December 2018 / Issue 2
Cover Story
Free speech on Facebook under threat in Hong Kong
In This Issue 04
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Are local university student unions a broken bridge?
Free speech on Facebook under threat in Hong Kong
The Sky’s the limit for Hong Kong Women’s Rugby
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Tight space squeezes bliss away
10 A new playing field in Hong Kong
Call for use of brownfield sites instead of Lantau to provide housing
18 Mega storm reignites debate on country park development
32 Law fails to prevent illegal abortions
Letter from the Editor In this issue’s cover story, a cartoonist who started drawing ironic cartoons on his Facebook page since the Umbrella Movement in 2014 told us his fears for potential consequences of his posts on the social media platform. We also followed up on how housing development near country parks may have aggravated the damages super typhoon Mangkhut brought to the city in September. While the TYR magazine brings you deeper insights into social issues, our Instagram and Facebook page give you the latest news stories through different mediums. From Policy Adress released by the government in early October to the Clockenflap Music & Arts Festival in November, The Young Reporter has been actively covering events around the city. Check out our social media platforms to keep up with up-to-date information.
Editor-in-Chief
Editors
Holly Chik Angie Chan Caroline Kwok Michael Shum Michelle Ng
Alexandra Lin Jade Li Kenji Chan Raphael Blet Sammi Chan Windy Li Yolanda Gao
Art Directors
Reporters
Candice Wong Dorothy Ma Erica Chin Erin Chan
Amy Ho Anna Kam Cara Li Katherine Li Nadia Lam Oasis Li Phoebe Lai Rachel Yeo Vanessa Yung Wallis Wang Yetta Lam Akane Nakasuji Brison Li Fifi Tsui Hailey Man Karen Kwok King Woo Maisy Mok Stephanie Ma Vimvam Tong William Tsui
Deputy Editors
Distribution Officer
Ezra Cheung Social Media Editors
Elisa Luk Melanie Japson Sharon Pun Multimedia Editors
This year, we continue to take part in Operation Santa Claus, an annual charity campaign jointly organised by South China Morning Post and Radio Television Hong Kong. About 10 TYR reporters and editors together produced videos covering fives OSC beneficiaries, namely Care for Carer, KELY Support Group (in partnership with Mind HK), ChickenSoup Foundation, Hope Worldwide, Hong Kong Federation of the Blind and Caritas Jockey Club Lok Yan School. To watch the videos produced by The Young Reporter in collaboration with Operation Santa Claus, stay tuned to SCMP’s Operation Santa Claus page. We are also proud to announce that The Young Report won four awards at the 2018 China Daily Hong Kong Edition Campus Newspaper Awards, including Arts and Culture News Reporting, News Video Reporting, Features Video Reporting and News Page Design. Sincerely, Holly Chik Chiu-wai
Elly Wu Kobie Li Maggie Liu Scout Xu Wing Li Yoyo Chow Zinnia Lee Advisers
Jenny Lam Robin Ewing
The Young Reporter Volume 51 No. 2 2018
Published by
Department of Journalism School of Communication Hong Kong Baptist University
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POLITICS
Are local university student unions a broken bridge? Reported by Hailey Man Edited by Windy Li
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When Wong Nga-Man was campaigning for president of the student union at Hong Kong Baptist University in April this year, former leaders of the union showed up, not to welcome the new crew but to “scare off students who wanted to vote”. “They shouted at us, accusing my team of not mentioning our connection with the League of Social Democrats,” Ms. Wong recalled. League of Social Democrats is a pro-democracy party in Hong Kong, which has taken some violent actions in their political struggles. Voter turnout for the HKBU student union election this year was lower than ever-declining to 9.36%, under the minimum pass vote rate of 10%. As a result, no new cabinet was elected. In the last election, the City University of Hong Kong had a voting rate of 11.5%, while the
Chinese University of Hong organisations, independent Kong had 12%. from universities. They all take their own political stand and are Instead, acting executive com- responsible for their own profits mittee and acting editorial and losses. Nearly all students board were appointed inter- are members of the student nally until next election held in unions automatically through March 2019. payment directly to the university, which helps the unions. This year, five universities, namely Hong Kong Baptist The student unions aim at proUniversity, Hong Kong Univer- viding welfares to students, sity of Science and Technology, bridging between students and Education University of Hong the university, and representing Kong, Lingnan University and the whole students’ stands in the Hong Kong Shue Yan Univer- city’s and international issues. sity, have faced the absence of their student unions. Ms. Wong said student unions are more involved in poliLow voter turnout for student tics since the pro-democracy union elections is plaguing all Occupy Central and Umbrella local universities as students Movement in 2014. are becoming increasingly disillusioned with the organisation Students who are supportive of once known as a springboard pro-establishment or pro-Beifor young politicians and politi- jing policies may keep silent in cal activists. student union meetings. “There has been a trend among student Student unions in Hong Kong unions in recent years that only are legal government-registered pro-democracy and pro-Hong
Davin Wong, President Hong Kong University Student Union, says it is their responsibility to voters for stating their stance and what they would do to represent them externally in their platform during the election.
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Kong independence are politically correct to be voiced out,” said Ms. Wong. She added that this is not an ideal environment to have on campus for constructive discussion. The conflict between different student political groups is growing. Last year, at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, conflict broke out between local and mainland students after banners supporting Hong Kong Independence were put up on the “democracy wall”, a designated campus space for students to exchange ideas that is managed by the student union. Mainland students studying at the university plastered posters criticising the student union with the slogan ‘#CUSU is not CU’ over the pro-independence posters. Gordon Tang, a professor and the Director of Office of Student Affairs at HKBU, said students should respond through their vote, rather than fighting.
“Students can vote no if they don’t agree with the stands or plans made by the student union,” he said.
She added that conservative local culture has made students grow up keeping silent about their opinions.
However, a local student from Hong Kong University said more students don’t care about the student union and aren’t interested in voting.
But Ms. Wong said that the limited power of the student union is another reason for low voter turnout.
“I guess everyone is busy with their own assignments, parttime jobs and social life,” said Ivan Chan Yit-fan, a local HKU student.
“Only our president can join the board meeting with the council of HKU to negotiate school policies,” she said.
Another student from HKU said the university’s student union “The student union’s work has failed to represent him. become less important and irrelevant to my life compared to many “I am a pro-democrat but I other aspects,” said Mr .Chan. do not agree with our student union’s idea of Hong Kong He said his vote was not that independence and their violent important and he did not vote actions like attacking the counduring the election. cil of HKU,” said Lee Ming-Yuet, a student of HKU. Ms. Wong, the former student union presidential candidate, In July 2017, the former pressaid it was disappointing that ident of HKU student union most of the students at the Billy Fung Jing-en was found public consultation were guilty of disorderly conduct in former SU council members. a public place by the magistrate. “It was quite a failure that stu- Prof. Tang added that it’s also a dents were so inexpressive,” problem that members of the said Ms. Wong. student union council are all local students, while the universities are admitting more and more non-local students. He advised that SU should rec ruit m ore non- lo c a l students to be more multicultural and sophisticated when making decisions.
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A student stops by the democracy wall at Hong Kong Baptist University and reads posters about different political issues in the school.
This is a problem they have been trying to improve, said both Davin Wong, president of the student union of HKU, and Ms. Wong.
“It is our responsibility to voters for stating our stance and how we would do to represent them externally in our platform during the election,” said Mr. Wong.
They said they planned to make their speech, posts and posters “We actively encourage in both Chinese and English students to speak out for themto have wider access to the selves,” he said. non-locals.
08 HEALTH & ENVIRONMENT
Tight space squeezes bliss away Reported by Katherine Li Edited by Erin Chan
of people and vehicles passing through each day,” said Ms. Lee. “We’ve had residents who requested more parks and wider pavements, but in many areas we simply cannot do that because we have to leave the streets wide enough for traffic to run smoothly.”
Carine Lai, senior researcher at Civic Exchange. “People from different districts then stated their satisfaction level Hongkongers are unhappy for each criterion, and we crepeople, the UN 2018 World Hap- ated our district ranking based Ms. Lee said she believes that open space is important for the piness Report has found. Hong on those statistics.” residents’ well-being, which Kong ranks 76 out of 156, falling behind developing countries Older urban districts such as is why she encouraged many such as Pakistan and Honduras. Wan Chai are struggling with small parks and green areas to creating sufficient open space be set up between buildings. The ranking is self-determined, due mainly to historical and She also tries to convince develbut the report explains the geographical limitations. opers to create more open space index by analysing factors such as per capita GDP, life expec- “Wan Chai is a very unique in new residential buildings. tancy, social support, freedom district, which combines comand corruption. In Hong Kong, mercial and residential use as But she has still receives it might also have to do with well as old Hong Kong and new complaints from residents, space because public-policy Hong Kong,” said Peggy Lee, especially the elderly. think tank Civic Exchange the district councillor for Wan found out that those who visited Chai. “Unlike newer districts “We do have a few small parks open spaces more frequently like Shatin, many things have around here, but their quality already been settled here, which is poor,” said Wong Yuk-zan, tend to be happier. has limited how much more a 69-year-old resident of Across the 18 districts in Hong space we can create and made Wanchai. “There aren’t enough benches for us to rest on, and Kong, Shatin and Tai Po dis- our urban planning difficult.” tricts top the list with the even though there are children’s highest happiness index, while Ms. Lee added that it is chal- playgrounds, there are no exerWan Chai and Yau Tsim Mong lenging to strike a balance cising areas for elderly people. are at the bottom with scores between more space for Wan Chai’s residents and that for “My legs are weak and I have between five and six. seen an elderly person just sit cars and commuters. on the ground before, so I do “We used seven criterion to look at open space, namely “We are in the middle of every- worry for myself.” quantity, quality, maintenance, where, so even though we only personal safety, beauty, crowd- have around 170,000 resi- Ms. Wong and her 80-yearedness, and landscape,” said dents, we have a huge amount old friend Ze Yin-hau, also a
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resident of Wan Chai, spend their weekdays with their friends at the St. James Settlement Elderly Community Centre. However, when the centre closes on Sundays and public holidays, they are compelled to go elsewhere for entertainment.
Exchange that says 58% want better safety features such as handrails and non-slip paving, while 55% asked for more places to sit and multi-purpose exercise spaces for Tai Chi and “We are very grateful to have other activities. a community centre like this for us to bond and chat,” said Both Ms. Wong and Mr. Ze Mr. Ze over a game of Mahjong live alone and said free spaces with three other elderly people. to interact is crucial to their “But on days when the centre well-being and their sense of is closed or when we want to belonging since their grown-up go outdoors, the parks around children have left the area. are very inconvenient. The few seats are always occupied But the community is bringing so we don’t have a place to sit changes to Wan Chai. The govand chat, and there isn’t even ernment turned Blue House, a public toilet nearby for the the historical pre-WWII tenement home in Wan Chai into elderly that need it often.” a new 3,000 square feet open The elderly prioritise safety and space in 2017. comfort and prefer unstructured open space for exercise, The government originally according to a report by Civic wanted to turn the Blue House into a children’s school in 2006 but then changed its mind after St. James Settlement intervened, said Suki Chau Hei-suen, the team leader of Cultural Preservation and Community Engagement of St James’ Settlement.
She said she is pleased to see significant improvements in open space over the years, as they become more multifunctional and flexible in use. “This includes increasing seating areas, planting more green belts and also making the space more aesthetically pleasing and not just for easy maintenance. Open spaces that are surrounded by walls and fences really need to be opened up,” Ms. Chau said. The government recently proposed to increase the amount of open space per person from 2m2 to 2.5m2 . “However, I hope they can keep in mind that the quality of these spaces has to be improved as well and not just the quantity,” Ms. Chau said.
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Estimated global revenue of Esports in 2018 (Source: Newzoo)
($7.04 billion)
($1.74 billion)
China and South Korea are estimated to take up one-quarter of the global revenue, up to US$225M ($1.74 billion)
BUSINESS
Newzoo, a market intelligence research institute, estimated the global revenue of Esports will reach US$900 million ($7.04 billion) in 2018. This sum includes game publisher fees, media rights, advertising, sponsorship merchandise and tickets. Viewership is forecast to grow to nearly 600 million by 2020. Both South Korea and Taiwan recognise the qualifications of professional esport players and has formally integrated esport into the sports industry, so that they enjoy strong government support. China and South Korea, in 2018, accounts for 25% of the USD$900 million ($7.04 billion) esports revenue generated globally.
Reported by King Woo Edited by Angie Chan, Melanie Japson and Elisa Luk
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According to Cyberport, esports is an emerging new sector that has developed rapidly in recent years, and there is high economic potential for Hong Kong. In recent years, the local government is trying to focus on promoting and developing this business.
development of esports in Hong Kong, of which $50 million will be used to develop the Cyberport Arcade into a local esports and digital entertainment place. This includes the conversion of part of the arcade facilities into a competition venue for esports.
Man Pui-man, an information In the 2018-19 Budget, the gov- officer for the Innovation and ernment allocated $100 million Technology Bureau, said that to Cyberport for promoting the the government is supporting the development of the esport industry in the city through organising major events and
public promotion activities, for example, by holding the Esports and Music Festival and building an e-stadium at Cyberport. “Cyberport has been in close contact with the industry in order to ensure the supporting measures meet the industry’s needs,” she said. Derek Cheung, the founder of Hong Kong Esports Limited, the first esports company in Hong Kong, agreed that public acceptability has improved with the government’s promotion. “The government, esports companies and public knowledge of esports are not matched. The government is not clear enough in deciding which party can get resources to develop the business,” Mr. Cheung said. “Even the stance of the Innovation and Technology Bureau is unclear in deciding whether it wants to promote public acceptability or development in the esports business,” he added. Mr. Cheung said that the government’s lack of understanding of the Esports business may mean inappropriate use of its resources to improve public acceptability, and that may not be helpful to the esports business. For instance, the annual Esports and Music Festival held since 2017, is a three-day event with world-class esports tournaments, the latest games,
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products and a host of music and entertainment at the Experience Zone. But it can only promote public acceptability of esports without helping the business earn money. “For long-term development, the government should clarify what role it will take to improve public understanding of the esports business,” he said. He suggests that the authority should communicate with existing esports companies to clarify Hong Kong’s current situation on Esports business, in order to understand what the business really needs. On the other hand, Cheung said the Hong Kong government can launch a “game interpretation” plan to improve all sectors cognition in esports business. A research by the City University of Hong Kong found that there are more than 300,000 players in Hong Kong and 55% of them are between 18 and 21 years old. Bear Lai, a professional esports player from Sparkle, a local allwomen esports gaming team, said professional players range between 18 and 24 years old, and their career usually lasts two to four years. She said nowadays when players retire, there is no guarantee for their future.
“
The government, esports companies,
and public knowledge of esports are not matched. Derek Cheung, the founder of Hong Kong Esports Limited
“As a player, there is no big difference in the government’s pre and post-development of esports. We do not benefit from the funding of the Cyberport,” said Bear. Another professional esports player from Sparkle, Bobo Lai Yuen-tung, suggested that if the government wants to develop esports as a business, it should take the initiative to hold more international competitions and provide the resources that esports companies may not be able to offer. Both players admitted that merely raising the public awareness will not help development of esport in Hong Kong. They think the government should put more focus on esports companies because many of the small gaming startups are closing down due to a lack of profit. As for the long-term development of the esports business, Bobo added that Hong Kong needs to own an international esports league to attract professional players to stay in Hong Kong rather than travel overseas for their careers. Esports leagues can directly benefit players because they earn an income and reputation from the league. That, in turn, may offer them different roles such as analysts, coach and vloggers, of esport.
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14 POLITICS
speech Facebook FreeFree speech ononFacebook
On several instances, Mung Chu Tribe Cartoonist Edward tells his 15,000 followers that Facebook has muted or removed his page temporarily. He feels frustrated that he can no longer express as much as he would like.
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under threat Hong Kong under threatinin Hong Kong
Edward received a notification from Facebook on October 7 that his page, Mung Chu Tribe “goes against standards on hate speech”. Then he found his cartoon page was shut down without further explanation. He started drawing ironic cartoons on his page since the Umbrella Movement in 2014. He has ridiculed the city’s officials, policies and the Chinese regime, but never expected the page would be banned by the social media giant. In fact, he doesn’t even know exactly which post triggered the temporary shut-down. “It’s the first time that they took down my page. They started to banning my posts half a year ago, and it has become more frequent in the past two weeks,” said Edward, who chose not to reveal his full name out of safety concerns. “It’s really unexpected that they removed it. At that moment I felt like crying,” he said. Prior to the ban, Edward drew about the Lantau reclamation project and Hong Kong’s highspeed cross-border rail link. He also posted a new red cartoon figure he designed which he said meant “we all follow the Chinese Communist Party’s leadership” in September.
Reported by Rachel Yeo and Vanessa Yung Edited by Dorothy Ma
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Umbrella Movement: Social media plays a vital role during the Umbrella Movement as citizens used it as a platform to express their unhappiness towards the government, but such opinions may soon be more difficult to express as they become more strict in regulating them.
Facebook did not respond to his inquiry on the exact reason for the ban. He managed to retrieve his page after making several appeals to Facebook four days later. The company said the page was “removed by mistake”, according to its response to local media Apple Daily. “I didn’t think much about (the risk) when I posted - I was just posting what I wanted to say. I’m shocked that I crossed the line,” Edward told The Young Reporter. Edward is not the only person in Hong Kong who fears potential consequences of their Facebook posts.
What people say on Facebook has already caused trouble for some in the offline world amid growing public concern on the freedom of speech. Pro-democratic educator and activist Lau Siu-lai, for example, was banned from running in the Legco election to be held on November 25. The Return Officer, Franco Kwok, wrote in the notice of decision that Ms. Lau is not eligible for the nomination partly because of what she wrote on Facebook two years ago. “The Basic Law, the whole political system of Hong Kong, along with its chief executive, are all not mandated by Hongkongers so there is no legality at all,” wrote Ms. Lau on Facebook on October 13, 2016.
Similarly, the Facebook posts of a localist politician, Vintus Lau Wing-hong, were also used by the electoral officer as an evidence for supporting Hong Kong independence leading to his disqualification as a candidate eight months ago. During the Umbrella Movement in 2014, Facebook was the key platform to advocate democracy in Hong Kong. “During the Umbrella Movement, everyone could freely express their political opinions and post photos to attract more people to join the movement on Facebook,” recalled Owen Au Cheuk-hei, president of the Student Union of Chinese University of Hong Kong.
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“As the government escalated the suppression (on online speech), the police can search to find out who is posting political contents and use what people say online as evidence to arrest or charge them under section 161 of the Crimes Ordinance,” Mr. Au said. The ordinance stipulates that a person who “accesses a computer with criminal or dishonest intent” is liable to imprisonment for up to five years. At least nine activists were charged under section 161 in 2015, according to the Hong Kong Transparency Report published by the University of Hong Kong. Tam Tak-chi, a politician from democratic political coalition People Power, was one of the nine: he was arrested in 2015 for posting about the 1967 leftist riots which were started by
communists who protested for criminal and dishonest against British colonial rule at intent,” Mr. Tam told The Young the time. Reporter. Yeung Kwong, a leftist leader back then, was known for planning waves of bombings in Hong Kong using homemade explosive devices nicknamed “pineapple” during the riot.
“The days when one can freely express their political opinions on social media may soon be over in Hong Kong,” he said.
Since neither Facebook nor the government has laid down any On the day of Mr. Yeung’s clear boundary on speech freefuneral, Mr. Tam posted on his dom, some users are wary. Facebook page—“Write ‘homemade pineapple, keep away Edward took down the sarcastic from it’ on some boxes and cartoon about the leadership of put them on the way his (Mr. Chinese Communist Party after Yeung’s) hearse heading. ...Once he retrieved his page. you open the box—‘boom!’— “I will be more cautious (with they are just party poppers.” what I draw) and I will not post He was arrested by the police anything about China in the hours after posting but was not future,” said Edward. charged at the end. “I mentioned clearly that it definitely should not be a real bomb, but the police just came to my house and arrested me
18 SOCIETY
Mega storm reignites debate on country park development Reported by Karen Kwok Edited by Ezra Cheung
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Many trees in Hong Kong collapse because of typhoon Mangkhut.
Super Typhoon Mangkhut battered Hong Kong in September, leaving more than 46,000 downed trees, at least 600 blocked roads and paralysed much of the public transport system. The devastation has reignited debate on Hong Kong’s capacity to endure extreme weather. Environmental groups say housing development near country parks may aggravate the problem. Greenpeace campaigner, Andy Chu Kong argues that the close proximity between urban and hilly areas may lead to structural drawbacks when it comes to putting up residential buildings there. Mr. Chu went on a hike along the MacLehose Trail on Tai Mo Shan and Fei Ngor Shan after Typhoon Mangkhut. He described the aftermath as “a doomsday scenario”.
“When you look down from Fei Ngor Shan, you can see that the entire Kowloon East area, including Tsz Wan Shan and Wong Tai Sin, is so close to the mountains,” he said.
But Mr. Chu thought the government’s proposal was “counterintuitive”. He urged the government to apply the “precautionary principle” in addressing social issues.
The Kowloon East development plan was initially proposed by a think tank founded by former chief executive, Tung Chee-hwa in 2015.
He also blamed the government for attempting to rationalise country park development by blurring the division between the rural and urban areas.
Former chief executive Leung Chun-ying also suggested rezoning 400 hectares of country park land for residential purposes.
A special report published by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change on October 7 warned that the world has only 12 years to make “massive and unprecedented changes” in order to limit global warming to moderate levels.
He said the city’s housing shortage could not be resolved if the country parks are left untouched. Chief executive, Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor formed a task force last September to seek new land supply options. These include reclaiming 40 hectares at the rims of Tai Lam Country Park and Ma On Shan Country Park.
Extreme weather events will become more intense and prevalent with global warming, the UN World Meteorological Organisation said in June. According to the Hong Kong Observatory, 32 cyclones
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hit Asia in 2017. More than one-third were classified as “typhoon” or above, including Hato, which swept through Taiwan, Macau and Hong Kong in August. Architectural sector legislator Tony Tse Wai-chuen doubts that Mr. Chu’s concern holds water. He believes residential developments near hilly areas can be made safe by strengthening and maintaining the slopes. “Does it mean Heng Fa Chuen and Tseung Kwan O will become better at withstanding wind [by keeping country parks intact]?” Mr. Tse questioned.
Both Heng Fa Chuen and Tseung Kwan O are some of the most places exposed to typhoons. “Hong Kong has invested considerable resources in slope maintenance over the past 20 years,” he added, “so, massive landslides are rare.” Yet, urban planning researcher Chan Kim-ching believes that housing estates built on the peripheries of country parks may be vulnerable in case of environmental disasters. He thinks that housing development near country parks will
Number of tropical cyclones affecting Hong Kong each year
Source: Hong Kong Observatory
Urban planning researcher Chan Kim-ching says the paramount reason of the Country Parks Ordinance legislation in the 60s was to guarantee residents' living standard.
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Greenpeace campaigner Andy Chu Kong says the peripheral areas around country parks act as a buffer to reduce the impacts from urban infrastructures.
poses a “major challenge” for land development.
development of the country park peripheries.
“Although hilly terrain with gradient larger than 20° is not an insurmountable development constraint, developing such areas will generally incur a higher cost in site formation and construction and is usually not cost-effective and/or technically difficult to have large-scale development,” the paper reads.
“A country park is one entity as a whole,” the Greenpeace campaigner said. “It makes no sense to trim off areas of so-called of low ecological value.”
It adds that “natural terrain landslide hazards may need to be studied” and advises the government to provide “suitable mitigation measures” as part of the developments.
“Holistic approach”
destroy the city’s natural protection because the parks can act as a “windshield and weather modulator” during storms.
In a statement to TYR, the government’s Greening, Landscape and Tree Management Section described urban forest as a “valued asset that requires a holistic approach when managing and maintaining the individual trees within it”.
Excavating the peripheral areas may also create “uncertain variables” regarding the city’s self-sustainability and people’s safety due to the high-gradient hills, Mr. Chan explained.
But local civic groups accuse the government of chipping away at Hong Kong’s natural assets. The development proposal has backfired since it was first officially introduced.
A paper published by the Planning Department in October 2016 said that Hong Kong’s mountainous topography
Mr. Chu said Greenpeace had collected more than 40,000 signatures opposing the
Questions sent to the Task Force on Land Supply and the Civil Engineering and Development Department about preventive measures for residents who may live in such peripheral areas went unanswered. The Development Bureau replied to TYR’s email enquiry, saying that the CEDD endeavoured to carry out public education on slope safety. The CEDD will remind private property owners to have their slopes and retaining walls checked and repaired regularly to reduce the risk of landslides during heavy rain, the bureau stated. City development chief Michael Wong Wai-lun, however, said in a legislative public hearing in late September that the government’s Housing Society would proceed with the feasibility study. In the past, the city’s urban development has been reviewed following typhoons. The Civil Engineering Department was established one year after Typhoon Ellen in 1976,
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Located below Temple Hill, Tsz Wan Shan is developed very closely to Lion Rock Country Park.
which triggered a landslide in Sau Mau Ping claiming 19 lives. It merged with the Territory Development Department to form the CEDD in 2004.
“Imagine Hong Kong with no trees and packed with buildings,” Mr. Chan asked. “What will be the situation Hong Kong In 1971, Typhoon Rose caused faces when the next a series of landslides in Kwun Mangkhut comes?” Tong and in the Mid-Levels, and the hillsides remained waterlogged 11 months after the storm. Over 156 people died and 117 were injured. It was the deadliest landslide event on record. Mr. Chu described the way the government tackles climate change as “passive” and “suicidal”.
Architectural sector legislator Tony Tse Wai-chuen suggests societal developments should be changed accordingly to cater to people’s increased living standard.
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Reported by Anna Kam and Maisy Mok Edited by Melanie Japson
Hong Kong Women’s Rugby
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Jo Hull, Hong Kong National Women’s Rugby Head Coach leads a training block on training the national team their team set pieces.
Hong Kong Women’s Rugby has come a long way since building it from the ground up. Starting from only participating in one Asia tour per year, to debuting at the 2017 Women’s Rugby World Cup in Ireland. According to World Rugby, the Hong Kong Women’s Rugby team is now ranked 23rd in the world and is the only team lead by a female head coach in the competition.
in the previous years. Hong Kong Sports Institution has been funding the Women’s 7s team as a full-time training squad in 2013. “10 years ago we had one tour per year. Players trained six weeks before one tour, and after the tour, you dismiss and go back to your class and train with your coach,” said Christy Cheng, Captain of National 7s team.
“Hong Kong women’s development has improved over the last five years on an international level and local level,” said Royce Chan Leong-Sze, Now, the Hong Kong 7s Women’s forward’s coach and programme has become Ms. Cheng’s full-time job. ex-national player. However, there are still players Hong Kong National Wom- from the 15s team who have a en’s 7s team and 15s team have nine-to-five job besides playmade significant achievements ing for the National. Ms. Cheng
hopes that the media can give more exposure to women’s rugby, so that more players can get full-time contracts and resources so that they can focus on sports.
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“Hong Kong women’s development has been improved in the last 5 years on an international level and local level,” says Chan Leong-Sze Royce (right), Women’s forward’s coach and ex-national player with Jo Hull (left), Women’s head coach.
“The 15s team has also been significant in terms of development. In the past, there was probably only one team for Hong Kong, but now we can talent seek and build two teams that are contenders on the international level,” said Jo Hull, Hong Kong National Women’s Rugby Head Coach, at an open training showcasing the rising stars of the local women’s rugby team on September 9 in So Kong Po. The local female rugby community has gradually expanded over the past years. Samantha Feausi, Head of Women’s Rugby Development from Hong Kong Rugby Union shared the development of Women’s Rugby in the first Women and Girls Rugby Conference on September 8.
Kim Lam (left), board member of Hong Kong Rugby Union and Linda Olsen (right), a mother of one of the Hong Kong team players, sits on the sideline supporting women’s rugby open training session.
Samantha Feausi, Head of Women’s Rugby Development from Hong Kong Rugby Union shares that along with a record number of 86 local teams, the number of tertiary teams has doubled to 46 teams in the past year.
She said that there are over 4,500 registered female players from senior to minis. Along with a record number of 86 local teams, the number of tertiary teams has doubled to 46 teams in the past year. These numbers reflect the expanding female rugby community is getting more popular and exploding at the tertiary level. There is also an increase of female representatives in the community with 50 official female coaches and 15 referees which indicates that younger female players have more role models to learn from and relate to, without having to worry about gender barriers in communication.
To cope with the expanding numbers of rugby teams, Kim Lam, a board member of Hong Kong Rugby Union who has seen the growth of the women’s team said that 70% of the funding from the Hong Kong Rugby 7s, goes toward developing national players. Fei Mei, a student committee of Hong Kong Baptist University Rugby Football Union, has been playing rugby for two years. She believes that she has benefited from the HKRU because of the subvention of $12,000 per year for each university’s rugby union, facilitating them to hire coaches and purchase equipment needed. Ms. Lam suggests that not just international matches, but on a local level, the HKRU is getting more land space so that they can build more pitches for smaller developing rugby teams. “With all the grounds in Hong Kong Island and Kowloon, there is simply no space for any more pitches. Hence, the only place we can go to is the New Territories,” Ms. Lam added. The up and coming mini rugby clubs need a home ground for further development. The latest being the Tin Shui Wai Community Rugby Ground installed in 2016. The HKRU is trying to develop the local clubs in Hong Kong, so all clubs have a similar standard to those premiership level
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rugby clubs such as Hong Kong in the way women’s sports are Football Club, USRC Tigers to reported in the media. name a few. “If we can just talk about it like “This helps the national team any other match or game, I to spot talents and keep them in would like that,” said Ms. Chor. rugby, so that when young play- She finds the media’s coverers grow up and have choices of age on women’s sports is often other sports, they might choose exaggerated in their description to enforce that women can do rugby,” according to Ms. Hull. sports like men. Consequently, “We do think that there is a she encourages the media to long way to go,” added Ms. report both men and women’s Hull. “There is still room for sports equally. improvement for the local Being selected into a rugby sports’ scene.” team is not easy. Christy Cheng, In a panel of five where national the captain of the National 7s women rugby players, female team, expects newer rugby athletes from other fields and players to be more resilient coaches discuss the challenges and understand the importance that female participants face of building a reputation, work in sports. Laurel Chor, the pro- hard and prove themselves to ducer for VICE News Tonight get selected. on HBO and member of Hong Kong National Rugby Women’s team, wants to see a change
Ms. Cheng is impressed by the enthusiasm of new players. She thinks the “hot-blooded” attitude is very inspirational and reminds her of herself when she first joined the team. Chris Garvey, the founder of Habitual and head coach of women’s rugby at HKU Sandy Bay RFC, said he hopes rugby can be a sport that people can be proud of. He hopes it can go beyond just a temporary sport that people play when they are in college, but become a family sport that players will continue to participate even when they become parents. “I want to see the community continue to grow,” added Mr. Garvey.
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29 HEALTH & ENVIRONMENT
Call for use of brownfield sites instead of Lantau to provide housing Reported by William Tsui Edited by Yolanda Gao
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On October 14, four days after the policy address, a protest, marching from Causeway Bay to Central Government Offices, were staged by thousands of people as estimated by police in opposed to the “Lantau Tomorrow Vision” project. The organisers of the protest, Save Lantau Alliance, believe the proposal, aimed at alleviating Hong Kong’s housing crisis, is a “white elephant” which will place a burden on Hong Kong’s financial resources rather than rectify the shortage of affordable housing. “It (the reclamation project) cannot be completed without a cost of $800 billion to a trillion.” said an alliance convenor of the protest, Eddie Tse in a press conference. Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor proposed to invest up to $500 billion in the Lantau project in this year’s policy address.
The government will build several artificial islands east and north of Lantau and off the Tuen Mun coast, covering 1,700 hectares in total. The government estimates that between 260,000 to 400,000 new homes will be available by 2032 on the city’s largest outlying island, housing up to 1.1 million people in the next two or three decades, 70% of which will be public housing. But critics are not convinced with the government’s projection of the project’s cost. The reclamation work alone, including ten transport links, would cost about $550 billion, and building a new town would add another $550 billion, Edward Yiu Chung-yim, a former lawmaker representing the architectural, surveying, planning and landscape sector, estimated.
Such large-scale reclamation, based on a projected population of one billion is unnecessary because official data projected that Hong Kong’s population will peak at 8.22 million in 2043 followed by a decline, Suki Chan, an officer from Tung Chung Community Development Alliance said. “There should be an alternative plan to respond to the population growth expected from the land reclamation. said Ms. Chan. Ms. Chan believed that developing brownfield sites to provide public housing is a more feasible option than reclamation. "A research from Liber Research Community found that there are plenty of brownfield sites that can be developed,” she said. There are 1,300 hectares of brownfield sites in Hong Kong, of which 723 hectares in the New Territories haven’t been included in any development
Source: Task Force on Land Supply
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Billy S.C. Mak, Associate Professor, Department of Finance and Decision Sciences, pointed out. “The Development Bureau reveals that the cost of reclamation is $1,300 to $1,500 per square foot, which is believed to be lower than the minimum requirement of compensation from those brownfield site proprietors,” said Dr. Mak.
Dr. Chung points out that the locations of brownfield sites, which are relatively distant from urban areas, makes it difficult to connect it to the city.
plan so far, according to the Liber Research Community. They estimate that if the government uses one-third of that 723 hectares for public housing estates, 84,000 flats can be provided to accommodate 235,000 people. But Dr. Chung Him, Associate Professor of Regional Geography of China of Hong Kong Baptist University thought that converting brownfield sites into residential plots maybe a challenge. The lack of a transportation network reaching the sites, he warned, may be a problem. “The locations of such brownfield sites are relatively far away from the city, which makes it harder to connect the city and build up transportation due to the complication of the road,” said Dr. Chung.
According to the article published by Task Force on Land Supply, these brownfield sites are scattered in the rural area and intertwined with agricultural land, village houses and squatters. Ownership land tenure may also be an issue. “The government has to deal with the rental problem of existing brownfield sites’ users,” Dr. Chung explained. “Compared to developing brownfield sites, it is easier for the government to conduct land reclamation projects, since the government possesses full control of that area, free from any constraints and can decide its scale of development.” Moreover, the cost of brownfield site repossession may exceed that for reclamation, Dr.
In response to those who concern that the project jeopardises the government’s fiscal position, Dr. Mak said this several-decade project is within the limits of the national economic strength. “The expenditure is annually paid, not a lump sum,” Dr. Mak said. “If the expenditure is apportioned among 15 to 20 years, it should be affordable for the government, as the government’s expenditure on infrastructure is estimated to be over $100 billion in the following years.” “Land reclamation is unavoidable, it is not the perfect plan, but still deserve to be adopted,” said Dr. Chung. “The most important point is, the Lantau residents are involved in the decision making, and, the government should consider the environment capacity.”
32 POLITICS
Law fails to prevent illegal abortions Reported by Maisy Mok Edited by Sharon Pun
As we met for the interview, the 53-year-old woman carries a smile and a positive attitude. It is hard to notice a regretful past of hers with easy access to abortion in Hong Kong. Alice (not her real name) had have three abortions in Hong Kong. Being a young 19 years old with a hidden marriage back then, she did not think she is ready for a newborn and decided to terminate her pregnancy. She then had her first surgical termination through the Family Planning Association. According to the Basic Law, abortions can only be legal in Hong Kong if two registered practitioners agree on two conditions, that continuing the pregnancy would involve risk to the life of the mother or of injury to her physical or mental health, greater than if the pregnancy were terminated; or if there is substantial risk that the child would be born with serious physical or mental abnormalities.
There are three legal approaches available for termination of pregnancy in HK; Family Planning Association, Private hospital and Public Hospital.
“From what I recall, I was not told about any of the requirements,” said Alice. The Family Planning Association accepted the abortion solely based on her decision after her consultation with a nurse. From her experience, the policy is not executed as strict as it is written. A nurse from the Youth Health Care Division of the Family Planning Association, Tasha (the real name has been withheld) told The Young Reporter that it is “easy” to get signatures of two gynecologists through the Family Planning Association. She explained, as long as the clients are confirmed to be physically eligible to abort after two consultations, the Family Planning Association would simply approve the abortion with “anxiety state from non-obstetric disease” as the reason for the termination of pregnancy.
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B.T. has been three abortions surgically and medically, she said she would now condone abortion if she can choose again
As long as patients have the signatures, they can proceed to abortion without necessarily fulfilling the physical and mental inaptitude requirements as stated in the ordinance, she added. The Young Reporter inquired the Family Planning Association separately about the procedures and got a written reply saying that, the association provides medical consultation to evaluate the eligibility for abortion. Then it conducts a second meeting to assess the patient’s physical and psychological background. It also stated that “All decisions made by doctors follow Hong Kong’s Abortion Ordinance (Section 47 of the “Offences Against the Person Ordinance” (Chapter 212).”
According to the Family Planning Association’s Youth Sexuality Study 2016, the age groups under 27 with the highest percentage of first induced abortion is the age of 19 to 20. “The law is very superficial,” said Tasha, “I think it has been abused in a lot of cases. Many people came to abort and said that they are economically incapable of supporting a child, not prepared, or too young. However, these are not legally acceptable excuses.” Although it is legal to abort in Hong Kong with a lax in restrictions, some women take illegal approaches or terminate pregnancy in Mainland China instead because of the inconvenience to do so in Hong Kong.
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Tasha says Hong Kong women get abortions in Mainland China because there is almost no legal requirement. In Hong Kong, although the two requirements in law are not strictly followed, Tasha said the Family Planning Association would still carefully assess clients’ health to see if they are fit for abortion. If a woman is already 24 weeks into a pregnancy, she would be referred to the four private or public hospitals that offer abortion procedures. The association also keeps in touch with their clients for updates and assessments even if they have cancelled the appointment. From the Family Planning Association’s Youth Sexuality Study 2016, 16% of 5,146 respondents did abortion illegally in Hong Kong and 23% had an abortion in Mainland China.
According to the Family Planning Association’s Youth Sexual Study 2016, 39% of the respondents terminated pregnancy in Hong Kong hospitals, 32% had abortion from the Family Planning Association.
Tasha told that procedures from private hospitals cost more than $20,000 on average. In contrast, medical and surgical terminations cost $3,200 and $5,250 respectively in the Family Planning Association. Some people who are rejected by the Family Planning Association and are not able to bear a high cost may, as a result, turn to illegal options. Although the cost of abortion in public hospitals is lower than that in the private ones, the waiting period is much longer. “Clients might have to wait for more than 12 to 16 weeks for an abortion in public hospitals,” said Tasha. She said the longer the wait, the higher risk patient has to bear for the surgical procedures. On the bright side, Tasha noticed there are fewer cases of illegal abortion in Hong Kong. Comparing the percentage of 2010 to
Alice, in later years, had two more abortions. Unlike the first time having a surgical termination by the Family Planning Association, she took self-prescribed abortion pills bought by her ex-husband. “He said they are from a foreign country,” she was and still clueless on where and how her ex-husband got the pills illegally. Back then, Alice was not concerned about legality. “I did not think twice at that time. I just wanted to solve the existing problem that I was facing at that moment,” she said.
Consultations from the FPA are provided by two of their branches: FPAHK Birth Control Clinics (for women above 26 years old) and Youth Health Care Centres (for unmarried young women below 26 years old).
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2016, there is a double drop rate of illegal abortion over 10 year from 40% to 16% from the Youth Sexual Study 2016. She applauds the Department of Health for monitoring and embargoing clinics with illegal licenses. A story like Alice’s is not something new. The lax of restrictions has been going around for more than a decade. The policy has not been updated since 1981 according to the Hong Kong legislation. Lo Ping-cheung, Director of Hong Kong Baptist University’s Centre for Applied Ethics, thinks society has not raised enough uproar to demand an amendment for the policy of abortion. “I’ve lived in Hong Kong for such a long time, and I haven’t heard of anyone demanding ease on restrictions of law,” he said. “Many people are put off by the hassle, so for them, it’s easier to do abortion in the Mainland China.” Advertisements of abortion clinics in Mainland China can be accessed online, using Google search. Some advertisements of private clinics in the Mainland are designed to attract Hong Kong customers by using traditional Chinese characters and providing directions from Hong Kong to Shenzhen. Surgical abortion condoned in one of the private clinic from China that caters to Hong
Kongers cost from $800 yuan ($900) to $2.600 yuan ($2,927) which is significantly cheaper than abortions in Hong Kong. Due to the lax of restrictions, abortion in Hong Kong is done on women’s request, but doctor’s view is involved to assess whether the pregnant women’s health condition is tolerable for the termination. When speaking of whether the policy of abortion in Hong Kong should be amended to update for a clearer definition and solve existing problems, Alice feels conflicted and agreed to some extent. After converting to Christianity, she thinks everyone deserves a chance to live, and that abortion is not recommended. However, she thinks amendments might lessen both social problems in society and women’s worries. Tasha has seen religious groups confronting the Family Planning Association because of the ease of getting an abortion, but she thinks a lax in restrictions does benefit a woman’s future if she is not suitable to be a mother. The Family Planning Association that advocates safe abortion claims that “the current law in Hong Kong sufficiently safeguards the wellbeing of the pregnant woman by permitting legal abortion when clinically indicated.”
The United Nations advocates safe abortion and women’s autonomy. From their safe abortion day statement, the legal frameworks in many countries do not entirely take all circumstances in which women may need abortions and were designed to control female’s decision-making. From the statement, it says, “Countries where women have the right to terminate an unwanted pregnancy and are provided with access to information and all methods of contraception have the lowest rates of abortion.”