https://www.scmp.com/rss/51596/feed Anson Chan was the chief secretary of Hong Kong from 1993 to 2001 and a member of the Legislative Council from December 2007 to September 2008. She now leads Hong Kong 2020, a group formed in 2013 to facilitate public discussion on electoral reform in the city. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Willa Wu Willa Wu A series of consequential political developments and controversies made 2025 a significant year for Hong Kong. Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-shing’s company CK Hutchison Holdings was caught in the crossfire of US-China tensions over a deal to sell its Panama Canal ports, which was eventually put on hold under pressure from Beijing. Locally, the city held its second Legislative Council election under Beijing’s “patriots-only” overhaul, with the voter turnout slightly surpassing the previous record... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3338338/jimmy-lai-verdict-and-panama-port-saga-what-shaped-hong-kongs-2025-political-scene?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3338338/jimmy-lai-verdict-and-panama-port-saga-what-shaped-hong-kongs-2025-political-scene?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 31 Dec 2025 13:33:59 +0000 Danny Mok Danny Mok An elderly Hong Kong man with dementia who had been missing for nine days has been found dead in the countryside by volunteer search teams. The body of Leung Woon-yew, 87, a resident of Tai Hing Estate in Tuen Mun, was discovered in a bushy area near the top of Por Lo Shan at 12.40pm on Tuesday by the Voluntary Mount Search Team and Countryside Volunteer Search Team, according to Anson Cheng, founder of the Hong Kong Guardians volunteer rescue group. After Leung was reported missing, the groups... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3334975/hong-kong-man-87-dementia-found-dead-nine-days-after-going-missing?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3334975/hong-kong-man-87-dementia-found-dead-nine-days-after-going-missing?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 03 Dec 2025 00:21:28 +0000 Leopold Chen Leopold Chen Hong Kong’s oldest university plans to support the mass production of nuclear medicine in the city by setting up a production plant in the proposed Northern Metropolis megaproject to halve the cost as it aims to apply such treatment to more types of cancer. University of Hong Kong (HKU) researchers aim to develop a new form of nuclear medicine to treat nasopharyngeal cancer, which has one of the world’s highest incidence rates in southern China, after achieving initial success with two other... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3332096/university-eyes-hong-kongs-northern-metropolis-nuclear-medicine-plant?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3332096/university-eyes-hong-kongs-northern-metropolis-nuclear-medicine-plant?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 10 Nov 2025 02:30:09 +0000 Letters Letters Feel strongly about these letters, or any other aspects of the news? Share your views by emailing us your Letter to the Editor at letters@scmp.com or filling in this Google form. Submissions should not exceed 400 words, and must include your full name and address, plus a phone number for verification Global Islamic finance assets, projected to reach US$7.5 trillion by 2028, present a significant opportunity for Hong Kong. With its robust financial infrastructure and connectivity to mainland... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/letters/article/3318782/hong-kong-has-what-it-takes-be-islamic-finance-hub?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/letters/article/3318782/hong-kong-has-what-it-takes-be-islamic-finance-hub?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 21 Jul 2025 03:30:08 +0000 Letters Letters Feel strongly about these letters, or any other aspects of the news? Share your views by emailing us your Letter to the Editor at letters@scmp.com or filling in this Google form. Submissions should not exceed 400 words, and must include your full name and address, plus a phone number for verification Culture shock can strike not only when Hongkongers travel to foreign lands but also when visitors from mainland China explore Hong Kong in ways that boggle the mind. A recent jolt came amid reports... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/letters/article/3311160/actually-mainland-chinese-tourists-help-us-discover-hong-kong-anew?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/letters/article/3311160/actually-mainland-chinese-tourists-help-us-discover-hong-kong-anew?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 22 May 2025 03:30:09 +0000 Enoch Yiu Enoch Yiu Hong Kong should maintain its low tax regime, preserve its currency peg to the US dollar and embrace the trading of digital assets to attract more capital from global family offices, some investors said. “Hong Kong is an attractive location for family offices because of its low tax jurisdiction,” said Anson Chan, chairman and CEO of his family-owned real estate company Bonds Group of Companies. “The city has low profit tax rates, while it has no inheritance tax.” To keep that advantage, Chan... https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3294705/hong-kong-can-entice-family-offices-low-taxes-currency-peg-and-digital-assets?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3294705/hong-kong-can-entice-family-offices-low-taxes-currency-peg-and-digital-assets?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 14 Jan 2025 10:00:41 +0000 Hong Kong media mogul Jimmy Lai Chee-ying told staff at his now-closed Apple Daily tabloid to translate and publish “pro-resistance” and “anti-establishment” articles on its English platform to boost US readership, a former employee has said. Cheung Kim-hung, the ex-publisher of the tabloid, said his former boss was “desperate” to launch the English digital edition in May 2020, as Beijing was drawing up a national security law for Hong Kong in the wake of anti-government protests a year... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/3248959/hong-kong-tycoon-jimmy-lai-ordered-staff-publish-pro-resistance-articles-now-closed-apple-daily?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/3248959/hong-kong-tycoon-jimmy-lai-ordered-staff-publish-pro-resistance-articles-now-closed-apple-daily?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 18 Jan 2024 12:30:35 +0000 Barrister Dennis Kwok is the latest prominent pan-democrat to quit politics completely. His departure from the local political scene follows that of democracy icons Anson Chan Fang On-sang and Martin Lee Chu-ming, as well as former fellow Civic Party colleague Tanya Chan. Kwok blamed his disqualification as a lawmaker, along with three other pan-democrats, by the government for his decision to quit. That is no doubt a big part of the problem. But the reality is that they have no grass-roots or... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3110911/end-road-dennis-kwok?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3110911/end-road-dennis-kwok?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 22 Nov 2020 14:45:55 +0000 “Fifty years after the liberation of Hongkong, the Volunteers who fought to defend it will have their own D-Day,” reported the South China Morning Post on May 9, 1992. “They may have been given their marching orders, but the part-time soldiers of the Royal Hongkong Regiment (the Volunteers) are as gung-ho as ever,” the story continued. Despite learning the regiment would be disbanded in September 1995, “Morale is high, fall-out rates are low and applications […] are already pouring in”. Formed... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/short-reads/article/3100866/marching-orders-when-royal-hong-kong-regiment?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/short-reads/article/3100866/marching-orders-when-royal-hong-kong-regiment?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 11 Sep 2020 06:45:07 +0000 In the wake of the promulgation of the sweeping national security law for Hong Kong, there has been heated debate over whether chanting independence slogans could constitute an offence under the legislation. So far, the secretary for justice has given a clear-as-mud reply about the prospect of being convicted when found shouting such slogans. To put it simply, there is no single answer as different circumstances have to be factored in, such as the suspect’s intention and physical action. Under... https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3092621/hong-kong-national-security-laws-chilling-effect-freedom-speech?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3092621/hong-kong-national-security-laws-chilling-effect-freedom-speech?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 11 Jul 2020 23:15:05 +0000 Former Hong Kong No 2 official Anson Chan Fang On-sang, who became a vocal advocate for democratic reform in the city on the local and international stage, has announced she is stepping back from public life. Chan’s unexpected decision to retire from politics and other civic engagements follows the death of her daughter last month, and comes with the national security law Beijing is drafting for Hong Kong expected to be passed on Tuesday. “I reached the age of 80 at the start of this year, an... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3090664/hong-kongs-former-no-2-official-anson-chan-steps-back?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3090664/hong-kongs-former-no-2-official-anson-chan-steps-back?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 26 Jun 2020 03:07:07 +0000 Last Friday, after Beijing dropped a bombshell of imposing a national security law on Hong Kong, a foreign journalist asked if I was scared. As a journalist myself, I have to admit I fear the law could harm my work. When China’s parliament enacts the law, would I still be able to write that I detest the country’s authoritarian government? Would I break the law if I urged the United States to protect Hong Kong’s high degree of autonomy that the Basic Law promised? Beijing has only laid out... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3086275/why-beijings-national-security-law-hong-kong-leaves-too-many?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3086275/why-beijings-national-security-law-hong-kong-leaves-too-many?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 27 May 2020 22:30:08 +0000 China’s state media has launched scathing personal attacks on leading pro-democracy figures in Hong Kong, labelling them the “new Gang of Four” that “colludes” with Western forces to instigate unrest and destroy the city. In an escalation of rhetoric, the articles published over the weekend lashed out at media tycoon Jimmy Lai Chee-ying, Democratic Party founder Martin Lee Chu-ming, former chief secretary Anson Chan Fang On-sang and former lawmaker Albert Ho Chun-yan, calling them the “Gang of... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3023487/chinese-state-media-labels-hong-kong-pro-democracy-figures-new?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3023487/chinese-state-media-labels-hong-kong-pro-democracy-figures-new?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 20 Aug 2019 00:00:15 +0000 The former No 2 official in Hong Kong on Monday urged all Americans who do business in the city to voice their concerns over the government’s proposal to allow the transfer of fugitives to mainland China, “before it is too late”. Anson Chan Fang On-sang, who served as the city’s chief secretary before and after its handover to Chinese rule in 1997, also said it had never been more important for the US government to continue to support the city’s basic freedoms, which she said were being... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3003232/hong-kongs-former-no-2-anson-chan-urges-americans-who-do?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3003232/hong-kongs-former-no-2-anson-chan-urges-americans-who-do?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 25 Mar 2019 18:28:00 +0000 Hong Kong’s leaders are failing to allay concerns among foreign governments that the “one country, two systems” principle is weakening in the face of alleged interference by Beijing, Hong Kong’s former chief secretary Anson Chan said on Saturday. The government of the Special Administrative Region (SAR) of Hong Kong shot back this week at findings by the US State Department that the city displayed a “diminished” degree of autonomy from mainland China, and that Beijing’s intervention had... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3003023/hong-kongs-former-chief-secretary-anson-chan-says-leaders?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3003023/hong-kongs-former-chief-secretary-anson-chan-says-leaders?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 24 Mar 2019 01:14:59 +0000 US Vice-President Mike Pence met Hong Kong’s former deputy leader in Washington on Friday, the first time such a senior government official has done so since 2014 during the Obama administration. Former chief secretary Anson Chan Fang On-sang, who is now a pro-democracy critic of the Hong Kong government, and opposition lawmakers Charles Mok and Dennis Kwok were in the US capital at the invitation of the White House. The three met a senior National Security Council (NSC) staff member, and Chan... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3002953/hong-kong-lawmakers-and-former-no-2-hit-us-capital-report?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3002953/hong-kong-lawmakers-and-former-no-2-hit-us-capital-report?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 22 Mar 2019 21:34:46 +0000 Three pro-democracy politicians will travel to Washington next week at the invitation of the White House to talk about Hong Kong’s political, social and economic situation, which could have implications for the city’s special trading status with the United States. Former No 2 official-turned-government critic Anson Chan Fang On-sang and opposition lawmakers Dennis Kwok and Charles Mok will embark on their 10-day trip next Tuesday, at a time when the city is worried about the impact of the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3001761/white-house-invites-pro-democracy-politicians-explain?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3001761/white-house-invites-pro-democracy-politicians-explain?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 14 Mar 2019 23:00:07 +0000 While she is now known as a pro-democracy figure and an outspoken critic of Beijing, Hong Kong's former No 2 official Anson Chan Fang On-sang was once the person the Chinese government secretly reached out to after the breakdown of Sino-British talks on electoral reform in the city. Recently declassified British files show that in 1993, Beijing invited Chan, who was chief secretary at the time, to meet Chinese premier Li Peng, just weeks after negotiations collapsed. Documents from the UK Prime... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2179623/beijing-secretly-invited-former-hong-kong-no-2-anson-chan?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2179623/beijing-secretly-invited-former-hong-kong-no-2-anson-chan?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 27 Dec 2018 23:00:37 +0000 Amid the growing calls for women’s equality, fuelled by movements such as Time’s Up and #MeToo to combat sexual harassment, the theme for this year’s International Women’s Day is #PressforProgress. With gender equality still more than 200 years away, according to the World Economic Forum’s 2017 Global Gender Gap Report, March 8 marks a start to the coming year’s theme. Here we highlight 10 inspirational Hong Kong women who represent progress, both past and present. Politics Elsie Tu An... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/2136065/ten-hong-kong-women-who-have-made-difference-elsie-tu-gigi-chao-ann-hui?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/2136065/ten-hong-kong-women-who-have-made-difference-elsie-tu-gigi-chao-ann-hui?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 08 Mar 2018 04:34:55 +0000 In 1947, then-opposition leader Winston Churchill told Britain’s House of Commons that “when I am abroad I always make it a rule never to criticise or attack the government of my own country”. He added that he had no patience with “Englishmen who use the hospitality of a friendly nation to decry their own”. The former chief secretary Anson Chan Fang On-sang is no Churchill, but should have taken a leaf from his book. Instead, while visiting the United States this month to receive the O’Connor... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2134210/are-anson-chans-criticisms-hong-kongs-legal-system-honest?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2134210/are-anson-chans-criticisms-hong-kongs-legal-system-honest?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 22 Feb 2018 03:26:47 +0000 The recent election ban on young Hong Kong activist Agnes Chow Ting is no different from “naked political screening of a pro-democracy candidate”, the city’s former No 2 official said on Sunday as she urged the international community to speak out and protect the former British colony’s freedoms. Anson Chan Fang On-sang also said China should accept that global support for Hong Kong’s special position does not constitute “interference” by the West. Chan claimed Beijing’s adherence to the “one... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2132885/anson-chan-slams-hong-kongs-naked-political-screening-she?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2132885/anson-chan-slams-hong-kongs-naked-political-screening-she?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 11 Feb 2018 03:40:41 +0000 Hong Kong’s former No 2 official Anson Chan Fang On-sang has been named the fourth recipient of an international award, joining previous recipients such as former US president Jimmy Carter, for her work advancing social justice in the city. The annual O’Connor Justice Prize was created to honour retired US Supreme Court justice Sandra Day O’Connor – the first woman in the top court in the United States. It recognises those who have made extraordinary efforts to advance the rule of law, justice... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2116675/former-hong-kong-no-2-official-anson-chan-receive?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2116675/former-hong-kong-no-2-official-anson-chan-receive?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 Oct 2017 03:09:23 +0000 Hong Kong’s former No 2 official Anson Chan Fang On-sang has rejected the United States envoy’s claim that the city is working well under “one country, two systems”. The outspoken pro-democracy figure, who is in regular contact with American officials and politicians, took issue with Kurt Tong, who in an interview with the Post earlier this month gave a positive appraisal of the city’s political condition. “In the past few years I have seldom found myself dissenting with opinions expressed by... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2098214/anson-chan-rejects-one-country-two-systems-assessment?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2098214/anson-chan-rejects-one-country-two-systems-assessment?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 14 Jun 2017 01:08:23 +0000 If you’re wondering how best to define double standards, think of former chief secretary Anson Chan Fang On-sang. This self-proclaimed champion of democracy is in the United States capital waiting to attend president-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration on Friday. Trump? Democracy? Isn’t it immoral to mention the two words in the same breath? If there’s one American president who doesn’t exemplify democracy, it’s Trump. The man is a bigot, bully and misogynist who called Mexicans rapists and drug... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2062866/anson-chan-hard-trump-double-standards-us-visit?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2062866/anson-chan-hard-trump-double-standards-us-visit?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 17 Jan 2017 11:03:20 +0000 Anson Chan Fang On-sang is not Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen. So our former chief secretary’s invitation to attend Donald Trump’s inauguration in Washington isn’t as heart-stopping for Beijing as Tsai’s congratulatory phone call with the US president-elect or his alarming take on America’s “one-China” policy. Does her invitation signal a policy change in Washington when it comes to Hong Kong? Or is it just one of Trump’s typical flip-flops because he neither knows nor cares much about the... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2061720/anson-chans-invitation-trump-inauguration-more-about-ego?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2061720/anson-chans-invitation-trump-inauguration-more-about-ego?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 12 Jan 2017 17:25:43 +0000 Former chief secretary Anson Chan Fang On-sang has revealed that she was invited by acquaintances in the Republican Party and Republican National Committee to attend US president-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration, and that the move was their way of “honouring” her legacy. Chan said yesterday that she was hoping to meet Trump at the event. There will be three official inauguration balls – two with guests from across the country and one for the armed services. While details of Chan’s week-long... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2061003/former-hong-kong-no-2-anson-chan-puts-trump-inauguration?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2061003/former-hong-kong-no-2-anson-chan-puts-trump-inauguration?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 10 Jan 2017 15:56:17 +0000 Hong Kong’s former No 2 official Anson Chan Fang On-sang has accepted an invitation to attend US president-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration ceremony on January 20 in Washington. The former chief secretary, an outspoken pro-democracy figure, yesterday issued a statement saying she was delighted to be invited, and called on the new United States administration to support the democracy movement in Hong Kong. But another democracy icon of the city, Martin Lee Chu-ming, was not invited, while Hong... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2060619/former-hong-kong-chief-secretary-anson-chan-attend-donald?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2060619/former-hong-kong-chief-secretary-anson-chan-attend-donald?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 09 Jan 2017 15:01:50 +0000 China has been accused of pressuring leading politicians in New Zealand and Australia to cancel meetings with two high-profile Hong Kong critics of Beijing who claim its growing interference places the city’s future under the “one country, two systems” policy in jeopardy. The allegations were prompted by the last-minute cancellation by New Zealand Deputy Prime Minister Bill English of a meeting with former chief secretary Anson Chan Fang On-sang, and Democratic Party founding leader Martin Lee... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2039089/china-accused-orchestrating-new-zealand-snub-high-profile?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2039089/china-accused-orchestrating-new-zealand-snub-high-profile?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 21 Oct 2016 14:15:00 +0000 Hong Kong’s chief secretary Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor said she would not become another Anson Chan Fang On-sang, who has not shied away from throwing brickbats from the sidelines after leaving the civil service. Hong Kong’s sitting No 2 government official made the remark before the city’s media yesterday during the last day of her visit to Sichuan province. Asked if she would become another Anson Chan after retirement by taking a lead role in civil campaigns, she shook her head and said:... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1944082/hong-kong-chief-secretary-carrie-lam-says-she-wont-become?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1944082/hong-kong-chief-secretary-carrie-lam-says-she-wont-become?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 12 May 2016 09:11:58 +0000 Former chief secretary Anson Chan Fang On-sang decried the mainland’s increasing interference in Hong Kong’s domestic affairs but maintained that most of the city’s residents are not seeking independence. In a speech delivered at Tufts University on Sunday as part of a China-US symposium, Chan said that while the rights and freedoms guaranteed under “one country, two systems” are being eroded, the SAR government has ignored the problem as it is more “bent on pleasing the central authorities in... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1933496/despite-growing-interference-beijing-most-hongkongers-arent?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1933496/despite-growing-interference-beijing-most-hongkongers-arent?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 04 Apr 2016 05:36:37 +0000 Chief Secretary Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor on Friday rejected suggestions that she would resign early because she had only a minor role to play in the current administration. Lam, the city’s second highest ranking official, was responding to questions over her relationship with her boss Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying. Suspicions of tensions between the two arose after former chief secretary Anson Chan Fang On-sang said early this week Lam had been given little chance to voice her views and... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1271042/working-relationship-chief-executive-fine-says-chief-secretary?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1271042/working-relationship-chief-executive-fine-says-chief-secretary?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 28 Jun 2013 07:45:15 +0000 Former chief secretary Anson Chan Fang On-sang renewed her call for a popular mandate for the nominating committee in the 2017 chief executive election, but said the new model may be limited in how much it can differ from the current set-up. While it was difficult to ensure a "perfectly" democratic election in 2017, Hongkongers would accept no less than "genuine steps forward" in political reform, Chan said yesterday. The remarks by Chan, who chairs the moderate pan-democratic group Hong Kong... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1268860/ex-chief-secretary-anson-chan-renews-call-popular-mandate-2017?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1268860/ex-chief-secretary-anson-chan-renews-call-popular-mandate-2017?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 25 Jun 2013 16:00:00 +0000 China can help to kick-start peace process I disagree with Dr John Lee's comment that "China currently has no clear strategy for what it wants to achieve, with whom, or how" ("The peacemaker", May 14). I think President Xi Jinping's move to involve China in the Middle East is a clever strategic move that will play well with countries worldwide that are outside the immediate sphere of the US. The money politics in Washington has continually turned the peace process into a game of football, where... https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/1241500/letters-editor-may-20-2013?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/1241500/letters-editor-may-20-2013?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 19 May 2013 16:00:00 +0000 How true is it that, during colonial rule, our policymakers always placed the interests of Hong Kong above British interests? Former chief secretary Anson Chan Fang On-sang insists Hong Kong policymakers were not required to consider British reaction. That, of course, is misleading at best and nonsense at worst. Let's remind her of the tens of thousands of Vietnamese boatpeople who swamped Hong Kong, starting in the late 1970s. The city simply couldn't cope. Taxpayers fumed at having to house... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1239927/anson-chans-misleading-view-britains-colonial-influence?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1239927/anson-chans-misleading-view-britains-colonial-influence?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 17 May 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Former chief secretary Anson Chan Fang On-sang has questioned the feasibility of an Executive Council requirement that all policy proposals factor in likely mainland reaction. Rita Fan Hsu Lai-tai, a member of the National People's Congress Standing Committee, has meanwhile said the directive doesn't pose a threat to Hongkongers' interests. The leaked memo, which first appeared in a Chinese-language newspaper, said: "From June 1, an assessment on mainland perception and related public relations... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1235525/gauging-reaction-mainland-china-policies-not-viable-says-anson-chan?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1235525/gauging-reaction-mainland-china-policies-not-viable-says-anson-chan?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 11 May 2013 12:47:49 +0000 Pass laws to enforce zero waste goal I refer to Martin Williams' letter "(Mega incinerator project being driven by vested interests", April 26). Waste means inefficiency and misallocated resources. A zero waste approach is a worthy and essential goal. Through the Urban Environmental Accords programme, more than 100 city mayors worldwide have committed to sending zero waste to landfills and incinerators by the year 2040 or earlier. The implication is that existing waste incinerators should be... https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/1229639/letters-editor-may-4-2013?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/1229639/letters-editor-may-4-2013?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 03 May 2013 16:00:00 +0000 If the Occupy Central movement's plan to block traffic goes ahead, it could turn into a debacle for Hong Kong's chief executive, warns former chief secretary Anson Chan Fang On-sang. But Chan, who launched a new group to forge a consensus on the path to genuine universal suffrage on Wednesday, said she did not intend to lead the pan-democrats in negotiating with Beijing on electoral reform. Hong Kong 2020 is based on the now disbanded Citizens' Commission on Constitutional Development, which she... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1223061/blockade-plan-would-be-debacle-chief-executive-anson-chan?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1223061/blockade-plan-would-be-debacle-chief-executive-anson-chan?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 25 Apr 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Former chief secretary Anson Chan Fang On-sang emphasised that she hoped to forge a consensus among businesses on the path to genuine universal suffrage, as their participation would be vital to achieving full democracy and improving governance. Chan said she also remained "keen" on communicating with Beijing in order to persuade the national leadership to trust Hongkongers - in response to National People's Congress Law Committee chairman Qiao Xiaoyang's remarks last month that the city's chief... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1222394/commerce-key-universal-suffrage-says-anson-chan?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1222394/commerce-key-universal-suffrage-says-anson-chan?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 24 Apr 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Senior Chinese legislator Qiao Xiaoyang dropped a bomb last month when he presented his views on how the 2017 chief executive election should be held. Some of what he said was unacceptable and resulted in a strong public reaction. However, other points he made, while unpleasant to many, must be accepted as little more than common sense. These include the fact that the chief executive must be someone who can work with the central government and, hence, be acceptable to Beijing. It is heartening... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1221608/democratic-candidates-must-have-place-2017-contest?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1221608/democratic-candidates-must-have-place-2017-contest?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 23 Apr 2013 16:00:00 +0000 First hearing in Henry Tang basement case The wife of former chief secretary Henry Tang Ying-yen and three others make their first court appearance in the case over the city's most infamous basement. Lisa Kuo Yu-chin, architect Henry Ho Chung-yi, structural engineer Wong Pak-lam and a contractor face two charges at Kowloon City Court over the unauthorised basement under Tang's house in Kowloon Tong. The basement scandal was credited with derailing Tang's bid last year to become chief... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1221727/talking-points?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1221727/talking-points?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 23 Apr 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Former chief secretary Anson Chan Fang On-sang will launch a group next week to devise a universal suffrage plan that will pass muster with both Beijing and the business sector. The group will open an office from where its members will lobby for support - particularly from the business sector, whose backing will be critical to achieving full democracy. It is understood that the group will likely be launched next Wednesday and former Democratic Party lawmaker Lee Wing-tat will be in charge of the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1217736/group-forge-2017-consensus?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1217736/group-forge-2017-consensus?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 18 Apr 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Australia's prime minister in Beijing Australia continues its efforts to build ties with China as Prime Minister Julia Gillard meets Premier Li Keqiang in Beijing. Gillard, who led a large Australian delegation to the Boao Forum in Hainan , which ended yesterday, has made building ties with Asia a key plank of her strategy as she seeks re-election later this year. China is Australia's largest trading partner, with goods and services deals worth A$128 billion (HK$1.04 trillion).   Bolshoi row... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1210239/talking-points?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1210239/talking-points?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 08 Apr 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Former chief secretary Anson Chan Fang On-sang has weighed in on the universal suffrage issue, taking a conciliatory and pragmatic tone in the heated debate. It was not unreasonable for Beijing to expect Hong Kong's chief executive not to challenge China's one-party rule, she said at a Community College of City University seminar yesterday. She added that surely Hongkongers did not want to see the leader they elected under universal suffrage unable to co-operate with the central... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1208125/anson-chan-weighs-heated-debate-over-universal-suffrage?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1208125/anson-chan-weighs-heated-debate-over-universal-suffrage?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 05 Apr 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Today will see the start of a two-day circus when anti-Leung Chun-ying legislators try to impeach the chief executive. There will be the usual clownish antics and angry speeches - all for the benefit of the TV cameras. When the circus is over Leung will still be our chief executive. But legislators elected to do the people's business will have wasted time and public money - assets that could have been more productively used than chasing a fool's dream. Let us use a megaphone to say this loud and... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1123246/impeach-bid-waste-publics-time?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1123246/impeach-bid-waste-publics-time?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 08 Jan 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Artist Fang Zhaoling was a woman of many talents, according to her daughter Anson Chan Fang On-sang, Hong Kong's former chief secretary. Not only was Fang an ink artist in a class of her own, she was also a mother ahead of her time. "When we were young, of course, she made sure we were properly brought up. But she never insisted on us doing certain things," Chan said. Fang's spirit lives on not only in Chan's memories, but also in her paintings, which are being exhibited for sale at the Fine Art... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1054835/works-anson-chans-artist-mother-fang-zhaoling-sale-art-fair?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1054835/works-anson-chans-artist-mother-fang-zhaoling-sale-art-fair?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 05 Oct 2012 16:00:00 +0000 A panel of leading local women discussed the 'glass ceiling' that limits women's roles in Hong Kong politics, touching on Margaret Thatcher and even China's Communist Party last night. '[Former British prime minister] Thatcher is a controversial figure, but the challenges she encountered in her career because she was a woman are really relevant to our conversation,' said Su-Mei Thompson, director of The Women's Foundation (TWF), which organised the panel at the British Council in Admiralty. TWF... https://www.scmp.com/article/1007818/leading-women-ponder-political-glass-ceiling?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/1007818/leading-women-ponder-political-glass-ceiling?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 26 Jul 2012 16:00:00 +0000 Former chief secretary Anson Chan Fang On-sang has criticised outgoing Chief Executive Donald Tsang Yam-kuen for not encouraging his subordinates to give honest opinions, which she believes has affected policymaking. Chan called on the hot favourite to become the next chief secretary, Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, to be outspoken when advising incoming leader Leung Chun-ying on policies. 'Tsang does not encourage colleagues to give honest opinions internally,' she told a Commercial Radio programme... https://www.scmp.com/article/1001182/anson-chan-calls-more-openness?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/1001182/anson-chan-calls-more-openness?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 16 May 2012 16:00:00 +0000 Developer wins injunction against Mei Foo protesters The Court of First Instance granted an injunction yesterday to Billion Star Development barring protesters, including lawmaker 'Long Hair' Leung Kwok-hung, from rallying at a tower being built in Mei Foo Sun Chuen. Mr Justice Au Hing-cheung said there was 'a real risk' the protesters would continue their attempts to disrupt construction work. One defendant, Claudia Mo Man-ching, said she was appalled by the judgment and would consider lodging... https://www.scmp.com/article/992297/city-digest?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/992297/city-digest?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 10 Feb 2012 16:00:00 +0000 I refer to the article by Philip Fang ('Brat in the family', November 9). He said that Anson Chan Fang On-sang, Martin Lee Chu-ming, Jimmy Lai Chee-ying and Cardinal Joseph Zen Ze-kiun were in 'open defiance', presumably of Beijing, and were thus a 'Gang of Four'. He also said they would be considered 'seditious' if we had an Article 23 law, in part because they were not 'grateful' enough for the mainland's alleged largesse. Grateful? That demand is not the sign of a mature or self-confident... https://www.scmp.com/article/985180/those-who-speak-openly-about-national-issues-are-patriots-not-traitors?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/985180/those-who-speak-openly-about-national-issues-are-patriots-not-traitors?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 17 Nov 2011 16:00:00 +0000 Former chief secretary Anson Chan Fang On-sang says the government is not doing enough to encourage people to vote in Sunday's district council elections, and criticised radicals for splitting the pan-democratic vote. 'In previous elections, senior government officials came out in a high-profile manner to urge voters to go to the polling stations,' she said in an interview yesterday. 'But for this year's district council elections, almost no top officials have made such an appeal to the public.... https://www.scmp.com/article/983632/chan-laments-absence-election-fever?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/983632/chan-laments-absence-election-fever?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 01 Nov 2011 16:00:00 +0000