrotechnics or a firework than an explosive. The... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/2058411/hong-kong-student-found-guilty-over-explosives-outside?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/2058411/hong-kong-student-found-guilty-over-explosives-outside?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 31 Dec 2016 05:20:10 +0000 As Albert Chan Wai-yip leaves Hong Kong’s legislature after 31 years in politics, the core member of the anti-government “radical four” lawmakers insists their filibustering tactics succeeded. While officials have dismissed filibusters as wasting money and time, Chan, 61, said they had forced officials to engage lawmakers whom they otherwise would not have. “For fear of retribution from ‘689’, I can’t say which bureaus engaged us,” he said, referring to Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying by the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1991329/radical-hong-kong-lawmaker-reflects-leaving-office-after-31?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1991329/radical-hong-kong-lawmaker-reflects-leaving-office-after-31?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 18 Jul 2016 08:30:29 +0000 With the legislature becoming increasingly hostile, the passage of government bills and funding requests cannot be taken for granted. The latest victim is the controversial copyright amendment bill. After months of meaningless headcounts for quorum and filibustering by pan-democrat lawmakers to stall the vote, the government has finally given up on the bill for the time being. Commerce chief Greg So Kam-leung made no bones about his anger and frustration last week. Citing the lines in a... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1922292/deadlock-over-copyright-bill-means-we-all-lose-out?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1922292/deadlock-over-copyright-bill-means-we-all-lose-out?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 07 Mar 2016 17:43:50 +0000 The copyright bill at the centre of a months-long filibuster marked by disagreements between internet-freedom activists and media businesses has been effectively shelved, with the commerce minister agreeing to put an end to the legislative processes on Friday. Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Greg So Kam-leung said the administration would not relaunch consultations over the copyright law during the rest of its term. Dismissing claims that he should bear political responsibility... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1920593/blame-game-begins-hong-kong-copyright-bill-shelved?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1920593/blame-game-begins-hong-kong-copyright-bill-shelved?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 04 Mar 2016 10:09:17 +0000 As of 1pm on Friday, Hong Kong lawmakers failed to vote on the government’s copyright amendment bill. The development prompted commerce minister Greg So Kam-leung to announce the bill would be abandoned and no consultation would take place in the administration’s remaining term. The victory for pan-democrats and internet users who were distrustful of the bill’s objective and implications concluded a heated political battle. Copyright (Amendment) Bill 2014 was the result of more than a decade of... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1920569/five-reasons-hong-kong-copyright-bill-failed?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1920569/five-reasons-hong-kong-copyright-bill-failed?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 04 Mar 2016 08:15:15 +0000 After a decade of consultation, drafting and debate, the contentious copyright bill will be shelved on Friday as the commerce minister on Thursday night called all pan-democrats “killers” of the draft legislation. Tabling a motion of adjournment less than an hour before the session ended at 8pm, People Power lawmaker Raymond Chan Chi-chuen effectively preempted Secretary for Commerce and Economic READ MORE: Hong Kong government’s shelving of controversial copyright bill: what went... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1920419/kill-bill-hong-kong-government-minister-hits-out-pan?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1920419/kill-bill-hong-kong-government-minister-hits-out-pan?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 03 Mar 2016 13:06:40 +0000 Debate on the contentious copyright bill has entered its final 48 hours following failed negotiations between the government and pan-democrats as well as ongoing filibuster attempts on Wednesday. Commerce minister Greg So Kam-leung turned down what pan-democrats called the “last best chance” to resolve the political impasse two days before a self-imposed deadline on Friday, when the government will drop the bill that was first proposed a decade ago if it is not endorsed. READ MORE: Hong Kong... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1919969/hong-kong-copyright-bill-debate-enters-final-48-hours-after?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1919969/hong-kong-copyright-bill-debate-enters-final-48-hours-after?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 02 Mar 2016 12:35:19 +0000 A radical lawmaker has obtained approval from the Legislative Council president to table a motion on Wednesday to adjourn the fraught copyright bill debate. Ray Chan Chi-chuen, of People Power, said Jasper Tsang Yok-sing had agreed to his move despite Secretary for Commerce Greg So Kam-leung’s criticism. Even if Chan’s motion does not receive enough support from lawmakers, the bill is still likely to be shelved by Friday. While debate on the copyright amendment bill will continue in the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1919548/pan-democrat-lawmaker-table-motion-adjourning-copyright-debate?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1919548/pan-democrat-lawmaker-table-motion-adjourning-copyright-debate?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 01 Mar 2016 13:40:06 +0000 Three pan-democrats have pitched a last-minute proposal to try to rescue the government’s ill-fated copyright bill days before it is expected to be shelved amid protracted filibustering in the legislature. The trio – the Civic Party’s Dennis Kwok and Charles Mok and Kenneth Leung of Professional Commons – have floated a “non-commercial dealing” exemption which suggests the government grant exemption to all non-commercial use of copyrighted materials, including literature, art work and music. The... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1918977/hong-kong-pan-democrats-pitch-last-ditch-proposal-save?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1918977/hong-kong-pan-democrats-pitch-last-ditch-proposal-save?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 29 Feb 2016 13:00:45 +0000 Despite 35 years teaching and researching Hong Kong intellectual property, I have been reluctant to get involved in the debate over the copyright amendments. Part of that reluctance is that copyright is overtly political and reasonable people can reasonably disagree. But no more. READ MORE: Hong Kong minister attacks lawmaker’s bid to adjourn debate on copyright bill The effect of not having a fair use defence is that copyright protection of owners is considerably expanded, to the detriment of... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1918550/hong-kongs-copyright-reform-cannot-proceed-without-trust?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1918550/hong-kongs-copyright-reform-cannot-proceed-without-trust?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 29 Feb 2016 08:08:52 +0000 Commerce minister Greg So Kam-leung hit back at Raymond Chan Chi-chuen yesterday after the People Power lawmaker suggested a motion to adjourn debate on the controversial copyright amendment bill at this week’s meeting. So, who is tasked with implementing the bill, said it was “very unwise” for Chan to try to obstruct debate in the Legislative Council and called on other lawmakers, especially the pan-democrats not to support his motion. Last week So told the media that the proposed bill would be... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1918431/hong-kong-minister-attacks-lawmakers-bid-adjourn-debate?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1918431/hong-kong-minister-attacks-lawmakers-bid-adjourn-debate?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 28 Feb 2016 12:17:06 +0000 No legislation has experienced a more stumbling process than the copyright amendment bill. Having been delayed by pan-democrat filibustering for months, the blueprint is to be abandoned if it cannot get through the legislature by next Friday. Whether the pan-democrats will back down in the wake of the “ultimatum” by the government remains to be seen. But the bill is the outcome of years of deliberations. It would be a shame if it cannot be passed. The government’s position is understandable. Of... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1917590/it-hong-kongs-interest-copyright-bill-be-passed?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1917590/it-hong-kongs-interest-copyright-bill-be-passed?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 26 Feb 2016 16:11:59 +0000 Copyright industry associations have warned that failing to pass the controversial copyright bill by next Friday will severely damage local creative industries, leaving professionals incapable of sustaining their careers and eroding Hong Kong’s cultural assets. But a musician who opposes the copyright bill argued that such insistence on passing the law was just the associations defending their turf, refusing to adapt to the digital age with new business models. The government pledged not to... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1917577/failure-pass-copyright-bill-would-damage-hong-kongs-creative?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1917577/failure-pass-copyright-bill-would-damage-hong-kongs-creative?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 26 Feb 2016 14:30:45 +0000 Pan-democratic lawmakers’ filibustering might be seen as the culprit for the government’s stalling the copyright amendment bill, but critics say officials were responding too slowly and passively throughout public debates about the law over the past few months. The latest government failure is very similar to the last time it shelved the copyright amendment bill four years ago. Again, it takes place during a Legislative Council election year. Again, it meets fierce opposition from internet users... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1917070/hong-kong-governments-shelving-controversial-copyright-bill?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1917070/hong-kong-governments-shelving-controversial-copyright-bill?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 25 Feb 2016 13:45:00 +0000 The controversial copyright bill will be shelved if it is not passed by next Friday, commerce minister Greg So Kam-leung warned yesterday in an ultimatum for pan-democrat lawmakers to stop their filibustering. If the bill – which sceptical internet users and pan-democrats see as a threat to freedom of expression – is shelved, it will be the second time in four years that the government has failed to get a copyright bill through the Legislative Council after a decade of discussion on the issue.... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1916650/us-still-waiting-hong-kong-catch-copyright-law-10-year?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1916650/us-still-waiting-hong-kong-catch-copyright-law-10-year?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 25 Feb 2016 08:00:00 +0000 Overseas experience seems to suggest that a copyright exception modelled on the US system that is favoured by pan-democrat lawmakers could do more harm then good to the creative sector, according to Australian research. The study by consulting firm PwC said adopting “fair use” – which allows the use of copyright material for any purpose if it is deemed fair – could “create disincentives to create new original copyright works”. READ MORE: Hong Kong copyright bill explained: Why are people so... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1913985/beware-what-you-ask-australian-research-shows-us-model-may?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1913985/beware-what-you-ask-australian-research-shows-us-model-may?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 18 Feb 2016 23:02:31 +0000 The first four-party meeting between copyright owners, internet users, officials and lawmakers ended in hostility on Wednesday, paving the way for further delays and filibustering for the ill-fated copyright bill. A representative in favour of more protection for Internet users walked out towards the end of the two-hour meeting, while copyright owners stood firm on their opposition to counterproposals by pan-democrats. The government, too, cast doubt on further amendments before a legislative... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1913779/four-way-talks-hong-kong-copyright-bill-ends-hostility?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1913779/four-way-talks-hong-kong-copyright-bill-ends-hostility?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 17 Feb 2016 13:08:18 +0000 Lawmakers, government, copyright owner groups and internet users will meet again in a “four-side conference” next Wednesday in an attempt to break the impasse over scrutiny of the contentious copyright amendment bill, which has dragged on for weeks. The chairman of the bill committee, Chan Kam-lam of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong, also said pan-democrats had promised to temporarily stop filibustering in the Legislative Council during the meeting. “I hope... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1911838/four-sides-locked-debate-over-hong-kongs-copyright-amendment?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1911838/four-sides-locked-debate-over-hong-kongs-copyright-amendment?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 10 Feb 2016 11:00:54 +0000 A “senior pro-democracy parliamentarian” was accused of deliberately pressing multiple lift buttons and obstructing fellow lawmakers as they tried to reach the chamber on Thursday. The Legislative Council is investigating what led the copyright amendment bill debates to be cut short for a fourth time due to a lack of quorum. As time runs out for the scrutiny of the contentious bill before sessions designated for the budget speech by the financial secretary, several lawmakers across the political... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1909351/hong-kong-pan-democrat-accused-stopping-fellow-lawmakers?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1909351/hong-kong-pan-democrat-accused-stopping-fellow-lawmakers?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 04 Feb 2016 10:56:28 +0000 The public is “barking up the wrong tree” in its opposition to the government’s controversial copyright bill, according to a member of the creative industry. “We regret that the issue has been heavily politicised. Decisions and actions are biased. There’s no time to craft a balanced law,” said John Medeiros, chief policy officer of the Cable and Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia , a member of the Hong Kong Copyright Alliance, which is pressing for passage of the bill. READ MORE: Hong... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1907615/hong-kong-people-barking-wrong-tree-copyright-bill-insists?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1907615/hong-kong-people-barking-wrong-tree-copyright-bill-insists?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 31 Jan 2016 09:00:00 +0000 Filbustering has detracted from the goal of putting our city on a par with international standards, notwithstanding the consensus that due copyright protection is the cornerstone of innovation and creativity for any economy. Letters to the editor, January 26 The other day I went to see the latest Star Wars movie, and emerged from the cinema amazed. Here was that rare thing, a work of art without a single original idea to call its own. Don’t get me wrong. I like seeing good movies again and I... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1907545/reasons-applaud-filibuster-chokehold-copyright-bill?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1907545/reasons-applaud-filibuster-chokehold-copyright-bill?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 30 Jan 2016 14:50:19 +0000 For the second time in two days, Chief Secretary Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor urged lawmakers to come together and pass the controversial copyright bill as she said a total of 23 bills planned for this year had yet to be introduced in the city’s legislature. The backlogs included a recent proposal to rename the Hong Kong Institute of Education as a university and another to add more lay members to the Medical Council to accelerate its handling of patients’ complaints against doctors, she said. In... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1906508/hong-kongs-number-two-official-renews-her-call-legislature?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1906508/hong-kongs-number-two-official-renews-her-call-legislature?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 28 Jan 2016 11:43:41 +0000 Legislative Council president Jasper Tsang Yok-sing says it is “unreasonable” to set a deadline for the debate over the contentious copyright bill at this stage, despite pressure from the government No 2 to speed up the council’s proceedings. Tsang told the media he would have to consult colleagues whether they could attend two and a half extra days of meetings next month, an idea raised to him by Chief Secretary Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor yesterday. READ MORE: Hong Kong copyright bill... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1906309/copyright-impasse-hong-kong-legislative-council-president?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1906309/copyright-impasse-hong-kong-legislative-council-president?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 27 Jan 2016 13:56:32 +0000 The passage of the second reading of the copyright bill last Thursday could mean a bigger battle ahead, with greater paralysis of the legislature. That the Legislative Council meeting was forced to adjourn due to the lack of a quorum the following day shows how the discussion of the law is caught in yet another impasse (“Copyright bill debate abandoned as not enough members turn up to Legco”, January 22). While pan-democrats have every legitimate reason to campaign for wider and clearer... https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/1904895/hong-kong-government-must-break-impasse-over-copyright-law?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/1904895/hong-kong-government-must-break-impasse-over-copyright-law?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 25 Jan 2016 07:59:27 +0000 While the chief secretary worries about the backlog of bills to be voted on in the Legislative Council, engineering sector lawmaker Lo Wai-kwok is more concerned about another growing mountain of work: about 70 funding proposals lawmakers have to scrutinise before the summer break. Lo, who chairs the Legco’s public works subcommittee, has said that due to filibustering in the body, it has so far scrutinised only five out of 72 projects that the government planned to table in this legislative... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1904784/funding-requests-continue-pile-hong-kongs-legislative?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1904784/funding-requests-continue-pile-hong-kongs-legislative?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 24 Jan 2016 18:00:15 +0000 It’s a backlog that is paralysing Hong Kong’s Legislative Council with potential ramifications for key projects in the city. A staggering 24 bills are in various stages of progress through the Legislative Council or have yet to be introduced with less than 50 sitting days before the summer recess. From attempting to address piracy on the internet to regulating payouts to depositors if a licensed bank closes down, Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying is faced with the prospect – in the final year of... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1904740/tick-tock-goes-clock-filibustering-creates-logjam-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1904740/tick-tock-goes-clock-filibustering-creates-logjam-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 24 Jan 2016 13:15:30 +0000 In a U-turn, government number two Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor decided against meeting pan-democrats to discuss details of the controversial copyright bill because she was clueless about the bill’s contents. But the chief secretary urged them to return to the Legislative Council chamber to focus on the bill rather than filibustering or using quorum calls to force a halt to proceedings as taxpayers were paying them HK$93,500 per month – a third of Lam’s salary – to do the job. Last week Lam... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1904343/carrie-lam-backs-out-plan-meet-pan-dems?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1904343/carrie-lam-backs-out-plan-meet-pan-dems?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 23 Jan 2016 18:31:00 +0000 Debate on the contentious copyright amendment bill was cut short by half an hour in the Legislative Council on Friday afternoon – because not enough members showed up. The premature adjournment came a day after the commerce minister said he was optimistic that there would be enough time for discussion, despite the nearing Lunar New Year holiday and sessions for scrutinising the chief executive’s policy address and the financial secretary’s budget speech. All but one pan-democrats were absent... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1903824/copyright-bill-debate-abandoned-not-enough-members-turn?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1903824/copyright-bill-debate-abandoned-not-enough-members-turn?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 22 Jan 2016 06:29:45 +0000 The Hong Kong government is under mounting pressure to stall protracted discussions by lawmakers of the copyright amendment bill, as time is running out before the legislature scrutinises two prime documents: the policy address and the budget. Pro-government lawmakers said such a move would be “wise”, after comments by Chief Secretary Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor that the administration “would not rule out the possibility”. READ MORE: Hong Kong copyright bill explained: Why are people so concerned... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1903720/hong-kong-government-under-growing-pressure-stall-copyright?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1903720/hong-kong-government-under-growing-pressure-stall-copyright?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 21 Jan 2016 15:50:39 +0000 Leung Chun-ying’s office is having trouble identifying the copyright owner of a musical recording he sang and paying a fee after he drew criticism for uploading a clip of his performance of the popular song. The chief executive’s case showed how tricky the copyright law was, pan-democrats said, as the Legislative Council yesterday moved to debate controversial amendments to the law. Consideration was interrupted by quorum bells 25 times over 4.5 hours. A month after Leung posted a clip of his... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1903492/cy-leung-experiences-copyright-difficulty-first-hand-over?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1903492/cy-leung-experiences-copyright-difficulty-first-hand-over?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 20 Jan 2016 12:00:45 +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 Legislative Council president has hinted he could stop the filibuster over the controversial copyright bill to get the council to move on and deal with other business in its remaining term. But as the pan-democrats stay firm on forcing adjournments of the debate by remaining absent from meetings, it may be difficult for the president to even do so, a pro-establishment lawmaker observed. Meanwhile, an alliance of copyright owners held an urgent meeting with lawmakers yesterday to explore room... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1899066/legco-president-considers-restricting-debate-time-end?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1899066/legco-president-considers-restricting-debate-time-end?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 08 Jan 2016 06:25:36 +0000 Outrage is not strong enough a word to describe the public’s feeling towards the Legislative Council. For the second time in a month, scrutiny of the controversial copyright law was suspended yesterday, after the pan-democrats again resorted to delaying tactics by repeatedly calling for a headcount to see if there were enough members in the chamber to continue. The sitting was eventually aborted after some rebel lawmakers walked out at the last second to kill the quorum. The call for a headcount... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1898981/childish-hong-kong-lawmakers-are-making-farce-legislative?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1898981/childish-hong-kong-lawmakers-are-making-farce-legislative?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 07 Jan 2016 17:11:49 +0000 Legislative Council president Jasper Tsang Yok-sing urged the commerce minister to talk to rival leaders from the pan-democratic and pro-establishment camps after the debate on the controversial copyright bill was adjourned again yesterday with too few lawmakers in attendance. Tsang’s appeal came shortly before the pan-democrats warned it was the responsibility of officials to resolve the stalemate. The Copyright (Amendment) Bill 2014 is supported by copyright owners as they believe it will... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1898626/hong-kong-legislature-president-vows-get-rival-camps-talking?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1898626/hong-kong-legislature-president-vows-get-rival-camps-talking?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 07 Jan 2016 10:30:45 +0000 Three local tertiary students were among five men named in court this morning after they were charged with conspiracy to commit arson outside the city’s legislature earlier this month. All five were released on bail this morning and were to next appear in court on February 3. They included 22-year-old Joe Yeung Yat-long, who quit the auxiliary police after participating in last year’s Occupy movement. Yeung is currently the president-elect of the Shue Yan University students’ union. READ MORE:... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1894065/legco-explosion-suspects-out-bail-after-first-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1894065/legco-explosion-suspects-out-bail-after-first-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 23 Dec 2015 04:38:13 +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 Four Hong Kong tertiary students were among six men arrested by police yesterday in connection with a blast outside the Legislative Council building in Admiralty earlier this month, according to police. One of the four students was believed to be the person behind the dustbin blast plot on December 9, the Post learned. After making five arrests in early hours of yesterday, officers last night detained a decoration worker at the Macau ferry terminal as he returned to Hong Kong for questioning. A... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1893689/legco-explosion-six-men-arrested-over-rubbish-bin-blast?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1893689/legco-explosion-six-men-arrested-over-rubbish-bin-blast?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 21 Dec 2015 06:30:00 +0000 Kafka Luk Kwun-yu was a 23-year-old physics graduate when he first joined an internet group’s call to go out on the street. It was in 2012 when he and web users from Keyboard Frontline went out on the streets of Mong Kok to hand out leaflets to the public, in response to the then-Copyright Amendment Bill tabled by the government that year. The group, founded in 2011, dubbed the new law “Internet Article 23” and saw it as a threat to the freedom and rights of netizens. READ MORE: CY Leung accused... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1893583/hong-kongs-kafka-27-year-old-tech-worker-leading-fight?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1893583/hong-kongs-kafka-27-year-old-tech-worker-leading-fight?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 20 Dec 2015 12:00:00 +0000 Filibustering against the contentious copyright bill continued at the last legislative session of the calendar year. The Legislative Council’s half-day session this morning continued to address Labour Party lawmaker Cyd Ho Sau-lan’s motion to adjourn discussion of the bill dubbed ‘Internet Article 23’ by critics on fears it would curtail internet freedoms. Commerce minister Greg So Kam-leung dismissed pan-democrats’ call for the government to “stop and rethink”. He asked lawmakers not to... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1892641/filibustering-over-copyright-bill-marks-final-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1892641/filibustering-over-copyright-bill-marks-final-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 18 Dec 2015 07:56:52 +0000 A university student who was arrested for possessing ‘smoke cakes’ on Wednesday near a rally against the controversial copyright bill was brought to court this morning over a loitering charge. Kwan Ka-hei, 20, faced one count of loitering with intent. No plea was offered and his case was adjourned to January 29 for further investigation. At Eastern Court this morning, prosecutor Vincent Siu said an expert working with the police confirmed the substance found in Kwan’s bag was potassium chlorate... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1892640/smoke-cakes-man-faces-loitering-charge-hong-kong-court?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1892640/smoke-cakes-man-faces-loitering-charge-hong-kong-court?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 18 Dec 2015 07:45:30 +0000 The US consulate called for “active engagement” to modernise Hong Kong’s intellectual property laws, as the controversial copyright bill was debated in the Legislative Council today. Pan-democrats proposed three amendments to the Copyright (Amendment) Bill 2014 – fair use, user-generated content and contract override . Consulate spokeswoman Darragh Paradiso said the laws should better reflect the digital media environment today. “The United States has consistently affirmed that protecting... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1892462/us-consulate-urges-hong-kong-update-its-copyright-law?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1892462/us-consulate-urges-hong-kong-update-its-copyright-law?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 17 Dec 2015 10:05:34 +0000 An Open University student, arrested for possessing a chemical that can be used to create a smoke bomb, near the Admiralty site of a rally against the controversial copyright bill on Wednesday, was believed to be acting alone, police sources said on Thursday. The force’s insiders said an initial investigation showed the Hongkonger, 20, was not linked to last week’s rubbish bin blast in the demonstration zone outside the Legislative Council building. “So far, there is no indication to suggest the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1892409/hong-kong-student-arrested-smoke-bomb-chemical-copyright?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1892409/hong-kong-student-arrested-smoke-bomb-chemical-copyright?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 17 Dec 2015 08:45:45 +0000 Hong Kong’s legislature formally took up debate on a contentious copyright bill after discussion was postponed last night for the second time in a week, but it was halted some 20 minutes soon afterward. As debate was taken up this morning in the Legislative Council, Labour Party lawmaker Cyd Ho Sau-lan motioned to adjourn the debate, and, acting in coordination, People Power duo Albert Chan Wai-yip and Raymond Chan Chi-chuen repeatedly called for the quorum bell, making a vote on Copyright... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1892360/hong-kong-copyright-bill-debate-stalled-again-pan-democrats?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1892360/hong-kong-copyright-bill-debate-stalled-again-pan-democrats?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 17 Dec 2015 04:18:33 +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