The Correspondent, December 1990 by The Foreign Correspondents' Club, Hong Kong

CONTENTS

The Swire Group

Hi-jacked

Ì¡" THD FOREIGN CORRESPONDENTS' CLUts

'¡

t-: :-|

.r=

North Block, 2 Lou'er Albert Road, Hong Kong. Telephone: 521 i511 Fax:8fì8 4092 President

Paul Bavficld

F-irst Vice-President Second Vice.President

- Pcter Sei(ìlìtz - Saul Lpckhart

Correspondent Member Governors

John Andrervs, Bob Davis, Petcr Grvynne, Robin Mo¡'er, Chris Petcrson, Claudja Rosett, llfichael Taylor, Steve Vines

Stern's Asia correspondent, Stephan Reisner and Toþo-based photographer, Greg Davis, were on a Thai flight to Rangoon when the plane was hijack-

ed by Burmese "Justice and Liberfy Warriors". After 18 hours in the aircraft, Reisner found, much to his chagrin, that he then had a battle to get space from the news desk, who did not greet with a great deal of enthusiasm, a happy ending, hi-jack story filed in the middle of the night on a weekend.

L4-ls

Charity evening raises HK$62,OOO

Journalist Member Governors David Thurston. Stuart \\'olfendale

.-l

Associate Member Governors a

h .{

Ken Ball, Wendy Hughes, Peter Humble, Dorothy Ryan

'L.

THE FCC rocked with music and laughter for the club's first charity event in aid of the

Professional Committee: Cblr,elor: Paul Bayiield, M¿lrá¿r.s: Petcr Seidlitz, Peter Humble, Saul Lockhaft, Dorothy Ryan, Wendy Hughes, Pcter Grvynne, Stuar¡ lYolfendale, Nlichael Taylor, Bob Davis

,rf

Macau-based Father Lancelot Rodrigues'

projects for handicapped children ard refugees on November 9. The generouslysponsored event, with raffle prizes offering air trips to Europe and other destinations, raised

Membership Committee: Stcçe Vines, John Andrervs

,l{zrrrirrs: Nlichael Taylor

Video Committee:

l-I

David Thurslon, .lferlárrs: Dorothy Ryan, Ken Eall, Paul Bayfield Col¿'¿r¡o¡:

Publications Cornmittee:

Col¿zl¡or: Saul Lockhart, ilrubrrs: Paul Bayfield, Bob Daris, Ì\¡endy Hughes, David Thurston, Stuart Wol{errlale, Ken Ball

Food and Beverage Consultation Group: Col¿¿llor: Chris Peterson, Menbut Mtke Snr¡th, Saul Lockhart, Jo Mayfield, Margarcl Bryan, Jim Sha*'

Club Manager: Heinz Grabner Club Steward: Julia Suen

In the new world of internatìonal travel the boundaries between East Ê

and West are rapidly fading. One air-

line understand this. Cathay Pacific.

iE. -G

¡,-

r-rl

It.

r.a a-

æì

.tD

We pioneered ultra long-haul inter-

' ¡fìt

,a^ I

continental flight. Bringing the world closer to our home, Hong Kong. Every

fìight we make is international, with flight attendants from 10 Asian lands. When it comes to helping you arrive in better shape, we know no boundaries.

mE cfnnËipflrltrJuT Editor:

Ron Knorvles

Advertising Manager: Ingrid Gregory EDITORIAL OFFICE: Asia Pacific Directories Ltd, 9/F Grand Vierv Comnrercia¡ Centre, 29'31 Sugar Strcet, Causervay Bay, Hong Kong Telephone: 577 9331;

Cathay Pacific. The Airline for a world where the Wild West

.a ,--

CATHAYPACIFIC Arrive in better shape.

O The Correspondent Opinions expresscd by rvriters are not necessarily those ol the Foreign Conespondents' Club. 'llhe Conespondent is published nonthly for and on behalf of The Foreign Correspondents' Club by:

9/l- Grand Vies' Comnrercial Centrc. 29-31 Sugar Strect, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong Tel:57? 9331 Fax:890 7287

Publisher: Vonnie Bishop i\tanaging Director: \likc [Jishara t'r irted b)' \\'illy Printing Co 13/l-, Derrick lnd Bldg , .19 \l'ong Chuk Iìang R<l , H l( Tcl:

Stockhouse celebrates 10 years srocKHousE, the picture agency founded by FCC

Board member Bob Davis, has chalked up 10 years of success in Hong Kong. Thz Corresfondznl features some of the outstanding cover pictures the agency has provided for the region's leading publications during the past decade. 20-21

The basket case BANKER David Li proved to be a provocative luncheon guest speaker when he put forward a lively a-rgument for abandoning the Hong Kong dollar's

fixed rate against the US dollar in favour of pegging it to a basket of cuTTencles.

t6-17

Departments Prisoner at the bar

Wolfendale at large

t9-20

HKJA news

24-25

Videos

Frx: 890 7287

AsiaPacific Directories Ltd.

mèts the Far East.

more than HK$62,000.

Social Committee: Colrrlor; Dorothy Ryan,

And introducing a new style of crossword

Picture credits Page 7 Hugi Van Es; þage 11 Mark Grafutm; Greg Dauis; þages 16-17 knk of þages 14-15 East Asia; þage 20-21 Stockhouse; þage 22 Ray

Cranbourne. Thanks to Dauid Thurstùnfor hiswork

ùn the couer story and to the host of users of the club camera.

7.182

THE CORRESPONDENT DECEMRER

I99O

CLIIB NEWS

CLUBNEWS

A father who feels humble and proud noises. So far we have only recognised

Follou'ing thc gcncntus Ì"sþoitsc o.Í FCC mcmbcrs in aid o.t'Tcd Dm¡'cc ancl his_tonil¡, thc club hns rccciucd this grotcJiil ond nunitry

lcttcr iront Tcd's fatltcr.

Dear Friends of Ted Dunfee, Ted's mother and I are completely overwhelmed by the great generosity of so many nembers of your club. The total of the donations and the number of members donating makes us feel very humble and also leaves us with a feeling of great pride in our son, who must have been well liked by so many of you mostly, unfortunately, unknown to

My wìsh is that we had better news

LATENEWS

** And here's a late add fiom Graharn Hornel of the Pacific Asia Trayel Association in San Francisco. Ex-Hongkonger Hornel sent this fax to

illness ohell'for

family with respect to Ted's progress. I am enclosing a copy of a story that appear-

ed in the Vancouuer Pt'oaince on Sun-

us.

Ganl Marchant at the end of November.

ìf

ade my n'eekly call to Enid and Don Duufee in Crescent Beach this morning ... EXCELLENT nervs that, although still halting and somer¡'hat liniited as )'et, the power of basic speech has

returned to The Bear. In fact, he, in very

Sinclairesque fashion, is actually able to svvear quite impressivéty! TeA is due for an evaluation for the J.F. Strong rehab facility soon, but, right nou', he remains in Ward IC, Room 150 at the Lniversity Hospital.

There ain't no January

day, November 4. It outlines the problem that we have in obtaining Ted's admission to a rehabilitation hospital. It is a bit of a "Catch-22" situation, in that they want him to improve his cognitive powers and we think they are unlikely to improve without intensive physiotherapy,

speech therapy and occupational

therapy. We believe that Ted understands almost everything that is said to him and responds to requests when he has the

power to do so. The doctors have placed a plug in his tracheotomy recently and this enables him to make

one word - those of you who know Ted may not be surprised to know that the word was "no". I had told him that I was going to go and have a swim and asked him if he wanted to go with me. The "no" was audible to other patients and one of them said: "That was clear enough". In spite of what the doctors think, we have faith that he will come back. We know that it will be a long hard fight for

him, but we will be with him all the way. With the help given to us by so many members of your club and the prayers of so many people, and Ted's great strength, we believe he will prevail.

His older son, Sasha, is with our daughter and son-in-law and is a joy to us all. He goes in to see his father once a week and Ted really reacts to him. We expect his wife, Pung, and younger son, Satori, earþ next month and we are sure that their arrival will be of

THIS is the cover of Asia Technology that the readers never saw, for the day belore it was due to go to the printers its publishers closed

it.

The Review Publishing Company made the surprise announcement to the stunned staff on December 12. Eglington said the sales had "more than

vertising sales have been disappointfuig". So, after producing 15 issues, editor Peter

Gwynne, deputy editor Brian Jeffries, assistant editor Gregor Hodgson, editorial assistant SuJing Quah, designer Pat Elliott Shircore and artist-production assistant Stephen Yeung were out of work. Gwynne, a member of the FCC Board, Jeffries and Yeung were offered alternative þositions on the company's major publication, the Far Eastern Economic Review, but declined. The Review Publishing Company is a subsidiary of the US media operation, Dow Jones & Company Inc., which is currently undertaking global cost-cutting measures including the sale of the company's jet aircraft.

great benefit to Ted. I will write further to keep you up to date on Ted's progress as soon as there

is something new to reporl. In

the

meantime will you please accept this family's grateful thanks for all that you have done.

Weighty

A comprehensive problem-solving service for overseas residents More than an Offshore Banking Service - whether you ¿re working abroad for a short time or living more permanently overseas, you can benefit from the exclusive range of services offered by the Club.

decisions T,

The FCC's 39 readers in Singapore and Malaysia had to survive without the Asian Wall Street Journal editorial published in Ìast month's issue of The Corresþondznt. Page 18 of the issuè was blacked out for legal reasons at the request of the Jowrunl which is engaged in litigation with former Singapore Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew. For the mathematicians among you, if we had incurred the wrath of the Singapore Government and had sales restricted under its laws to 10% of existing distribution, only 3.9 readers would have the benefit of our words of wisdom. Would the committee have had the courage to go the whole hog and refuse to distribute? Could the club bear the

4 THE CORRESPONDENT DECEMBER

1990

Discounts on Pickfords Removals and Travel, Unit Trust Purchases, Properby Valuations and

other special offers from time-to-time. One centre for all your financial requirements. Call today for details or complete the coupon below. Lloyds Bank Plc, Personal Financial Services, 290f-4 Admiralty Centre, 18 Harcourt Road, Hong Kong. Tel: 8232132, Fax: 5295592.

Despatch to: Graham Donald, Lloyds B¿nk Plc, 2901-4 Admiralty Centre, Tower Please send me details of the Lloyds Bank Overseas Club.

financial burden of loosing its circulation in Singapore and Malaysia? These are questions which weigh

iå?J"'lr="å,h:

And, finally, was the person blacking out the lournnl's story guilty of editorial

18 Harcourt Boad, Hong Kong

THE THOBOUGHBRED BANI(

heresy? Drawing the short straw was computer operator Gary Ngan Ka Siu.

THE CORRESPONDENT DECEMBER i99O 5

T AROT]ND THE

BAR CLUB NEWS

TTIE INNER CIRCLE

IT IS NICE

know that the congeniality of our bars still acts as a magnet to overseas visitors. Journalist/ author Russell Spurr, he of the bio-

graphical column inthe Sunday Morning Post and now living in Sydney, was seen at the bar. Former FCC stalwart, now in Queensland, Geoff Somers was there,

From the manager

The places to eat

staggering or shouting distance of the FCC

}Ieinz Grabner

of CBS cameraman Derek, popped in from their new base in Bangkok.

THE club's first wine and

cheese be success de-

evening turned out to spite earlier confusion concerning the exact date and time of the event, .and competition from the prevailing party

this was also well received. So much so that it is planned to hold this event on a regular basis, at which time participants will select the upcoming "Wines

And how many remember our former veteran barman captain, Mr Liao, who retired from the club in 1971 after decades of loyal service? Liao was awarded absent life membership on his retirement and was back in town visiting family. His new base is now Fosterville, California. Liao started serving drinks to the FCC'S founders in Chungking in 1943,

moved with the club to Nanking, Shanghai and eventually to Hong

Kong. His phenomenal memory match-

ing face with number with drink made him an integral part of the FCC legend. Also in town was Norman Hacking, retired shipping editor of the Vancouuer Sun and now a maritime historian. Calling in en route from a visit to China recently, Paul Routl edge, of The ObseruerinLondon, spent an evening in the bar reminiscing with his Hong Kong-based colleague, Steven Vines,

and old friend of UK days,

Ron

Knowles.

lìestdLr

r.ìnt ' A lìov.rì gournret del i tc ¡ü ¡i ts vou,

w,i

(7:l)0pnr -L0:rì0pn)

th \ .¡let

l).r

rkirrg Serr ict,

Take An¡\,s A delicious lrrrlian lndulgencc' We deliv€.r the lndulgcnce t(ìo, beth'een 7:0(l p nì - 10:U0 p m lVe a¡e still thcre ¡t 57-i9 Wl,ndh¿nì 5t, Central, H K, Tcl -24 9621, -2a aì19 ¡ntl ¡lso at our br,¡nc1 neu, place at (ìz F Connaught Crrnrmercial BuìLrling, lll5 \{¡nchai lìoad, H K, Tel lì91 8q¡J1,891 505..1 (()por¡tcJ

of The Month". Please markyour diaries for the next wine and cheese evening on Wednesday, January 16 from 7-9pm. This round, we will feature Italian wines. Still on wines, the selections for January are: White: 1989 Sancerre and 19BB Petit Chablis from J. Moreau & fils. Red: 1988 Chateau Laiande Medoc and 19BB Chateau Haut Laplange from J. Calvet & Cie. The club will be serving these wines by the glass and if you fall in love with any or all of them you can order stocks at wholesale price simply by ringing

the club office. Home delivery is free. The Red Cross blood collection on December 3 at the FCC was disappointing - only six members came

forward. Respectability was rescued by the 20 staff who lined up to give a pint rather than serve it. The next blood{etting will take place in March. The exact date will be confirmed later. Please note the arrangements for

club opening hours over the New Year period. The club will re-open after the New Year's Eve bash at mid-day on January 1, but there will be no lunch served in the main dining room. The annuai staff party will be held on Saturday, January 5, and the club will close at four o'clock in the afternoon on

that day. Thanks to Ronny Ling who won the Swiss Air prize of two return economy tickets to Bangkok ìn the "Father Lancélot" raffle. Ronny has kindly donated the tickets to the staffparly raffle. On behalf of maragement and staff of the FCC, I wish all members and their families a very happy Christmas and joyous and successful New Year.

J6¿* as

course, wilh its piano ambiance at 8-13, \ù/o On Lane, lst/F-., Central.

132 The Mall Pacific Place 88 O.I¡eensway Hong Kong TeI: 86-800-86 OR MANAGE

,%tæo

now, caters f<tr you either at home or for your business lunches in your office , as well for your boat parties, and, of

Ristorante Toscano

IF YOU OWN

D¡\YS OF THE \{ìtÈK br t nrnJ Br.L\enc\ lntr,rn¡riùn¡t)

Fine ltalian Food

tasting exercise into the evening and

farewells are ex-President Bert Okuley and Reuters' man Jonathan Sharp who has re-joined the bureau here.

I he

()l'l,N ALL

season. It was decided to incorporate a wine-

Back in town once again after hearty

The Ashoka '

PLEASE P.A,TRONISE THESE FCC SUPPORTERS

too. James Forslth dropped in from his base in Japan while Ha Williams, wife

within

Close Encounters of the Exotic lndian Kind

Rese

rvat¡on"

m.: 526 5965159loó

Ar¡r--r',

RESTAURANT OR

NITE SPOT NEAR THE FCC

Kitchen, our specialities are nostalgia and tradition, served fresh every day.

This is your invitation to join the INNER CIRCLE Ring Ingrid Gregory on 577 9331

(You'll

be surþrised.

at bow little

l-l

Vyndham Street, Central. Telephone: 526 5293

costs)

Busy times in the revamped workroom power behind the words of Stuart The .Wolfendale

is in evidence with this picture

showing the newly rebuilt club's workroom in full swing. Avid readers of Tåe Corcespondent will remember the rotund raconteur's words in the November issue ".. that the w* *k spaces provided more arm room if you wanted a kip and there was now tons of space for dumping your shopping." The unnamed member who anaesthetized himsell here is clearly a Wolfendale devotee. There is a nasty rumour currently doing the rounds of the main trar that some members are using the work room for working. This is something that calls for strong action from the manager and the professional committee.

Droþ The CorresþondBnt a note wheneuer a

former FCC member uisits or a sþecinl guest is at the bar.

6 THE CORRESPONDENT DECEMBER

1990

THE CORRESPONDENT DECEMBER

1990 7'

CLUB NEWS

fui evenmg with Father'LaugþsONE of the club's firstforaysin recent times into the charity field was reasonably successful. This took the form of a raffle which was drawn at a dinner at the FCC in aid of Father Lancelot Rodrigues' work with refugees in Macau ard the mentally handicapped of southern China.

Regiment

band. As the evening wore on the musi-

cal entertainment was taken over by are happy Father Lancelot whose baritone thundered out some solos and led what turned out to be a singalong of sorts. Some of the FCC's closet crooners

Even though the sale of raffle tickets was sluggish attimes (who didn't buy a book of tickets from Peter Seidlitz?Xor

leapt to the microphone and almost

some superb prizes, we managed to

for the raffle draw with his usual entertaining banter. Most of those who attended seemed

raise more than HK$62,000. The origirral idea was to have

There's no doubt that those who supported the Father Lancelot charity evening had a wonderful night out... and they were not afraid of showing their appreciation (above). Thedrawing of the raffle prizes produced a conspiratorial check between President Paul Ba¡{ield and MC Stuart Wolfendale, a disbelieving gasp from Father Lancelot and a look of stunned surprise from FCC manager Éleinz Grabner.

by a trio from the Welsh

parly

entertained us.

StuartÏ/olfendale weighed in as MC

on the three floors of the FCC for the

to have

drawing of the raffle, but the number of those interested was below that expected so we turned the event into a dinner in the dining room and verandah. The wine and the food flowed copiously with some easy-listening music

time. Later, the main bar witnessed the

great, if somewhat bizz,arre,

just-one-more and just-a-flushing-ale scenes that have become a tradition.

Paul Bayfield

4TH PRIZE:RONALD LING 2 ECONOMY CLASS RETURN

The winners

TICKETS TO BANGKOK

MEMBER of the club's staff, Shirley Kwong ( left ), won the main raffle pnze at the Father Lancelot charity evening. The full list of win-

STH PRIZE: S.R. ELLIS 2 ECONOMY CLASS RETURN TICKETS TO KAGOSHIMA

ners and the generous sponsors was:

6TH PRIZE:G. WILDE

Sponsor: SWISSAIR

DRAGONAIR 2 ECONOMY CLASS RETURN

TICKET TO SAPPORO Sponsor: JAPAN AIRLINES

1ST PRIZE: SHIRLEY K'ñ/ONG l BUSINESS CLASS RETURN

TICKET TO BERLIN

Sponsor: LUFTHANSA GERMAN

AIRLINES 3 NIGHTS ACCOMMODATION

BRISTOL HOTEL KEMPINSKI

Sponsor: HOTEL FURAMA 2ND PRIZE: GEORGE HUMBLE 1 ECONOMY CLASS RETURN TICKET TO LONDON

Sponsor: CATHAY PACIFIC

7TH PRIZE: ROBERTO CIIARD A WEEKEND IN THE GRAND

HYATT AT

Sponsor: GRAND IIYATT

HOTEL

8TH PRIZE: PAUL BA\.FIELD DINNER FOR T\A/O AT THE GRAND CAFE Sponsor: GRAND HYAT-T

HOTEL

AIRWAYS 9TH PRIZE: SHEILA DENNIS

8 THE CORRESPONDENT DECEMBER 1990

3RD PRIZE:F. CHAO 1 ECONOMY CLASS RETURN

DINNER FOR T\A/O AT NEW RISTORANTE IL MERCATO

TICKET TO ROME Sponsor: ALITALIA

Sponsor: TOP HONEST TRADING LTD

THE CORRESPONóENT DECEMBER

1990

PRISOI{ER AT THE BAR

PEOPLE

Fishy

ANGELINA Goh got the message when FCC Board

AT THE conclusion of a pieasant chat the other

tale LEE KUAN Yew's recent

visit

spawned

several

jokes. The best to reach Prisoner goes as follows: Lee is entertaining Mal-

aysian Prime Minister

Mohamad Mahathir for informal talks. It's a beautiful dayand he becomes impatient to get outside and enjoy the sunshine. " Let's forget about business for a while

and go fishing," he sug-

gests. Mahathir

feet and produces from a cupboard in his office the latest in carbon-fibre fishing rods with all the ancillary gadgets. They are sped by limousine to a lovely spot on the banks of a river and, while bodyguards amuse and themselves, Mahathir cast their rods.

Lee

Mahathir is improvising with a stick he has broken from a fallen branch, a piece of string and a bent pin.

Said David, who is the deputy editor of the Sundny Post colour magazine: "Angie was working for the New Zealand Tourist Board in Singapore, which was in the New Zealand High Commission. I think some of my cryptic endearments to Angie may have puzzled the security chaps there at

ethics and a code of conduct for public relations practition-

ers, I was most impressed. Then I excitedly thumbed through the section on freelancers to be confronted by a glaring omission the name of one of our finest is absent. If Fred doesn't- lift his game and repair this grievous error when this otherwise excellent publication goes to a reprint, I shall be forced to expose this solecism. I

Quick

off

Graham,for

thorough

pictorial record of the bash they threw at the FCC's Wyndham Room to celebrate their recent nuptials.

The Club camera

was

locked up, manager Heinz Grabner was not available, none of the regular photo-

in the main bar had their cameras grapher members

times."

Something for something

the mark

STEVE Proctor and Lorna Workman owe a debt to freelance member Mark

with them and the editor of

The

Corresþondenf was growing desperate, having allocated half of Page 11 to the party. Then Graham offered to go home for his camera. He downed his drink, dispatched Prisoner to a nearby 7-Eleven to buy film and dashed away to return with his camera 20 minutes later and earn everyone's gratitude.

THE ZOO

THE PUBLISHER reckons FCC members are pretty slack when it comes

to filling this column. "If you can't shame them in to contributing," she

said, "I'll put up a prize of one return ticket to Manila for the best contributed

piece for the "Prisoner" page in the first three months of 1991". "Done", said I. So, don't let me down out. I BYARTHUR HACKER

catches. Lee can't get a bite. He becomes increa-

grows and his keepnet remains empty. Finally, Lee sees a passing local and calls him overto ask: "Why can't I catch anything while

THIS

IS GLE

N. ..

OUR IÞEAS MAN./

d ,'(

shut."

10 THE CORRESPONDENT DECEMBER 1990

Hopingto avoid afuss, he had told them. simply that he and Lorna were taking a holiday in Malaysia. But no one was cheated out of a

Turner/Spurrier/Rowland learned of her marriage to Steve Proctor, deputy business editor of the Far Eastern Emrtm'b Reuitw, only when she faxed them with the news a couple of hours after the civil ceremony in Kuala Lumpur on November 1.

wedding party. On November 30 friends gathered inthe FCC's Wyndham Room iwhen the newlyweds held a celebratory lbash.

Adding to the crush were numerous gifts, including a colour caricature poitrait from Steve's former colleagues at the South Chinn Moming Postby Post artist Paul Best. The couple are also the proud stewards of an acre of rainforest in Belize - another gift, secured through a project operated by Friends of the Earth.

)'It

from me is reeling in a fish every two minutes?"

mouths

know of the wedding until his return.

o+) re

my friend 20 yards along

"Ah, respected leader," replies the man. "When Lee Kuan Yew is around, even the fish in Singapore know it is wiseto keep their

COLLEAGUES of Lorna Workman at one of the colony's leading PR agencies

Steve's colleagues at the Reuiew were also kept in the dark and did not

l/,

In no time the Malaysian leader is reeling in superb

singly frustrated as Mahathir's pile of fish

\ryEDDINGS

member David Thurston began sending her faxes at her office in Singapore. The tall English photographer she had met at an Asi¡t Magazine sales promotion party obviously wanted to get to know her better. The sweet talk by fax worked like a charm for David, because he and Angie were married in Hong Kong last month - 20 months after they first met.

directory, which even contains a section on advertising

agrees,

whereupon Lee leaps to his

the

day, Fred Armentrout, the agreeable publications manager of the American Chamber of Commerce, handed me a copy of his department's latest book Who's Who In Hong Kong Communications in the clear hope that I woulcl give it a favourable rnention in these columns. Since Fred is one of the best friends a freelance journalist could have, paying $2.50 per published word, I told him I would be happy to oblige. Flicking through the 312 pages of this neatly aranged

ttÐ THE CORRESPONDENT DECEMBER 1990 11

PEOPLE

Old friends in London

Viswa sets a hot pace in the slow

AUSTRALIAN-based George Mackenzie, recently in the UK on a "kooth and kulture" refresher colrrse, met up with old FCC hands Tommy Robefts, Dr Derek and Cynthia Seymour-Jones in London. All were on good form and

isiting Hong Kong for the fourth time since he moved to Manila in mid-Auzust, former editor of

wearing well. The amiable doctor and his beautiful

The

Viswa Nathan, says that he is getting entrenched in

wife hold court in a lovely old Wren house, within the grounds of the Royal Hospital where, as Derek puts it, "I

activities in the Philippines.

look after Chelsea antiques." His wardrobe of smart bow-ties has

not diminished, nor his ability as a raconteur of considerable style and humour.

Henry and Maggie Oakden had recently visited them from South Africa. On wibressing the splendours of the Royal Hospital, ex-Gurkha

ON THE shores of Lake Toya, formed

by a gigantic volcanic explosion, FCC members David Bell (rig-ht) and Mark Graham consider the state of affairs in Japan's Northern Island of Hokkaido. Things were pretty good, they decided. 8e11, PR manager for the Swire

a party of

Colonel Henry put his name down for

Group, was escorling

consideration as a future Captain of Invalids. If his number doesn't come up, he could always try reducing himself to the ranks and re-apply to be an inpatient. He could do worse. The Chel-

Hongkong-based journalists on a swing through the island, known as Japan's

sea Pensioner's home must be the best

kept secret 5-star hotel in London.

Wild North. Graham, a

prominent

freelancer whose travel pieces appear in numerous regional publications, was one of the writers on the trip. Cathay Pacific began a direct Hongkong-Sapporo service October,

which was the reason for the visit by Hongkong-based reporters. Hokkaido is unlike the rest of Japan.

Some travel writers on the journey felt the meadows and ski slopes were like

Switzerland, others that forests of silver beech and firs were like upstatc

New York, while others felt the large fields of beets and potatoes were reminiscent of Scandinavia. The discovery that two hunters had recentþ been mauled to death by some of the 7001b brown bears that inhabit the forests persuaded the scribes to stick close to the mineral spas and the bars.

On the move ... Reuiew - a return to the field after nearly three years as the Reuiew's regional editor. An Australian, Hamish

started in journalism vnth Tke Sydney Morning Herald in 1969 and after a four-year break freelancing in

AFTER five-and-a-half years with the Sowth Ckina Monring Posl assistant editor Tony Allison is moving to

HAMISH McDONALD leaves Hongkong this month for New Delhi, where he becomes the South Asia Bureau chief for the Far Eastern Econornic L2TIJE CORRESPONDENT DECEMBER

Corresþondent,

Thailand to become the Bangkok correspondent with Asia Magazine. Tony , a longtime FCC member, is filling the vacancy caused by Ted Dunfee's tragic illness. The 37-year old South African came to Hong Kong after a spell on the Rand Daily Mail in Johannesburg. He made headlines himself in July this year when he was a member of a sixman team who paddled their surf-skis from Aberdeen to San Fernando in the Philippines, covering the 1,000 kilo1990

Jakarta, was the SMH'S correspondent in Toþo from 1979 to 1984. He joined the Reuiew in 1984 as Sydneyt¡ased correspondent covering Australia and the South Pacific, and moved to Hong Kong in early 1988.

metres in five days and raising thousands of dollars for the Society for the

Protection of Children.

Nathan has been a frequent visitor to the Philippines for the past 20 years or so; yet he says: "Having lived in Hong Kong for nearþ three decades, Manila

different experience. Everything

moves relatively slow there; but you soon get adjusted to it." It took almost two months to set up the print-production services he was launching in Manila as a joint venture between Printline Ltd, which he founded in Hong Kong three years ago, and the Manila-based Metro Media Pub-

lishers Inc. The jointventure, Printlink Asia Inc., has already started attracting some of Manila's major corporations as its clients. A few of his close friends raised their

eyebrows when Nathan told them about his Philippine plan. Even his partners at Printline were not at all enthusiastic about the idea. Philippines today, admits Nathan, is a country fulI of problems. There are debilitating political rival-

Viswa Nathan (left) at Metro Media's executive committee meeting with (from right) vice-president-Marketing Francisco Ambas Jr., publisher Larcy Crsz arl.d. executive editor Abe Florendo. ries at all levels, the economy is in a very bad shape and even the roads of Manila are in their worst state of disrepair; "there are more potholes every mile of the road than you can count". But, he adds, this cannot go on for ever. The situation will have to change sooner rather than later. In his own area of interest, Nathan says, even in the present state of the

ness collection." The Japanese newspaper, No. 7

Shimbun, reported that in making its recommendations to librarians,

the Jowrnal surveyed more than 500 books on business, finance, management, economics and international trade. An account of

nesses in the mechanics of interna-

tional fina¡cial markets.

Arbel is a professor'of finance in

Cornell University's School of Hotel Administration. Former UPI vice-president, Al Kaff was president of the FCC in 1974-75. He also held the pre-

Toþo,

Kaffis currentlybusiness and in-

of Cornell's News Service and a frequent contributor to The Corræþondent. I ternational editor

Printlink, Nathan also doubles

senior vice president and chief operat-

ing officer of the joint venture's partner, Metro Media, which publishes

the city life monthly magazine Metro. Founded less than two years back by Manila's legendary Latry Cruz, the

and Marketing as one of the best

the 1987 stock market crash, the Kaff-Arbel work describes weak-

sidency of our sister club in the FCCJ, in 1967-68.

tion services - and this where his new venture is focusing its efforts. Apart from being the president of

magazine was recently ratedby Medin

Kaff scores with a new book News comes to us via Japan that Al Kaff's book (written with Professor A¡mer Arbel) Crosh: Ten Days in Octobu ... Wíll It Strihe Again? has been selected by the prestigious Library Jouruøl of New York City as one of "the 65 business books of 1989 that just might make the difference in your busi-

economy, there is sufficient demand in

Manila for good quality print-produc-

publications of its kind in Asia,

Crw's reason for teaming with

Nathan is embedded in his ambition to expand the operations of Metro Media as well as into publishing-related services. The group is now considering the launch of new magazines. Studies, says Nathan, have begun since his arrival in Manila to determine the market scope for a couple of new titles. "If the findings of these studies are comforhble, we will move into production quickly," he

says.

EDITOR'S NO?ð: Viswa Nathan's Manila base is: 1911 M, Adriatico Street, Malate, Metro Manila. Telephone Office: 527-760I or 522-2643; Residence: 831-9892. F ax: 522-2593.

THE CORRESPONDENT DECEMBER 1990 13

Story by Stephan Reisner Pictures by Greg Davis

.IS

Oh, no! Not another bloody hi-jack

THIS THE

STORY \ME

CAME TO GET?' Greg Davis

Stephan Reisner

ome of my dearest colleagues seem to have got it into their minds to make a regular habit of

asking me what in hell's name a fürman coffespondent has to look arotmd for in Asia while, in EuroPe and Germanv. the ouþut of historic news has quicicened by the daY, bY the hour, bY the minute. Well, a correspondent has to sit on his doubtfr.rl stockof knowledge waiting for an opportunity, for something to

On November 1O, a group of Burmese students calling themselves the "Justice and Liberty Warriors" hijacked a Thai Airu'ays flight during its 40-minute run between Bangkok and Rangoon. Among those on board were FCC members photographer, Greg Davis, and Stern journalist Stephan Reisner on assignment to Rangoon to garner a piece on

Burma's military rulers.

But in fact, he was not and the airline's own ru1e not to serve spirits

Rangoon, when we heard the very polite announcement of the captain:

journalistic conscience that told me we

Ladies and gentlemen, we have here

in the next edition of Sfurn - a rare

during a hijack turned out to be quite wise. Give a drink to some of those macho passengers with more than a passing acquaintance with Rambo and

a little problem. This aircraft has been hijacked and we are asked to go on to

How

Calcutta... (then followed details on

many stories did you file this week/ month/year?

weather-conditions there.)

Our immediate feeling, of course,

And it was with this very much in mind on the day in November on which and my friend, photographer Greg

was that our planned story on Burma's

Davis from Tokyo - who normally works for Tim¿ but for this special

been hijacked. Oh Calcutta!

lor Stem magasitting in the ztne ourselves found business class of a Thai Airways flight 20 minutes out of Bangkok heading for occasion was assigned

We're all in this together: Hi-jack_ers

milit¿ry rulers would be spoiled. But there was another in the making: We'd

It is known (as our great writer

C'oethe stated) that every

two souls in his breast

fürman has

- normally arguing with one another. So it was my

ald crew

were on the best track to get some space occllrrence in these epoch-making days elsewhere in the world. But as a passenger, and even as a Frequent Traveller's Club cardholder, I felt more than uncomfortable, a feeling accentuated when the aircraft suddenly bumped into a sudden nothingness, ph-rnged some thousand metres and, as everybody started to cry and to screaln, trays of food and plastic garbage fell to

the floor having hit the ceiling. Whatever it was that had caused that, I spent the next hour with my right heel in a plate of goo from the tourist class menu to think about. I said to Greg (and this will become the anecdote which all my friends will suffer hearing for the rest of my Hongkong days): When we are going to die, let's do it in some style. Iæt's have a drink." The stewardess refused. "The hijacker won't allow any alcoholic drinks." Oh shit, he is a Nloslem!

these are my demands

Mrs Pornsuang kept the hijacker busy

This finished, at the end of

by asking him to regulate the provision

drama, after all passengers had left the a photo of aircraft, with a group shot the entire crèw and both hijackers, who had apologised to every passenger as

of chocolates and medication to passen-

After 18 hours in the aircraft, Stephan had another battle on his hands: How to persuade the news desk to give hirn space for the story.

force

eated

I'm Hi-jacker ... and his bomb is a goddess

they'd have to be nailed to their seats or else they'd be the end of us all. The hijackers were later described by some ladies in an Indian newspaper as "well-dressed and polite kids". But we didn't find the one in the cabin so jolly, with his harsh voice and his explosive device a ceramic statue of a

grirìning Chinese goddess. He gave the order for all male passengers to move to the rear of the aircraft and for the ladies to move to the front. And so it was th.at a very complicated procession wandered through the full-seated Airbus, as nobody was allowed to come too closê to our hijacker. The crewmembers of ThaiAirways then proved in a admirable way how effective their five-month training on hijacking had been. The whole time,

gers and to organise the line of the visitors to the loo. And it was quite a while before we

finally noticed that the piped happyhour-piano-music had never stopped. Flight captain Mr Pundit requested the authorities at CalcutLa's Dum Dum Airport (named after the obscenely lethal projectiles which are fabricated

for an emergency landing which was, as we learned later, a genuine request; the Indians did not learn about our hijacking until we were already on the ground. Then, of course, we had to wait for the Indian anti-terrorist squad to be flown in from Delhi. The chief hijacker told us that one of there)

the

they left: "Sorr1r, sorr]¡". Thus ended what had been, luckily, the nicest hijacking in history. Fellow journalists from India were flown in from Delhi to attend the promised press conference. But we were not allowed. With the friendliest help from the night manager at the Oberoi hotel, we began to tell Stern's news desk of our experience. And so we learned two of the important mles of our grey-spacefilling-profession: Happy-ending hijackings are not as interesting as the bloody ones. Second: hijackings on weekends are inconvenient for all the new higtrly-

their demands was for an international press conference to inform the world of the cruel suppression of the democracy movement in Burma. Under the

sophisticated communication systems we are all so proud of. Especiallywhen you are trying to file your story at 3 o'clock in the morning

circumstances, we felt that the situation was ripe for us to dare ask the hijacker for a little bit of cooperation with us, the international media on the spot. He granted permission for pictures to be taken and Greg went to work.

from Calcutta. We did get some space, though and also a heap of justification for writing a future series on the effects of editorial victimisation of hijacked journalists. ' I

Vlhen we are going to die ... let's have a drink THE CORRESPONDENT DECEMBER 1990 15

LUNCHEOII SPEAKER

LUI\CHEOI\ SPEAKER

The basket case The proud owners of a relatively stable link to a relatively unstable cffTency By Mike Bishara

¡.f I were writing for the economic I version of the Sun, I would have lhad a lovely time with David Li's speech to FCC members on the merits

of the HK$:US$ peg So would the sub-editor. How about a poster-type, banner headline along

the style of Li Lavishes Odium

Boffins. Following on would have been a 48pt standfirst for the two percent of the readers that go on to tackle the big

words. "Hong Kong's governor designate, David Li, stunned a motley mix of hacks and business hoi polloi when, speaking at the posh FCC Club, he hinted that the boys at Monetary Affairs were little more than frightened wimps under the covert direction of ... (Ah, well, perhaps you should have come along). Alas, this is The Corresþondent andLt is far too smart a speaker to give us that licence. Instead, he presented a polished (and compelling)argument that discussion of the merits on the HK$:US$ peg in an open forum would not send

the currency into a tailspin as

the

authorities suspect; that the HK$ may be far better pegged to a basket of currencies than tied to the greenback.

Still, these are strong statements from the unopposed representative of the banking lobby in Hong Kong's Legislative Council (Legco); director and chief executive of the Bank of East

Chanqe in HKÊ:USS Erchange Bare

Asia the press' front runner for post-1997 governor and one of the few people in Hong Kong who manages to

remain in favour with Peking, Hong Kong and Whitehall, yet appears to side with none.

If Li has this kind of influence

banking and government circles, one may ask, why isn't the colony's economic strategy moving a bit faster in the direction of common sense? (Piers Jacobs notwithstanding). "With the notable exception of Hong

Kong government officials," said Li, "few individuals sincerely believe that the present HK$:US$ Linked Rate System can, or even should, remain in place indefinitely." This view, it must be said, is not new. The honourable member has been touting this idea around Legco for some time with about as much success as Elsie Tu has received in seeking basic justice for Vietnamese refugees or Martin Lee has had in keeping Legco awake long enough to get to the end of his question, let alone get an ansrver. Time for talk is running out according to Li. ".. the questions which exist about the medium to long-term goals and direction of Hong Kong monetary policy will, over time, eat away at the

core of business confidence like rot inside an apple. The longer the delay in openly debating the issue, the greater the damage." (Far Eastern Economic Reuiew readers may remember the mutterings in government corridors when the magazinehad the temerity to rwt Focus covers on Hong Kong a few

years back showing, first, an apple being eaten away by apathy and eroding

confidence and, a year later, a covei showing the apple eaten down to the core.)

Li gave FCC members good heady 16 THE CORRESPONDENT DECEMBER 1990

stuff, with a fairly slick presentation, sending the worthies away wondering

why they had not thought of such a simple solution to the volatility in the effective rate of exchange of the Hong Kong dollar. Why hadn't the government produced the historical, mathematical model as had Li's own bank to "slay any'Speculative Dragons' blocking its [Hong Kong's] path, while waging a successful campaign against its closest challengers?, they said. The only grumbles heard in the main bar "potted philosophy" groups afterwàrds related to the fact that the lights went off for the slide presentation just as the pud was being served. I find it hard to see any justification in that whinge - not being able to see what delight Heinz had conjured up for the captives is, in my book, a bonus. Li pointed up the irony in the Hong Kong's Monetary Affairs Branch let-

ting us know that it has "billions of dollars worth of Monetary weaponry" but, in the next breath, warning that it would be "powerless to maintain Hong ,Kong dollar stability" should the question of the HK$ peg become public debate. "I concur.... the linked rate has served Hong Kongrelativelywell," said Li.

"But I worry about maintaining a monetary policy which is purely political and completely ignores the changing economic needs Kong."

Hong

The merits of providing Hong Kong business with a "level playing ground vis a vis the Territory's US dnllnrrelnted trade..."meet no objection from Li, '1but this must not be confused with

US or Hong Kong d.oll¡tr-denominnted trade." "The linked rate provides exchange rate stability vis-a-vis roughly 60Vo of

Speculative dragons block the path

Hong Kong's total trade. But what about the remaining 40% of Hong Kong's trade, " Li said. Through its link to the US dollar, the Hong Kong dollar has been on a roller coaster ride against the yen, the Deutschemark and sterling, Li noted, "a ride that has been particularly rough in recent years." The result - the link becomes more stable, while the effective Exchange Rate Index becomes more volatile because of US dollar volatility. Hong Kongers are what Li terms "the proud owners of a relatively stable link to a relatively unstable currency." And there's the rub. Li does not have great hopes for the prospects of the US

Roller coaster ride against the yen has l¡een "particularly rough in recent years"

David Li: in favour on all sides dollar in the foreseeâble future, and this "doed not bode well for Hong Kong's efforts to develop its trade with Japan

or with Europe, which in 1992 will become the world's largest single market." Li then set about knocking down the

theory that if the US dollar continues to depreciate (and the Hong dollar with it), this will enhance price competitiveness for Hong Kong goods against its competitors for the Japanese and EC

markets.

The future of the US dollar depends

on the priorities of the US Federal Reserve and, said Li, on that subject Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan has been extremely tight-lipped. Second, that Hong Kong's competitiveness will be enhanced by a US dollar depreciation discounted because "many of our ciosest competitors are also in the US dollar boat", said

Li.

And third, the theory of benefits from US dollar depreciation ignores

Three factors made up his argument. First, such an assumption ignores a

the fact that Hong Kong exports are primarily light industrial goods, the

looming interest rate war, he said, which has its roots in Easterl Europe.

raw materials and machinery for which must be imported. But Li is not looking for changes in the foundations, only for a more econo-

Much of this burden (and for the whole of eastern Europe), according to Li, will fall on the plate of the fürman Bundesbank, which began last year to raise the

country's interest rates

attract

foreign capital. This means the US is going to suffer unless it moves to keep interest rates high enough to attract capital to cover its US$150 billion a yeat shortfall on tax revenues. Japan will follow suit and raise interest rates to avoid a massive outflow of capital and to maintain enough money in the country for local

mics-oriented application for the existing structure. "Achieving this

would not require scrapping the monetary mechanisms and weapons the government has taken great pains to design, build and per{ect over the past seven years.

"It is these same mechanisms and weapons which would enable Hong Kong to pursue a monetary policy that places the emphasis - not on political concerns - but on Hong Kong's economic needs, where it rightly should be." And that takes us back to a Hong

banks to meet the B% capital-adequacy ratio which they agreed to in the Basle Agreement, and which is due to come

Kong dollar pegged against

into effect in March 1993.

currencies.

basket of

An Economist's view: See next page THE CORRESPONDENT DECEMBER 7990 17

I WOLFEI\DALE AT LARGE

LUI\CHEOI\ SPEAKER

Comments on the David Liargument he Hong Kong dollar link to the

US dollar has been a

narket collapsed. However, while there is little sensible argument that can be advanced in favour of the link being abolished, David Li is right to question to which cuffency the Hong Kong dollar should

be linked. In particular, should

the basket of currencies reflecting Hong Kong's trad-

Hong Kong dollar be tied to

ing patterns?

Prior to the introduction of the new clearing arrangements in July 1988, the theoretic¿Ll fulcrum of the link mechanism was a non-discretionary system of private-sector arbitrage, which kept the

free-market rate

of the Hong

Ion P. MacFarktnc is an associatc mcmbar tl thc clwb and chieJ c.cowtmist, Wardlcy Itttcsttncttt Scruicas (HK) Ltd. (Tkc uicws cxþressed ltcrc ara his own andmalt not reþresent

source

of underlying stability in Hong Kong. 'fhroughout the political turmoil that prevailed in the aftermath of June 4 last year, the Hong Kong dollar remained at a premium to the linked rate against the US doilar, while the equity

thosc hcld

b".,

Wardlct' Inucstment Scruices.)

While the link has served to reduce the perceptions of risk associated with investment in Hong Kong in the run-up to 1997, the US financial system is now itself viewed as representing high risk. Throughout the 1980's the Federal Reserve Board pursued a tight monetary policy to compensate for an extremely lax fiscal policy. This has not been sufficient to prevent the US from becoming the world's major debtor nation.

The financial standing of the US has therefore deteriorated substantially compared with 1983, when the Hong Kong dollar was first linked to the US curency.

The US economy is likely to pay

heavy price for the mixture of economic

policies pursued in the 1980's through the 1990's. In maintaining the current link to the US dollar, Hong Kong could inherit this potential instability, as the economic logic of the link to the US dollar is to make it another state of the

The main arguments in favour of maintaining the current link to the US dollar now rest on essentially two issues: that what has served Hong Kong well in the past should not be altered, and that moving to a currency basket would r-mdermine the competitiveness of Hong Kong relative to the other Asian NIC's, the currencies of which are loosely tied to the US dollar. However, anyweather-

beaten economist knows that extrapolating past trends to predict the future risks being struck by lightning.

There is, therefore, at least

good argu-

ment for re-examining the link of the Hong Kong dollar to the US dollar. But is also important to note the limitations of the improvements any new system may bring. While tying to a basket may represent Hong Kong's trading patterns more closely and make for more stability in the rate versus the currencies of its trading partners, it is unlikely to bring about a substantial reduction in

Kong

Subsequently, maintenance of the link rate has moved to a discretionary system of issuing exchange fund bills to influence short-term liquidity conditions and, hence, interest rates. The major technical constraint of linking to a basket of currencies has therefore been removed.

currency terms. When tight labour market conditions prevail, there may be no gain in competitiveness, particularþ if wage increases in domestic currency terms exceed the percentage devaluation.

inflationary pressures.

dollar ciose to the link rate. Arbitraging

against a basket of crirrencies would have been extremely complex under these arralgements.

Saints, sinners and singers

There is a common perception that the

in the effective value of the Hong Kong dollar has imparted an inflationary bias to the economy. This runs directly against the theoretical decline

underpinning of the system which states that Hong Kong's inflation should con-

verge with that of the US. The divergence has two origins.

USA.

cogent argument can also be made against the observation that changing the link to the US dollar would result in a substa¡rtial competitive disadvantage.

The struchre of Hong Kong's trading patterns is such that the colony imports mainly from Japan, adds value, and then exports primarily to the US. A weakening US dollar therefore increases the cost of imports, which partially offsets the competitiveness gained in exporling to other markets.

First, the Hong Kong economy is moving towards greater service orientation, and inflation in the services sector can diverge from that of the US, as services are non-tradable goods. Second, Hong Kong inflation can diver-

ge from that of the US without the manuJacturing sector becoming highty non-competitive.

All that happens The competitive gain comes from the

is that the manufactwing industry shifts more rapidly across

the border into Guangdong Province.

time of easy labour market conditions, a decline in the effective exchange rate may enhance competitiveness through

There is no reason to suppose that linking to a basket would alter these

value added by the labour force.

lowering the cost of labour in foreign

1A THE CORRESPONDENT DECEMBER 1990

facts.

Stuart Wolfendale

r, y \l I ì

ormallv I like my Friday nights h the i\lain gar. ,l¡e dây iIseff starLs well at lunchtime do\Mn there. At a hundred yards and well before I have cleared the notice board, David megaphones to me from his ac-

cursed terminal. 'Double Bells soda, right?' This leaves the Perrier water

and

two-halves-with-the-sandwich crowd shifting a seat or lwo farther down in no doubt about this punter's attitude to correct social drinking. I enjoy the Greek fandango in pita bread whilst the bar gourmet critics tut and wince their way through the fifth of

the weeldy 'white board'

specials.

Worlh remembering off there from the first week in f)ecember is that if you attemptto shrffa warm salad it is bound to grouse. By mid afternoon, from behind the pot plants, the Good Witches of The Mid Levels are rattling the tableware and at the other end, the photographers are achieving a personalbest in accumulated empty armagnac glasses. From the far corner of the bar arrives wisdom and

insight like

'If it

hadn't been for the

judge, the jury and the defence's case, I'd have won, dammit!'

At surset, knots of publishers gather, their hands dripping with the blood of freelance writers, followed by newspapennen who have lashed their taxis into a lather to get there before the free meatballs run out. By seven the roar of tales of derringdo and modesties as false as the bottom of a smuggler's suitcase fall gentþ on the ear, The air sings with the sweet

armed rotas of Sikhs and Pathars wait on the door for the worst, the newspaper late shift, men who take bottle tops off

of his bank balance. Seidlitz hove in from round a potted palm. 'Ha!' he declared to my friend. 'You heff bin

with their lips and are intimate with

zitting here for fifteen minutes already

bears. Once in it, it takes a lot to get me out of that idyll but in the interests of charity, toiled up to the prudence and

trinking our gut licquour. Von hundred dollars for a book. Come onl' The fellow had to be extracted gib-

respectability of the first floor on 9 Novembel to attend the fund-raising dinner for Father Lancelot's Macau

bering from under,--the table and I bought Seidlitz off under the video screen. It was that kind of tenacity that made the evening the success it ulti-

Catholic Relief Service.

mately was

and against some occaIn a fascinating resurrection of the sentiments of the Thirty Years War some members are alleged not to have joined in because the charity was Catholic. 'Some of them were from the North of England' it was confided to me provocatively. I did not rise to that. There are certain parts of Lancashire still where Roman Catholics would do better to black up and go live in Louisiana.

sional weird odds.

(

There are certain parts of Lancashire

still where Roman Catholics

would do better to black up and go live in Louisianat A lot had been heard of this fundraiser well in advance of the night. Exotic raffle tickets had been on sale

offering airplane tickets

Berlin,

London and Rome as well as Japanese cities I can neither afford nor pronounce. Vice President Peter Seidlitz, whose

whiz of flying furniture. Meticrlously made-up women with immaculately rounded vowels in the daylight bay at the moon. Much later, long after the amah will have put the children to bed in Pokfulam, there is the satisfying

was enterLaining a friend from Thailand

sound of bone meeting cartilage. In the 1oo, quite separate Etnas erupt in harmony from the cubicles. Heavily

who'd had 30,000 baht stolen and was cravingafewbucks to limp him through to his return to Bangkok and the bosom

idea this had been, may not have actual-

ly been carrying a gun when he was selling his, but it felt like it. A moment of particular poignancy I remember was one afternoon when I

It was a respectable crowd that gathered in the Dining Room and become progressively more ribald as the evening flew on. Almost none left be-

fore two o'clock. Either that or my double vision was compensating magni-

ficently. In Lancelot I expected a man made quiet and gaunt by his collisions with

human tragedy. He was instead a stocky charming crowd-pleaser who should have been a bandleader. He sang, indefatigably; a man who knew that when a crowd is flagging in interest, you belt out two verses of 'Daisy, Daisy, give me your answer true...' The Club's own balladeer Roberto Chard

was not to be outdone. His was an operatic twirl de force although, udike Father l¿ncelot, he did not always know

the words. Let history record, though that there was never a clearer more tunefirl rendering of verses of 'dum-deedum-dee-dum'. drew the raffle and managed to

continued next Page

THE CORRESPONDENT DECEMBER 1990 19

WOLFENDALE

PHOTO ESSAY

from previous page forget to call out the ticket numbers. As though to prove he had been buying as many as he had been selling Seidlitz won the first prize. He could not have it, of course, and neither were the rest of us to. In a splendid pre-arranged gesture to the staff and by a system of selection which, this evening being 'catholic', would have confounded the College of Cardinals, a Lufthansa business class ticket to Berlin with nights in the Kem-

pinski fluttered into the pretly hands of Shirley the dining room waitress. There's nothing wrong with Catholicism or Germans as far as Shirley is

/Þ,j 'h "l

concerned, I'll tell you. The trio from the Royal Regiment of Wales did not know what they were dealing with and so started their reper-

\r:r, ,Þ.

r. \i

toire cautiously. From behind, Kevin Sinclair said to my neck that if they didn't stop playing numbers that assumed we were 104 years old, they'd be fighting the battles of the Welsh Marches all over again. I asked one of them to sing something in Welsh. 'Oooh, that won't go down with this lot, sir.' he said. The recent victor of an entire bottle of Chardonnay, I declared, illogically 'Yes it will. I'm on the Board.' He was a man who understood rank when he heard it and he burst into something absolutely charming, lyrical and totally incomprehensible. It sounded as though it had welled up deep from bardic culture. In fact it probably translated roughly

'Olwen's in the pudding club again.' After that Wales took us along with a swing,

We tumbled downstairs at 2 am. Being usually well bicarbonated by 10, I do nottlink I had everbeen in the Club so late. The Pathan guards were carq/ing the stretcher cases out of the Main Bar ald in the toilets the nuclear decontamination teams were at work. A notice in the stairwell warned that most personal insuznce policies

did

not cover entry into the jacuzzí at that time of night. Inthe Barthepumps and optics were still. The soft drinks gun had squirted its

zigzagged back to my chum's place, avoiding submarines and fell into his spare bed, crossing myself and

last.

humming 'God Bless The Prince Of Wales'. I wonder what it would be like if we had the Methodists in with

band?

a Scots

20 THE CORRESPONDENT DECEMBER

Keeping

them covered for

ten years \4/HENEVER editors of leading maga-

"We provide pictures not just for

zines and art directors of advertising agencies in the region need a first-rate photograph for their products they turn instinctively to Stockhouse, the Hong Kong picture agency that has built a reputation for quality and reliability over the past decade.

Celebrating

magazines, but for calendars, record covers, advertising brochures and company reports as well," says Bob. "We represent freelance groups throughout the world currentþ we represent about 80 photographers and

international agencies.

its tenth anniversary,

the agency's founder, FCC Board mem-

ber Bob Davis, screws his face into its familiar lop-sided grin and reflects on the tough going as a freelance photographer in his early working life in Australia.

füvering

a demonstration in Sydney one day in 1969, he was attacked by the

police, who gave him and his camera a thorough working over. He decided he had had enough and set out on his travels, arriving in Hong Kong in 7970 vta London, the US and Japan. He made

Bob recently signed a deal to become

the FCC the base for his continued freelance activities, before lar.rnching Stockhouse - mainly with his own

library of pictures. Sirce then, Stockhouse has developed into an agency serving the entire region with a selection of about 350,000 slides all of them in colour.

the Asia representive for of one of the world's leading agencies, Magnum. He and his staff of six moved to new headquarters in Wan Chai in April, transporting the entire collection and carrying on business as usual without a hitch. Now he is pondering the introduction

technology

which

will

enable

clients to view and make their choice from a selection of slides on a video screen in the convenience of their own

offices.

THE CORRESPONDENT DECEMBER

I99O

ESSAY

CLUBNEWS

"The Intemational Herald Tribune

Bogeymen in Bangkok

eccentric or, in the dictionary definition, not referable to a fixed point. It is a freak, a sþort, a wonder rather thnn an examþle. The biggest wonder is that it is still here 700 years on: a newsþaþer thnt is not anchored to a sþecific communitj, that hns neaer u)on an award or

mntched the circulntion figures of 1919, its flushest year; a newsþaþer best known by a name it hns neuer officially hell, the Paris Herald. "- Journalist, Mary Blume, writing

(above right) worked off the

- a sort of middleaged golf crisis - took Bangkok by storm. Mon-

pain of the night before by pushing the van out of the bog when it ran aground in

soon rains in the Thai capi-

flooded back street en route to the course. The

tsangkok

tal led to flood gates in the sinking city being opened in order to lower river and klong levels. In one of life's smaller miracles, according to a rather dubious source,

Charlie Smith (he getting the backrub) and Ross Way

of the Bangkok Open Cup again this year

winner

was Alan Taylor

(above

fourth from the right), an FCC member now resident in Bangkok.

Charlie Smith (above) easing the stress of a taxing day on the course. John McDougall (left) looks less than happy while Ray Cranbourne (below) can't believe he's actually hit the goddamn thing. Ray, it is reported, has lifted his strike rate to almost four out of ten

By Karl Wilson home since 1930, to the outskirts of

o describe the Paris-based Inter-

Paris and the paper began printing in other European cities using facsimile transmission. Huebner has overseen

enigrna would be an understatement. It is a paper which has defied the odds, particularly in an age where news is dominated by the electronic media and where newspapers seem to be fighting a losing battle to try and retain their hold on an ever-diminishing market for readers and advertising revenue. A paper that was once traditionally aimed at Americans living and travel-

ling abroad, the Internatitmal Herald

as it became the first newspaper in history to print simultaneously on opposite sides of the world when it launched an Asian satellite edition in

Initially a joint venture deal was struck between Whihey Communica-

tions and the Washingtan Posl which, also drew on the services of the l-os Angeles Tim¿s. A year later the New York Tim¿s abandoned its Paris edition and threw its hand in with the others.

Cut out and present th¡s advertisement at either Kangaroo Pub and receive a free half pint of beer

And on May 23,1967, the Internntínynl Herald Tribunz was born. Modern technology was introduced, the paper shifted lrom the Rue de Berri in the heart of the Champs Elysees district of Paris, which had been its

reference." Technology too had a sþificant part to play in helping the IHT reach the

"global" reader. "When we began looking at lIong Kong back in L979," Huebner said, "we needed something like 20,000 in sales a day to break even. Last year, when we

st¿rted to print in Franldurt that figure had come down to 5,000. So as the technology improves so do our economies of scale.

"So on the one hand you have an

recently, Huebner said the IHT reflected the changing world in which rfle now live.

international audience and on the other the technology to reach that audience that has been the key to our success.

"When we first came out here in '79, there were many arguments for us to cover the region in depth," Huebner said. "To change the paper and make it more Asian. A lot of people said we should do this because the Wall Street

world's only global daily.

Its daily circulation has topped 200,000 since June, but its success was not achieved overnight. The death of f}re Nau York Herali Tribwnn in 1966, aÍter a series of bitter industrial disputes, left its orphaned Paris edition facing an uncertain future and competition from the European

"Today you meet more and more people like that. Global citizens, more international than national. They are, on the whole, businessmen, professionals and politicians who speak English and share the some international frame of

ÌIong.Kong. Interviewed in Hong Kong

Trihuneis today a global newspaper, or as publisher Lee Huebner prefers, "a local newspaper for an international community." Read in 164 countries, the paper is printed simultaneously in Hong Kong,

edition of the New York Tim¿s. Jock Whitney, who owned ¡}le Natt Yorh Herald Tribun¿, had no intention of seeing the Paris paper go under.

DECEMBER 1990

much of the IHT's transformation since he took over as publisher in 7979. In 1980 the paper broke new ground

Singapore, Toþo, seven European cities and New York, making it the

these days.

22THE CORRESPONDENT

is my local newspaper.'

about the paper on its centenary three years

mtionnl Herald. Tribun¿ as an The annual FCC goJf trip to

Paris and I now work for a Saudi Arabian company which has me on assþment in Asia. The IHT, I guess,

The local global newspaper

¿s

Lee Huebner: "global citizens', "The last 20 years hâå seen the emergence of a global community and with that community a global readership people whose lives and interests stretch across international boundaries, who want a source of information that takes a global perspective and gives them world news and comment which they don't get in a local newspaper.

"This reader is best typified by a I met in Singapore when we first started printing there in 1982. I askçd him where he was from and he said 'I can't really tell you that. I was born in the States, educated in England, my wife is French, my kids were born in man

Journnl had just gone through the process of starting up in Asia and felt they had to cover region in depth, and offer a different paper to the one in America. "Then there was another argument which said we should not learn the wrong lessons from their experience. 'It may be right for them but the Internntit¡nnl Herald Tribun¿ is an international paper' the argument went. "The arguments against changing the paper were strong. Why compete with established Asian newspapers? "If we had tried to present the IHT as just another Asian newspaper we would have found ourselves facing an uphill battle for circulation. "In the end we decided to retain the paper we already had, which carried Asian news anyway. But now it was set in a global context." One of the things Huebner insisted on when he became publisher was to establish the IHT's own correspondents to complement the service already provided by the Washinetun Post-LA

continued next page

THE CORRESPONDENT DECEMBER 199023

LOCAL GLOBAL from previous page Times and Neu Yorh Timæ. "In Asia now we have three coffespondents," Huebner said. " Not to write for an Asiar edition, but for the international edition. We felt the paper needed to become more sophisticated about Asia which in turn would allow us to protect our credibility in the region." This global outlook is now, according to Huebner, becoming more apparent in newspapers.

"Although we do not see local papers as being in direct competition with us, we have noticed a greater degree of sophistication in the way local papers cover international news," he said. "Much of this has to do with televi-

sion. Television has had â dramatic impact on the way newspapers report news. There are argunents that television has forced papers to trivialise news

to compete. "I don't quite see that as being true. What newspapers have to do is to adapt

to television. "For our part we try to present a more sophisticated background to and analysis of events seen on television. The point is people find out first what has happened on television and next moming they turn to the newspaper to find out what made it happen. "Newspapers, if they are going to

survive, will have to become more analltical. They are going to have to interpret more and comment more on

the events that shape the world we live and, in turn, on our lives." Huebner said he was looking at the possibilþ of printing else'where in the region: "We are very much in the preliminary stages. At present we print in Singapore and it costs us a fortune to ship papers to Thailand and then on to India and Pakist¿n. If the mathematics shows that it is possible we may go into

THE HKJA has been rurning short inservice training courses for journalists in the Chinese language news media for several years. Two courses have just been completed on legal knowledge and reporling in China. Few peopie in the profession would argue there is a crying need for inser-vice training, parlicularly for the new

recruits from the two universities a¡rd post-secondary coileges, yet surprisingly few news organisations have bothered to offer any. Besides inadequate training, yoturg and inexperienced reporLers are sometimes being sent on assignrnents with little briefing on the background of the events or guidance on what angles to pursue. Some reporters say they get little help from their news editors, who are often too busy to brief them. They also complain of inadequate backup from their news libraries. Some news organisations have no libraries at all. Some Chinese language newspapers do not keep English newspaper cuttings. Some in-service training courses are

offered by the Journalism Training Board (JTB) under the quasi-government Vocational Training Council. Since last year, the HKJA received a subsidy from the JTB to fund its courses. While the question of the HKJA providing training for journalists is

IJnion to raise tlreats

Australia was another country Huebner said he would like to get into: "At present we serve Australia at a loss. If anything Australia is a long, long-range project. To print in Australia we would have to justrfy costs and still have to air

freight the paper around the country because popr-rlation centres are so far apart. And then there is the question of how big an audience we might have ... Australia I'm afraid is way off in the

Z4TIIE. CORRESPONDENT DECEMBER

of the HKJA is working on a report to Committee which will hold hearings on Hong Kong

in New York in March. During the hearing, the UNHRC, which consists of eminent jurists from 18 cor:ntries, will question the UK Government on its Third Periodic Report on Hong Kong under Article 40 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. When the UNHRC held hearings on

November 1988, the HKJA had also 1990

f'o

add insult to injury, some employers do not even give their journalists time off to attend the training courses or offer to pay the modest fees.

This directþ discourages some journalists from participating, because they do not want to spend their limited spare time attending training courses which their bosses probably do not approve or

appreciate. Most Chinese language newspapers give their staff only one day off a week, so the journalists are understandably reluctant to spend that day attending courses.

The HKJA chainnan Emily Lau has told Newspaper Society chaiman Shum Choi-sang that the union would like to discuss training with the newspaper bosses. The HKJA is waiting for a positive reply. Even if the proprietors will not set up in-house training courses, hopes they

will

encourage them to attend outside courses. They can at least provide incentives such as paylng the course fees and gving staff time off to attend.

by a former member of the Hong Kong Joumalists Association (HKJA), Ms Esther-Margaret Hood. She took the

union to task for self-censorship a,nd condemned the tmion's role in a February 19BB controversy in which a Hong

Kong l-Iniversity student commitled suicide aJter she was found guilty of shoplifting items worth HK$158. Her account of the HKJA's position

incorrect. Her inference that the union's stand at that time somehow represented a failure to defend press freedom and oppose self-censorship is unjustified and unfair. The gist of our position was to criticise news orgalisations for blowing a minor case far out of proportion, thus needlessly compounding the public shame visited upon a minor offender of the legal code. In the past few years, the HKJA has

taken every opportulity to make its strong stand against self-censorship known both loca1ly and internationally. In numerous speeches and articì.es, HKJA Executive Committee members have decried self-censorship as the most

VIDEO CLUB

WE IIAVE recently entered into an agreernent with Witchcraft which will expand our video club services.

attend the hearing and lobby committee members.

supplied each month. We also have

Billof

Rights.

Legislative Council in January 1989. The HKJA's main objection in the "false news" provision was that it would promote self-censorship by threatening journalists with prosecution for the publication of controversial stories that

statement issued at the time, the

HKJA questioned whether it was proper for the evening newspaper to give the court case so much prominence. The statement said there was no additional news value in publishing the student's name, adding it was strange that the name of a minor ofJender should be so publicised when very often names of prominent personalities and

might cause public alarm and later

public figures involved

prove to be false.

offences were withheld. Such deliberate

Another form

self-censorship

which the HKJA has repeatedly condemned is that which arises out of fear of upsetting or embarrassing Peking.

Since the signing of the 1984 SinoBritish Joint Declaration, there has been a rising tendency for editors and reporters to tailor their stories to suit the likes and dislikes of their future masters in Peking. This is a phenomenon which the HKJA abhors. The case which Ms Hood referred to

criminal

policy to protect the rich and famous from embarrassing publicity r,vas, and stillis, regarded by the HKJA as a fonn of self-censorship.

Ms Hood referred to a "lengthy debate" she had with an unidentified Chinese member of the HKJA committee in which the member said shoplifting was a "personal matter" and so should not have been printed. We want to point out that the HKJA statement

said nothing about shoplifting being a

Effective from January 1, the new

mittee.

1 day hire -

friendship between some local reporters and the former Xinhua newsagency

3 day hire

received.

the threats to press freedom, the denial of the right to self-determination, slow pace of democracy, police powers, trade union rights, implementation of the international convent after 7997, including continued UN supervision, and problems arising from the Basic Law and

to press freedom in

Hong Kong. Obviously our message has not got through to some people. Several years ago, the HKJA worked l-irelessly with other organisations in Hong Kong and abroad to lobby against the "false news" provision in the Public Order (Amendment) Ordinance. To our relief, the provision was repealed by the

DECEMBER 1990

made a submission to the committee and sent a delegation to Geneva to

As in its last report submitted to the UNHRC, the HKJA will concentrate on

insidious threat

self-censorship. When the university student appeared in court and was found guilty of shoplifting, it was widely reported in the news media, including press, radio and television. A Chinese lalguage evening newspaper ran the story as the front page lead. Subsequently the student committed suicide.

"personal matter" and it cerbainly was not the view of the Executive Com-

Although we have retained a number of our classic and speciality tapes, a new stock of 500 has been

press freedom

THE PRESS freedom sub-committee

the Second Hong Kong Report

WE READ with interest a letter in the November issue of Tke Corresþondent

generally accepted as laudable, questions have been asked on whether it is the work of the HKJA to train jouinalists for the employers? Given the union's limited financial and manpower resources, the short courses have also stretched the HKJA to its lirnits.

in her letter concerned press ethics, not

[Jnion critic'incorrect'

Reluctant trainers fail to meet their obligations

the UN Human Rights

Bangkok."

clistarce."

JOURNALISTS' ASSOCIATIOIN I\EWS

JOURI\ALISTS' ASSOCIATIOIÙ I{EWS

HK$22.00

HK$15.00 HK$15.00 Daily late charge

Solution to Griphos 6

unseemly display of

Hong Kong branch director, Mr Xu Jiatun, to which Ms Hood took exception, the HKJA has also taken an uncompromising line by stressing the need for reporters to maintain a clear position of aloofness and objectivity.

Apart from the above effofts, we wonder if Ms Hood has any suggestions

In addition 60 new releases will be

on how to improve the ursatisfactory situation? Alternatively, Ms Hood can rejoin the urion and work with us. So long as rurion members choose to quit rather than try to contribute to the tmion's activities, the HKJA can only make limited progress in promoting free and high quality news media in

access to a library of 15,000 tapes.

A list is available from which selections will be delivered to the

club within two days. Our lending charges have remained unchanged since the establishment of the video club in November 1988 and in the interest of keeping abreast of inflation we have made some modest increases.

As for the

Hong Kong.

The Winner: Tony Munday

Emily Lau Chairman HKJA THE CORRESPONDENT DECEMBER

I99O

THERE'S A1WAYS A STORY AT THE HONO KONG TRADE DEVEIOPIhENT COUNCII.

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In the right-hand column, enter as many

you can of the words defined in the left-hand column. Then enter the letters in the correspondingly numbered squares in the diagram. 'Work back and forth between the words and the diagram. When the puzzle is completed, the diagram will contain a quotation and the first letter of the words in tbe words column will spellthe nameof the author andthework Irom which the quotation was taken, (Note: American spelling is used in this puzzle) RULES

1. Entries must be sent to:

CROSSWORD

Asia Pacific Directories, 9/F, Grand View Commercial Centre,

29-31Sugar St, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong 2. Entries must reach the office not later than January 11 3. Entries must carry the name, address and the Club membership number of the contestant. 4. The first correct soiution drawn from the entries received will be awarded a bottle of Chivas Regai. 5. The solution and winner's name will be published in The Corresþondznt ihe following month.

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The HKTDC can help you make business headlines every day 0f the year. As a major force ìn world trade you'll find we've always got a good story to tell: no padding n0 puff and backed by accurate, up-tolhe-moment figures and statistics Next time you receive

we l{ mean. 0r contact us if you need details on any aspect 0f Hong Kong trade. õlE one 0f 0ur press releases, give it a g00d 0nce-Over. You'll soOn see what

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JohannesNeumann Tel (43)0222 533

26TIIE CORRESPONDENT

DECEMBER 1990

9818. Zur¡ch JA Furer Tel:(41)01-383-2950

}le¡g KongTrade Development Council wE cREATE oppoRTUNtTtES

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