https://www.scmp.com/rss/7815/feed Patsy Moy began her career as a journalist in 1994 and had worked full-time for the South China Morning Post for many years. She reported on a wide range of news, covering social, health, housing, and legal issues. She also wrote many articles on animal rights. Patsy also taught media law and English news writing and reporting in local universities until 2020. Her last post with the South China Morning Post was assistant news editor. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Andrew Leung Tze-wung has not one but two famous grandfathers. The man behind the Diamond Restaurant gourmet food brand is not only the grandson of Kam Shui-fai, the founder of Yung Kee Restaurant in Central on Hong Kong Island, he is also a descendant of Hong Kong television and movie star Leung Sing-por, also known as the city’s “king of comedians”. Andrew Leung was born in the UK in 1978 but, when he was three months old, his family moved back to Hong Kong after discovering that Leung... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3217558/king-comedians-had-real-hong-kong-spirit-diamond-restaurant-brand-owner-his-grandfather-leung-sing?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3217558/king-comedians-had-real-hong-kong-spirit-diamond-restaurant-brand-owner-his-grandfather-leung-sing?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 19 Apr 2023 23:15:15 +0000 Andrew Leung Tze-wung vividly remembers his favourite childhood dishes from Diamond Restaurant: steamed mangosteen beef balls, sago soufflé with sweet lotus paste, and shark fin soup. Opened in 1947, the popular dining spot was owned by his grandfather Kam Shui-fai, who was better known for his Michelin-starred Yung Kee Restaurant – famous for its roast goose – on Wellington Street in Central, on Hong Kong Island. The original Diamond Restaurant, on 88 Queen’s Road Central, went on to open four... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3217542/how-iconic-chinese-restaurant-hong-kong-full-childhood-memories-lives-family-have-reinvented-it?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3217542/how-iconic-chinese-restaurant-hong-kong-full-childhood-memories-lives-family-have-reinvented-it?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 19 Apr 2023 05:27:28 +0000 If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. That’s Adrian Yan Ka-chun’s approach to preserving the 107-year-old coconut candy recipe passed down through his family for generations. After all, this is what has made Yan Chim Kee a household name in Hong Kong and beyond. Adrian’s great grandfather Yan Lun-lap founded the Yan Chim Kee confectionery company in 1915, after finding success selling his home-made sweets – produced from fresh coconuts imported from Malaya (in modern-day Malaysia) – on the street in... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3202368/if-it-aint-broke-dont-fix-it-how-staying-original-has-helped-hong-kong-coconut-sweet-brand-yan-chim?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3202368/if-it-aint-broke-dont-fix-it-how-staying-original-has-helped-hong-kong-coconut-sweet-brand-yan-chim?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 07 Dec 2022 23:15:08 +0000 With more customers expecting cosmetics to be cruelty-free, companies that ban animal testing can improve their corporate image and even boost sales, animal-rights advocates claim. However, a marketing professor warned of a negative impact if a ban comes across as just a sales gimmick. Lawmaker Gary Chan Hak-kan said animal welfare had become a growing concern in Hong Kong, and cosmetics companies that adopted cruelty-free policies would attract new customers. The animal-rights campaigner and... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1582387/market-animal-tested-cosmetics-thing-past?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1582387/market-animal-tested-cosmetics-thing-past?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 31 Aug 2014 21:55:06 +0000 Animal-welfare advocates are pressing for mandatory labelling to allow customers to easily identify which cosmetics have been tested on animals. The call comes as some European cosmetics brands continue animal-testing outside Europe - despite a complete ban in the EU itself on the sale or import of new cosmetics developed through animal testing. "The fact that a brand is from Europe doesn't, unfortunately, mean that products sold in Hong Kong are cruelty-free; many companies reserve the option... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1582483/eye-shadow-was-tested-rabbits-call-mandatory-labelling-cosmetics?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1582483/eye-shadow-was-tested-rabbits-call-mandatory-labelling-cosmetics?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 31 Aug 2014 21:55:06 +0000 Nine in 10 Hongkongers believe apartment prices are too high and more than a third fear they will go even higher. While it comes as little surprise, the numbers were confirmed in a university poll where barely one in 10 of the 738 people polled expected prices to fall. Surveyor Charles Chan Chiu-kwok said flats were already too expensive and he saw little room for further increases. He also said he saw little likelihood of government market-cooling measures being withdrawn soon. The study -... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1581293/hongkongers-left-flat-ever-rising-apartment-prices-survey-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1581293/hongkongers-left-flat-ever-rising-apartment-prices-survey-says?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 27 Aug 2014 21:00:15 +0000 Ocean Park says its new haunted house is so scary it will require visitors to sign a disclaimer in case they fall ill or even die of fright after visiting it. But while the theme park admits this is just a marketing gimmick for its Halloween attraction, lawyers say a properly drafted document could in fact protect the park from potential claims if something did go awry. Ocean Park says this is the first time it has introduced such a requirement for one of its attractions. The haunted house,... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1580908/ocean-parks-new-haunted-house-may-just-scare-life-out-you?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1580908/ocean-parks-new-haunted-house-may-just-scare-life-out-you?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 26 Aug 2014 21:49:34 +0000 The number of children whose families are in the queue for public housing has jumped 30 per cent in three years and now tops 100,000, a welfare group says. A family of four now has to wait six to seven years on average to be allocated a public rental flat despite a pledge by Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying to ease the shortage of government-subsidised housing, according to Sze Lai-shan of the Society for Community Organisation (Soco). "These families have to wait for such a long time that some... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1580445/100000-children-queue-public-rental-flats?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1580445/100000-children-queue-public-rental-flats?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 24 Aug 2014 21:30:30 +0000 The Law Society's council meets today to decide the fate of its president, with two members suggesting he should resign. Stephen Hung Wan-shun, a vice-president, has been tipped as the next leader. The council, comprising 20 senior solicitors, is expected to follow up on the results of an extraordinary general meeting last Thursday, when a vote of no confidence in president Ambrose Lam San-keung was passed by a wide margin. "I will make an announcement in due course," Lam said yesterday when... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1576346/law-society-meets-decide-president-ambrose-lams-fate?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1576346/law-society-meets-decide-president-ambrose-lams-fate?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 18 Aug 2014 20:15:00 +0000 More than 800 people took part in a run through Hong Kong yesterday morning to oppose the Occupy Central campaign, but it was well below the 10,000 figure organisers had hoped for. The anti-Occupy Central supporters ran from Victoria Park in Causeway Bay to Chater Road, Central. The Alliance for Peace and Democracy, which organised the event, also hosted the march along the same route in the afternoon. A number of runners waved national flags and wore T-shirts sporting messages of support for... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1575708/more-800-take-part-anti-occupy-run-while-march-draws-thousands?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1575708/more-800-take-part-anti-occupy-run-while-march-draws-thousands?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 17 Aug 2014 21:56:55 +0000 Hong Kong's de facto central bank chief Norman Chan Tak-lam warned that the city's financial system could come under pressure when the United States raises its interest rates - a day after Financial Secretary John Tsang Chun-wah said the city's economy may face a "perfect storm". Their comments came as some economists warned that the outbreak of Ebola had added extra uncertainty to Hong Kong's economic outlook, which is already clouded by political turmoil, stubbornly high home prices and... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1571643/hong-kong-monetary-authority-chief-norman-chan-adds-gloom-economy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1571643/hong-kong-monetary-authority-chief-norman-chan-adds-gloom-economy?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 11 Aug 2014 15:30:15 +0000 The 2,000 chickens that died mysteriously in Yuen Long this week may have fallen ill because their coops became "too stuffy" after fans stopped working because of a power failure. Regal Cheng Chin-keung, the director of Hong Kong Poultry (Kamei Chicken) Development, said yesterday that the power went out at the farm several days ago because of a storm. "The fans did not work," said Cheng, whose company sells chicks to the Yuen Long farm. The farm raises the chicks and gives them back to the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1570785/chickens-yuen-long-farm-may-have-died-overheating?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1570785/chickens-yuen-long-farm-may-have-died-overheating?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 10 Aug 2014 22:10:51 +0000 The deadliest Ebola epidemic in history continued its spread yesterday, as a brief scare in Hong Kong highlighted the risk of an outbreak in the city.  A Nigerian man, 32, who arrived from the Ebola-stricken African country on Thursday, was rushed to hospital yesterday with vomiting and diarrhoea, early symptoms of the virus. However, tests proved negative. While health experts believe Hong Kong is unlikely to see an Ebola outbreak, they have stressed the need for vigilance, given the city’s... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1570697/nigerian-staying-hong-kongs-chungking-mansions-tests-negative-ebola?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1570697/nigerian-staying-hong-kongs-chungking-mansions-tests-negative-ebola?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 10 Aug 2014 10:47:17 +0000 Hong Kong's efforts to keep the deadly Ebola virus at bay could be stymied by the reluctance of African visitors to give contact details to health officials, the city's health protection chief said. Dr Leung Ting-hung, controller of the Centre for Health Protection, said it would be difficult to follow the lead of Macau and make daily contact with visitors from areas affected by the deadliest ever outbreak of the virus, which has killed more than 700 people since March. "Each place has its own... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1565695/hong-kong-wont-follow-macaus-lead-ebola-health-protection-chief-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1565695/hong-kong-wont-follow-macaus-lead-ebola-health-protection-chief-says?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 03 Aug 2014 21:00:45 +0000 The government will review the regulation of cooked-meat imports after the "rotten meat" scandal that has engulfed McDonald's in Hong Kong and a mainland supplier. "We will be open to lawmakers' suggestions and study whether we can set up laws to better monitor imported cooked meat," undersecretary for food and health Sophia Chan Siu-chee said yesterday. Under current law, importation of cooked meat does not require a permit. But traders have to keep proper records and provide them when asked.... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1561345/hong-kong-eyes-new-food-import-regulations-after-rotten-meat-scandal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1561345/hong-kong-eyes-new-food-import-regulations-after-rotten-meat-scandal?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 28 Jul 2014 19:45:00 +0000 Food safety authorities in Hong Kong say they were misled by McDonald’s during its investigation last week into whether rotten meat from a factory in Shanghai was sold to Hongkongers. Dr Lee Siu-yuen, the assistant director of food surveillance and control at the Centre for Food Safety, said the government was told by the fast food giant last Tuesday that it had imported food from the Hebei plant, rather than the Shanghai plant, of Husi Food Company, the firm at the centre of the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1561221/mcdonalds-misled-hong-kong-food-safety-authority-about-rotten-meat?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1561221/mcdonalds-misled-hong-kong-food-safety-authority-about-rotten-meat?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 28 Jul 2014 10:30:45 +0000 The government is "monitoring" the growing use of smartphone apps for passengers to arrange vehicle hire to ensure they comply with the law, a senior official told lawmakers yesterday. Undersecretary for transport and housing Yau Shing-mu told members of the Legislative Council's transport panel that the use of such apps was a "growing trend". His comments came in the week US-based Uber launched its private-hire service in the city. But much of the concern yesterday focused on apps that allowed... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1556217/government-probes-vehicle-hire-apps?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1556217/government-probes-vehicle-hire-apps?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 18 Jul 2014 20:02:52 +0000 ATV is likely to be saved from another winding-up action after the station repaid a HK$200 million loan and partial interest. Brothers and former station directors Payson Cha Mou-sing and Johnson Cha Mou-daid launched the legal action in April after ATV failed to repay a loan of HK$200 million owing since August 2008 that had accumulated interest of about HK$91 million. At a hearing of the winding-up petition in the Court of First Instance yesterday, barrister Wilson Leung, for the brothers,... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1548875/atv-repays-hk200m-loan-cha-brothers?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1548875/atv-repays-hk200m-loan-cha-brothers?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 07 Jul 2014 19:42:35 +0000 Law firms risk having to keep an increasing amount in property taxes paid by clients because of a delay in passing legislation to enact a doubling of stamp duty, the financial chief claims. The extra stamp duty has been collected on transactions since February last year, but will not be paid to the government until it is enshrined in law. In his weekly blog yesterday, John Tsang Chun-wah complained about filibustering and wrote that the delay in passing the measure had forced law firms to keep... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1548273/unpaid-property-taxes-piling-law-firms-risk-legco-delays-stamp-duty?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1548273/unpaid-property-taxes-piling-law-firms-risk-legco-delays-stamp-duty?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 06 Jul 2014 21:45:00 +0000 The health minister says he will find out why expired surgical sutures were used on 239 patients at Queen Elizabeth Hospital last year, and see if there is a way to prevent it from happening again. The hospital on Saturday admitted it used the sutures on heart patients between July and December, after the sutures had expired in June. Of the 239 patients, 33 later died, but the hospital said the deaths were unrelated to the use of the sutures. A preliminary assessment by experts did not find any... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1548186/health-authority-look-expired-sutures-use-queen-elizabeth-hospital?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1548186/health-authority-look-expired-sutures-use-queen-elizabeth-hospital?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 06 Jul 2014 21:43:02 +0000 Dance teacher Lee Ka-ying, who died on Thursday after undergoing liposuction at a private clinic specialising in hair transplants, had given birth to a baby daughter nine months ago and weighed 113kg at the time of her death, it emerged yesterday. About 1.7 litres of fat were extracted from the 32-year-old mother of one by a woman general practitioner who was believed to have been the patient's friend for more than 10 years, according to initial police inquiries. Lee was accompanied to the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1541994/dead-liposuction-patient-was-new-mum?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1541994/dead-liposuction-patient-was-new-mum?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Jun 2014 19:45:30 +0000 General practitioners may face tighter controls or even a blanket ban on carrying out liposuction or other high-risk medical procedures, the health minister says. Non-specialist doctors are at present allowed to perform liposuction, but in future, certain types of work would fall within the remit of specialists only, Secretary for Food and Health Dr Ko Wing-man said. Ko expressed "deep concern" yesterday over the death of dance teacher Lee Ka-ying, 32, who lost consciousness after a session to... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1541998/liposuction-tragedy-prompt-tighter-controls-gps?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1541998/liposuction-tragedy-prompt-tighter-controls-gps?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Jun 2014 19:41:34 +0000 The city's four biggest accounting firms have joined in a statement condemning Occupy Central for its planned civil disobedience action. The so-called Big Four - Ernst & Young, KPMG, Deloitte and PricewaterhouseCoopers Hong Kong - said they opposed the pro-democracy movement for its potential "adverse and far-reaching impact" on the local legal system, social order and economic development. The accounting firms claimed that multinational corporations and investors might move their regional... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1541672/reform-poll-hits-750000-votes-accounting-firms-condemn-occupy-central?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1541672/reform-poll-hits-750000-votes-accounting-firms-condemn-occupy-central?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Jun 2014 07:45:15 +0000 The prosecution will continue to lay its case before the jury today, after accusing the city's former chief secretary of being paid to be the "inside man" of property tycoons Thomas and Raymond Kwok. Prosecutor David Perry QC also laid bare yesterday the painstaking methods allegedly used to conceal those payments. Rafael Hui Si-yan, 66, faces eight charges related to bribery and misconduct in public office. Sun Hung Kai Properties co-chairman Thomas Kwok Ping-kwong, 62, faces one charge of... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1526492/live-rafael-hui-kwok-brothers-return-court-prosecution-continues-make?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1526492/live-rafael-hui-kwok-brothers-return-court-prosecution-continues-make?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 06 Jun 2014 02:12:35 +0000 The tourism industry is expecting a big rise in the number of Hong Kong travellers flocking to South Korea for the summer holidays this year. Besides Hongkongers' seemingly insatiable appetite for Korean television series - including the latest hit My Love From the Star - political instability in Thailand is also expected to channel travellers to the country, as well as to Japan and Taiwan, says Travel Industry Council executive director Joseph Tung Yao-chung. And that combination of factors... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1523355/hit-tv-shows-driving-rise-visits-south-korea?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1523355/hit-tv-shows-driving-rise-visits-south-korea?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 01 Jun 2014 21:20:49 +0000 The judge presiding over the city's most high-profile corruption case "reluctantly" discharged the jury barely an hour into the hearing yesterday. The collapse of the nine-strong jury, which had been sworn in on Monday, was prompted by the exit of a juror who complained of illness. While sitting there listening to the case, [your recovery is] not running any risk MR JUSTICE ANDREW MACRAE This resulted in the adjournment until Wednesday of the High Court case alleging former chief secretary... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1520286/corruption-trial-delayed-judge-reluctantly-discharges-jury?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1520286/corruption-trial-delayed-judge-reluctantly-discharges-jury?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 28 May 2014 05:45:15 +0000 Lawyers for the five defendants in Hong Kong's highest-profile corruption case yesterday challenged 19 potential jurors without giving a reason - six fewer than is allowed under the Jury Ordinance. The right to challenge without reason applies only to the defence, with each defendant getting five such challenges. A total of 38 people in the jury pool were balloted during the empanelling process in the case of Thomas Kwok Ping-kwong and Raymond Kwok Ping-luen, co-chairmen of Sun Hung Kai... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1519803/picking-jury-high-profile-case-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1519803/picking-jury-high-profile-case-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 26 May 2014 20:15:15 +0000 The long-awaited trial of the city's most high-profile corruption case has been adjourned until tomorrow morning after one of the jurors of the nine-member panel was absent for "not feeling well".  The opening of the prosecution was due to begin at 2.30pm, with about 30 photographers and TV crew members eagerly awaiting the arrival of the defendants and the high-profile lawyers hired by both sides. Hui arrived this morning dressed in a navy suit and carrying a drink ahead of the hearing, which... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1519619/graft-trial-hui-kwok-brothers-called-one-juror-unwell?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1519619/graft-trial-hui-kwok-brothers-called-one-juror-unwell?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 26 May 2014 04:00:15 +0000 Pressure is mounting for implementation of a reform recommended eight years ago to end custody disputes between divorcing parents. The Law Reform Commission proposed in 2005 that the term "child custody" in family law be replaced with "parental responsibility", a non-absolute concept that cannot be fought over in the courts and that is designed to save parents time and money by avoiding legal disputes. A public consultation on the proposal was launched in December 2011 and it was discussed in... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1294312/calls-grow-end-child-custody-clashes?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1294312/calls-grow-end-child-custody-clashes?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 04 Aug 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Fung shui guru turned Christian Peter Chan Chun-chuen was on the point of screaming he was innocent as the judge sent him to jail for 12 years last month. But Chan says he drew on the strength of his new-found faith and held his tongue. "As I was about to stand up and scream my innocence out loud, I heard the Holy Spirit tell me to calm down. I struggled in my heart and eventually kept quiet," said Chan, fielding questions from the South China Morning Post through one of his friends who visited... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1293665/peter-chan-i-am-famous-being-unpopular-i-will-make-use?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1293665/peter-chan-i-am-famous-being-unpopular-i-will-make-use?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 01 Aug 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Senior barrister Keith Yeung Kar-hung will be appointed the first Hong Kong Chinese director of public prosecutions next month. He takes over from the incumbent, Kevin Zervos. The appointment of the commercial litigation specialist met with mixed reactions. A veteran lawyer called into question Yeung's reported ties with rich and powerful businessmen. A former deputy High Court judge, Yeung, 48, vowed to be fair and impartial and uphold the rule of law. "The system of criminal prosecution is a... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1293725/barrister-keith-yeung-be-first-hong-kong-chinese-chief-prosecutor?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1293725/barrister-keith-yeung-be-first-hong-kong-chinese-chief-prosecutor?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 01 Aug 2013 16:00:00 +0000 It was compatibility - not black magic or a spell - that kept tycoon Nina Wang Kung Yu-sum in love with him, Peter Chan Chun-chuen, the self-styled fung shui master, has claimed from jail. In fact, they were such a perfect match that they never once squabbled, and even talked about Chan getting a divorce and marrying Wang, he said. Chan, 53, who until recently went by the name Tony, was replying to South China Morning Post questions through a friend of his who visited him in prison last week. "I... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1293487/nina-wang-and-i-were-perfect-match-says-jailed-peter-chan?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1293487/nina-wang-and-i-were-perfect-match-says-jailed-peter-chan?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 31 Jul 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying is set to receive an "unwelcome" or even "unfriendly" reception from students of half of the city's eight major tertiary institutions if he attends their graduation days later this year. The blunt warning comes from the student unions of the University of Hong Kong, Chinese University, Baptist University and City University, although Leung's office has not said whether he will attend the ceremonies, to be held between October and December. The Chief Executive... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1291490/citys-universities-wont-put-out-welcome-mat-chief-executive?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1291490/citys-universities-wont-put-out-welcome-mat-chief-executive?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 26 Jul 2013 16:00:00 +0000 The government may introduce a new law enabling public agencies to apologise without fear of legal liability. The Department of Justice said last night that a steering committee, chaired by Secretary for Justice Rimsky Yuen Kwok-keung, had been formed last year to study the need for such legislation. The department was responding to a suggestion yesterday by Ombudsman Alan Lai Nin that a law might be required to overcome official reluctance to say sorry. "Government officials may not apologise... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1288645/plan-make-it-easier-say-sorry?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1288645/plan-make-it-easier-say-sorry?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 22 Jul 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Prophecies, mystical numbers and holy voices have left jailed feng shui conman Peter Chan Chun-chuen "joyful" after his first two weeks behind bars - and he has already started writing a book, according to one of his visitors. Chan, who recently renounced geomancy for Christianity, was not desperate to get out; rather the man jailed for 12 years for forging the will of the late billionaire Nina Wang Kung Yu-sum believes his fate is in God's hands. But he has filed an appeal. Peter said he was... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1285743/conman-peter-chan-joyful-prison-after-holy-spirit-spoke-him?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1285743/conman-peter-chan-joyful-prison-after-holy-spirit-spoke-him?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 18 Jul 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Two Spanish brothers who were reported missing in Hong Kong are believed to have returned to their home in Spain. Pictures posted at 5.30pm yesterday on the Facebook page of Miguel Hermansanz, 10, show him at home in Madrid. The photos appeared online about 55 hours after closed-circuit television showed Miguel and his brother Nicolas, 11, leaving their home in Pok Fu Lam at about 10am on Monday. In another picture, which the boys sent to a friend in France, they are seen at home together. The... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1284882/mum-fears-dad-took-her-sons-spain-missing-persons-case?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1284882/mum-fears-dad-took-her-sons-spain-missing-persons-case?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 17 Jul 2013 16:00:00 +0000 The waiting times for both civil and criminal trials in the Court of First Instance have soared up to 50 per cent over targets for last year. The judiciary said lengthening waiting times were the result of many factors, including the retirement of judges, longer and more complex cases, the deployment of judicial manpower in the High Court "as a result of the elevation of judges to higher positions", and a rise in caseloads. The number of civil cases coming before the Court of First Instance has... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1282796/waiting-times-lengthen-civil-criminal-cases?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1282796/waiting-times-lengthen-civil-criminal-cases?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 14 Jul 2013 16:00:00 +0000 The summer of 2009 was a special time for young banker Kenneth Kan Cham-chung. Then a second-year business student at the University of Science and Technology, Kan gave up an opportunity to do what most of his classmates did, which was to take an internship with a commercial firm. Instead, he and a few school friends chose to volunteer as mentors to a group of ethnic minority teens as part of a community programme jointly run by the university, the Hong Kong Christian Service and property... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1282664/young-mentors-building-bridges?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1282664/young-mentors-building-bridges?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 14 Jul 2013 16:00:00 +0000 The wife of failed chief executive contender Henry Tang Ying-yen has become the first public figure to be criminally liable for illegal structures after pleading guilty in court yesterday. Lisa Kuo Yu-chin admitted one of two counts relating to the construction of an illegal basement in the couple's luxury villa at Kowloon Tong. The prosecution planned to withdraw the second count if Kuo, 58, admitted the facts of the first summons, Kowloon City Court was told. But it has not made the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1280243/henry-tangs-wife-pleads-guilty-over-illegal-basement?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1280243/henry-tangs-wife-pleads-guilty-over-illegal-basement?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 11 Jul 2013 05:58:58 +0000 Calls for Leung Chun-ying to step down as chief executive are mounting, with a top legal scholar describing it as "one of the options" to ease social tensions and a public confidence crisis. "The calls during the July 1 protest to ask C.Y. to step down were loud and clear. This reflects that the discontent of Hong Kong people and their distrust of the government have reached boiling point," said Johannes Chan Man-mun, dean of the faculty of law at the University of Hong Kong, and a member of... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1278160/cy-should-quit-ease-tension-hku-law-dean-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1278160/cy-should-quit-ease-tension-hku-law-dean-says?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 08 Jul 2013 16:00:00 +0000 A better structured and supervised training system for trainee solicitors would be a more effective means of ensuring higher professional standards than the controversial plan by the Law Society to introduce a new qualifying exam, say law deans. Both Professor Johannes Chan Man-mun and Professor Christopher Gane, law deans of the University of Hong Kong and Chinese University, respectively, hit out at the Law Society's proposal to introduce a common qualifying exam for solicitors to replace the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1277513/deans-call-better-training-systems?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1277513/deans-call-better-training-systems?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 07 Jul 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Looking scared and red-faced, Peter Chan Chun-chuen was locked up on Thursday after he was found guilty of forging a will purportedly left by late billionaire Nina Wang Kung Yu-sum. After almost 20 hours of deliberation, a Court of First Instance jury of five men and three women found the 53-year-old businessman, previously known as Tony Chan, guilty of forgery and using a false instrument. He will be sentenced on Friday. Chan attempted to use the forged will to claim Wang’s HK$83 billion estate... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1275442/peter-chan-guilty-forging-will-late-tycoon-nina-wang?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1275442/peter-chan-guilty-forging-will-late-tycoon-nina-wang?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 04 Jul 2013 12:09:31 +0000 Veteran solicitor Thomas So Shiu-tsung has a legal qualification from the mainland, but says he and fellow Hong Kong lawyers are nothing more than "second-class citizens" across the border. "Our practice on the mainland is still very restricted," says So, a commercial litigation specialist and vice-president of the Law Society. "For example, we can't undertake any litigation involving criminal law or administrative issues. Even for commercial cases, we can handle only those involving Hong... https://www.scmp.com/business/economy/article/1274787/were-second-class-citizens-mainland-china-says-hong-kong-lawyer?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/economy/article/1274787/were-second-class-citizens-mainland-china-says-hong-kong-lawyer?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 03 Jul 2013 16:00:00 +0000 A controversial proposal to change the way certain criminal offences are punished is set to ignite heated public debate. The Law Reform Commission has suggested in its latest report that the list of so-called excepted offences - those for which judges currently have no discretion to impose suspended sentences - be completely repealed. The reform commission has launched a three-month public consultation that ends on September 23. Under the current system, judges sentencing individuals who have... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1272613/judges-may-get-freer-hand-sentencing?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1272613/judges-may-get-freer-hand-sentencing?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 30 Jun 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Hong Kong lawmakers yesterday lambasted the American government's "loose practice of the rule of law", even as a top US diplomat warned of difficulties ahead in mending relations between the city and Washington. Amid the war of words, US President Barack Obama sought to downplay the international chase for whistle-blower Edward Snowden, dismissing Snowden as "a 29-year-old hacker". Snowden, who is now 30, is wanted on espionage charges for leaking details of secret US government... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1270635/hong-kong-lawmakers-blast-us-request-snowden-arrest-sloppy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1270635/hong-kong-lawmakers-blast-us-request-snowden-arrest-sloppy?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 27 Jun 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Washington's failure to answer questions about cybersnooping in Hong Kong was part of the reason the city was unable to hold Edward Snowden, the justice minister said last night as he hit back at claims that local authorities stalled on arresting the American whistle-blower. Rimsky Yuen Kwok-keung said the lack of a response to the former National Security Agency contractor's claim of US hacking in the city and a failure by American authorities to clarify aspects of their request for an arrest... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1268958/us-failure-clarify-snowden-papers-tied-hks-hands-says-justice-chief?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1268958/us-failure-clarify-snowden-papers-tied-hks-hands-says-justice-chief?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 25 Jun 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Hong Kong has hit back at US criticism over the way it handled whistle-blower Edward Snowden, saying Washington failed to provide crucial information it needed to legally detain or prevent the former CIA analyst from leaving the city. Reliable sources with knowledge of the government's handling of the case have told the Post that a lack of detailed evidence to support the charges Washington outlined against Snowden and insufficient passport information - including Snowden's full name and... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1268253/us-failed-give-hong-kong-crucial-information-snowden-arrest?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1268253/us-failed-give-hong-kong-crucial-information-snowden-arrest?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 24 Jun 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Restaurants that use gimmicks such as offering a dish for just HK$1 while charging for unspecified extras could in future be committing an offence under the Trade Descriptions Ordinance. This was one of several examples given in the final version of new enforcement guidelines for Customs and Exercise and Communications Authority officers. The ordinance now covers services as well as goods. The guidelines will come into effect on July 19. The guidelines cited an example of promoting chicken for... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1267517/restaurants-hk1-chicken-wont-fly-under-new-trade-rules?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1267517/restaurants-hk1-chicken-wont-fly-under-new-trade-rules?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 23 Jun 2013 16:00:00 +0000 The High Court has reserved judgment in a case centred on whether the Housing Authority is responsible for HK$71 million in outstanding management fees. The fees derive from unsold subsidised flats at two blocks in Tin Chung Court in Tin Shui Wai taken off the market due to a short-piling scandal in 1999. Mok Yim-hay, who owns one of the flats in a separate block, is pursuing a lawsuit against the authority to establish its responsibility for the management fees. The Legal Aid Department... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1265277/hk71m-bill-short-piling-estate?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1265277/hk71m-bill-short-piling-estate?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 20 Jun 2013 16:00:00 +0000 People living on the mainland will soon be able to seek advice from Hong Kong lawyers without crossing the border, the Law Society's new president has announced. Ambrose Lam San-keung described the new arrangement as a "breakthrough". He said details would be formally announced by mainland authorities within the next two months and would involve Qianhai special economic zone and Shenzhen. The development follows two years of campaigning and research by the Law Society. "We are looking not only... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1263124/hong-kong-lawyers-gain-permission-advise-mainland-clients?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1263124/hong-kong-lawyers-gain-permission-advise-mainland-clients?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 17 Jun 2013 16:00:00 +0000