November 2018 / Issue 1
Cover Story
Investors Unfazed over Grey Areas of Bitcoin Regulation
In This Issue 14
04
22
Farming in town
IB & DSE
Students’ mental health
Hong Kong urban farmers urge for more rooftop farmlands in the space-starved city
Differences beyond numbers
Not enough counsellors for local university students
06
24
Baby steps
689! Off-the-ground! DQ!
McDonald’s ditches plastic straws on Mondays
The unseen upset in our slang
18
10
28
Sexual rights
Bitcoin
Off the pier
Disregarded sexual rights of the disabled
Investors unfazed over grey areas of bitcoin regulation
Discovery Bay community outraged as boathouse families face eviction
Letter from the Editor Welcome back! After the summer break, The Young Reporter is back to bring you the latest trends around the city. This semester, our team is joined by 11 more reporters who came from different academic backgrounds. But we all share a common goal—to deliver the best news stories. In this issue’s cover story, we look at how Bitcoin, a popular type of cryptocurrency, is being used by some fraudsters to commit crimes such as money laundering and illicit payments. Make sure you understand the risks that you are going to take before investing in any cryptocurrencies.
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
“Lei dei”, “DQ” and “God asks me to”. These slangs might sound familiar, but what do they exactly mean and where are they originated from? Our “The unseen upset in our slangs” story would introduce you to some political-related trendy expressions and explain how these reflect people’s political stance and public sentiment. If you think sex is a taboo subject, we hope the “Disregarded sexual rights of the disabled” story would bring you new insights. The story features our reporter’s conversation with Rabi Yim Chor-bik, who leads the Direction Association for the Handicapped. While sex is a basic need of humans, only about ten disabled members have boldly shared their sexual problems in this association with more than 800 members.
Social Media Editors
Elisa Luk Melanie Japson Sharon Pun Multimedia Editors
Elly Wu Kobie Li Maggie Liu Scout Xu Wing Li Yoyo Chow Zinnia Lee Advisers
Jenny Lam Robin Ewing
Sit back, relax and enjoy our stories in this issue. Sincerely, Holly Chik Chiu-wai
The Young Reporter Volume 51 No. 1 2018
Printer
Department of Journalism School of Communication Hong Kong Baptist University
04 HEALTH & ENVIRONMENTT
Hong Kong urban farmers urge for more rooftop farmlands in the space-starved city Reported by Vimvam Tong Edited by Ezra Cheung
Cucumber, sweet corn and some 40 varieties of herbs and vegetables are thriving atop Hong Kong’s schools, commercial and industrial buildings with urban farmers trying to conquer space limitations and make the city more self-sustaining. But thousands of Hong Kong urban farmers say they want more gardens on the landscarce city’s rooftops as local vegetable supply becomes increasingly dependent on imports from the mainland. According to statistics released by the Food and Health Bureau in March this year, 92% of the city’s vegetables are from the mainland, raising public fears about food safety, including pesticide residues or the use of locally-banned chemicals. About 5,900 urban farmers have joined rooftop farming workshops since 2015, said Michelle Hong, co-founder of sustainable living organisation Rooftop Republic, one of the city’s best-established urban farmer groups.
“We wanted to get organic farming into the city and reconnect urban dwellers with the origin of fresh food,” she said. “We try to get people to learn more about the process of how to get vegetables.”
In the 1950s, Hong Kong produced 60% of the food sold in local markets, said Prof. Pryor. But now, most fertile lands are owned by property developers and have been left idle for years.
Housing is a big priority but farming , no.
Ma Shi Po Village in the northeastern New Territories is at the centre of the conflict between Housing is a bigger priority for farmers and developers. More land use over food production, than 80% of its agricultural said Matthew Pryor, head of the fields have been bought by landscape architecture division leading development company at the University of Hong Kong. Henderson Land since 1996. Although there were about 4,400 hectares of agricultural lands in the city in 2016, only 700 hectares of them were actively farmed, said the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department.
As villagers are prohibited from growing crops, the farmlands are infested with weeds. Some disused farmlands, such as those in Yuen Long and Tuen Mun, have degraded to brownfield areas that are no longer suitable for agricultural practices. Urban residents are fighting back with rooftop gardens. The number of rooftop farms has doubled in three years stretching up to 40,000 sq ft and offering some 90 workshops to its members each year, said Ms. Hong.
Prof. Pryor conducted a mapping survey in 2014 and recorded 43 rooftop farms scattered across the city. He After the typhoon Mangkhut, farmers of Rooftop Republic do the remedial repeated the same study two works to right the Papaya trees and loose the dirt. years later, finding 17 more.
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People take photos with the rooftop farm. Family and students come while the farm is open for the public.
He said law enforcement officers had visited his rooftop farms four times, including health inspectors and fire safety officers, after receiving complaints from nearby residents, and reminded him to comply with land-use regulations. Agricultural practice in industrial buildings is still considered a breach of the land lease under current laws.
He describeed the increasing emergence of rooftop farming in Hong Kong as an “expression of conditions within a high-rise and high-density city”.
sustainable building greening which we have good progress now.”
“Because the ground level in Hong Kong is very congested, a lot of people want to use it for a lot of different things,” he said. “A lot of people have found expression within the open area to farm at the roof level.”
The AFCD told The Young Reporter in an email response about rooftop farming regulations that the government provides local farms with “basic infrastructure, technical and financial support”.
The HKU professor also talked with 109 urban farmers in 2016 and concluded their primary motivation is happiness, not the harvest.
The department added that crop cultivation in Hong Kong “does not require a farm licence”.
“Everybody who does rooftop farming is blissfully happy,” he said. Git Wui, 28, who participates in a rooftop farming activity twice a month, said she feels “so satisfied” when she can eat the vegetables planted by herself. “It’s not about food production,” Ms. Hong said. “We focus more on the community, the level of education and the level of
Please don’t ask!
But Vicky Kung, project manager of public policy think tank Civic Exchange, said those regulations and instructions are only applicable to the recreational and community farms monitored by the government, but not private gardens. Osbert Lam, the founder of rooftop agricultural group City Farm, is worried about the legal grey area.
Mr. Lam added that the government might deem rooftop farming to be “an illegal non-industrial activity”. Questions were emailed to the AFCD, the Fire Services Department and the Buildings Department about the guidelines for rooftop farming. In their replies, they neither mentioned any regulations nor clearly stated whether the activity is legal or not. “If you ask the Buildings Department you might love to build a rooftop farm, their answer is quite tricky,” Prof. Pryor said. “Their answer would be: ‘Please don’t ask! If you ask, we have to say no; if you don’t ask, then you can go ahead.’ People don’t know whether it’s permitted or unpermitted.”
06 SOCIETY
Baby Steps: McDonald’s ditches plastic straws on Mondays Reported by Stephanie Ma Edited by Yolanda Gao The sweet breath of autumn is slowly creeping in, but the summer straw season is far from over. With September temperatures that hovered in the low 30s here in Hong Kong, many are still nursing frosty summer drinks and chilled sodas. But one day a week, McDonald’s is ditching its ubiquitous red and white plastic straws with the launch of a “No Straw Monday” campaign in September. The initiative is Hong Kongwide, with the aim to reduce the plastic footprint. Every Monday dispensers will be kept empty with straws only provided upon request with the exception for takeaways and speciality beverages. Global momentum has gathered since January for restaurants chains to phase out plastic straws after American anti-plastic group Surfrider Foundation implemented a series of no straws initiatives throughout the country, as evidenced by the proliferation of social media campaigns such as the likes of “Straw Wars” in Britain and “StopSucking ” in the United States.
A myriad of fast food corporations, including McDonald’s UK and Pret A Manger, have already vowed to eliminate single plastic use by replacing plastic utensils with biodegradable alternatives. Starbucks also plans to completely phase out disposable plastic straws from its stores by 2020, and KFC Hong Kong and Macau have initiated a “No Straws and Lids” campaign for dine-in customers in August. While this adds up to progress for some of the world’s largest businesses in the catering industry, whether or not McDonald’s one-day no-straw initiative will have any environmental impact is a big question. “The subject matter of sustainability has always been at the centre of public discussions in recent years,” a spokeswoman for McDonald’s said in a statement. “And hence we want to do our part in protecting the environment.” Yet the company could not provide any data regarding the number of plastic straws utilised per year or the straw consumption this campaign helped reduce.
According to a study conducted by environmental advocacy organisation Greenpeace in 2016, McDonald’s distributed approximately 216 million pieces of disposable plastic utensils to consumers per year, ranking first amongst a list of fast food restaurants chains in Hong Kong. A survey administered by the Ocean Park Conservation Foundation Hong Kong also estimated that the annual consumption of plastic straws in Hong Kong is expected to plummet by 260 million in 2018 from 1.7 billion last year. Still, this does not gloss over the fact that Hong Kongers use a whopping amount of 1.44 billion pieces of plastic straws per year, according to the same survey by OPCFHK. “‘The no straw Monday’ campaign is a good initiative but more thorough changes are needed to be made if McDonald’s was to really contribute to environmental protection,” said Wong Kongchu, professor and director of the Croucher Institute for Environmental Sciences at Hong Kong Baptist University.
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Although Prof. Wong is in favour of the intention of the program, he doubts the effectiveness of the initiative. “I think the campaign is very encouraging. However, since the policy is operated on one day of the week only, it lacks effectiveness and appears to be more like a gimmick,” he added. Green group Ocean Recovery Alliance questioned the efficacy of the campaign, stating that the fast food giant should also work on reducing their usage of other disposable plastic items, such as plastic bags used on single drinks at McDonald’s. “Plastic bags on single drinks are actually much worse and more prolific in material than their straws. In fact, both should be done away with,” said Doug Woodring, founder and managing director of the Ocean Recovery Alliance. He also said McDonald’s needs to establish a strong, creative message to educate customers on why we should not use plastic materials. “McDonald’s Hong Kong can take leadership in reducing the single-use plastic materials being offered, not just when customers ask. But it should also be part of their program to remove many of their items which are not needed in terms of helping the economics of their business,” he said.
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Ocean Park Conservation Foundation Hong Kong projects that Hongkongers will have used 1.44 billion pieces of plastic straw per year in 2018. Fast Food giant McDonald’s Hong Kong launched in early September a “No Straw Monday” campaign, as a means of cutting back its single-plastic use. Dispensers are emptied every Monday, and straws are only available for speciality drinks, takeaways and upon requests of dine-in customers. Doug Woodring, founder of the Ocean Recovery Alliance, urges McDonald’s Hong Kong to also consider phasing out plastic bags used on single drinks.
Yvonne Sadovy, a professor at The School of Biological Sciences at the University of Hong Kong said “No Straws” is a vital concept but it’s not sufficient to tackle the atrocious impact plastic pollution has caused on the environment. “We have too much plastic getting into the marine environment. Plastic covers beaches and breaks down slowly with a real risk of chemicals being released into the marine life we later consume, such as farmed fish growing in cages in the sea. It can also trap turtles and dolphins and causes them massive damage, pain and even death,” she said.
“No Straw is an important idea but it’s not enough. McDonald’s could ensure that there are proper plates, cups and cutlery for dine-in customers. They could also consider bamboo cutlery or charge a small amount for plastic cutlery to encourage customers to bring or reuse their own.” But Prof. Sadovy believes that environmental protection should not solely be the responsibility of McDonald’s and that it could only be achieved through concerted efforts from all walks of society. “We are all responsible. As consumers, we need to speak
up and complain to businesses that are wasteful with plastic. The government has to enact laws to stop businesses from using plastic when it is not necessary, while enterprises must also reduce plastic use as part of their corporate sustainability and eco-friendly activities.” “We can’t just put the blame on McDonald’s,” Prof. Wong said. “Changing the public’s habit is important and it should be the responsibility of all of us – the government, restaurants, shops and inevitably the whole community”.
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10 SOCIETY
Is sex even possible for me?
Disregarded sexual rights of the disabled Reported by Karen Kwok Edited by Erin Chan
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Rabi Yim craves sexual intimacy. She has been paralysed from the neck down for 20 years following a car accident and struggles with her weak muscles every day. “It [sex] is a part of life, a basic human right,” said Rabi Yim Chor-bik, the chairwoman of Direction Association for the Handicapped with more than 800 disabled members, with only about ten of them who have boldly shared their sexual problems. “Even people with disabilities should get to enjoy it.”
A survey conducted by the Education Bureau from 2012 to 2013 shows that 72% of 134 primary and secondary schools provided sex education. They spent three hours on average on related programmes conducted by external institutions according to students’ academic levels.
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“It [sex] is a part of life, a basic human right, even people with disabilities should get to enjoy it.”
There is a lack of public awareness of the sexual needs of the disabled in Hong Kong. According to the 2003 report by the Association of Women With Disabilities Hong Kong, most female interviewees (57.3%) were unmarried. They added that in terms of marriage, meeting people of the opposite sex is the most difficult (22%), followed by raising children (17%) and pregnancy (12%) respectively. Meanwhile, the number of people with disabilities has been escalating. As reported by the Census and Statistic Department in 2013, there were about 578,600 people with disabilities (excluding people with intellectual disabilities), which was 60% more than that in 2007. Michelle Chak Nga-lai, the spokesperson of The Family Planning Association, points out that inadequate sexual education is the result of such lack of awareness.
However, Ms. Chak still thinks that sex education in Hong Kong is “conservative” and “insufficient”, even though the Education Bureau has been implementing their guidelines since 1986. “Schools are often too busy to prioritise sex education and they lack the required policy to implement the subject,” said Ms. Chak. “A considerable number of teachers think that they are not well-equipped to deliver the related topic, and very often they would limit the discussion with students to topics that are less controversial, such as changes in puberty and protection against child abuse.”
Rabi Yim Chor-bik, Chairwoman of Direction Association for the Handicapped
Beyond schools, in 2010 the Social Welfare Department introduced sex education for adults with intellectual or physical disabilities. But Ms. Chak felt that there is no teaching strategy that can suit people with all kinds of disabilities. “This gives the impression that there is no teaching material for the disabled,” she said.
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Rabi thinks that another issue service. These may include is the lack of sexual services decoration of the venue and catered for disabled people. how to avoid family members from bumping into the middle “Compared with other coun- of the session. tries, the facilities in Hong Kong lags behind seriously,” Although critics say the services she said. “It affects how the dis- that Hand Angels provide is simabled people build their social ilar to prostitution, the charity means to point out that disabled network here.” people have equal sexual rights Taiwan, Japan and the UK to able-bodied individuals from for example, have taken a a legal point of view. more liberal approach in satisfying the sexual needs of The British TLC Trust provides similar services to disabled cliwheelchair-bound people. ents. Their services include Hand Angels, a Taiwan-based exotic dance and massage. The voluntary sexual service mainly government of the Netherlands caters to physically handi- even subsidises people with discapped males. Their workers abilities to seek sexual services help clients reach orgasm from prostitutes by law, even though the scheme is a controthrough masturbation. versial one. Staff from Hand Angels would spend around six months on Rabi explained that the lack of average to discuss the require- resources in addressing their ments of the clients before sexual needs is due to the social providing any form of physical stigma around disabled people.
“Sex is already a taboo subject in our society,” said Rabi. “And people would conspire against the idea of the disabled having sex.” She added that disabled people are often being overlooked on the fact that they could still be sexual beings. “The public views the disabled as people who need protection,” she said. “Most of them have been taken care of by their families and they won’t be allowed to go out on their own due to safety concerns. As a result, they seldom have the chance to socialise, not to mention meeting future spouses.” A research by The Christian Family Service Centre in 2015 found that only about half of the disabled people interviewed had one to two friends, and nearly 80% of them never or seldom attend social activities. Like many other disabled people, Rabi has been in situations where she felt the conditions of her disability have exacerbated her sexual vulnerability. “The movement of my limbs is very constricted,” said Rabi. “It is really difficult to move from place to place relying only on your shoulders and upper arm strength.” “Simple everyday activities can be challenging”, she said.
Sammy Kam Chak Sum, the owner of a sex toys store, 18Gift, is showing different sex toys available for disabled males and females respectively.
“My fingers are not very flexible either,” she said. “Whenever
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you need to cut an apple, turn a doorknob, put on a dress or just to pick something up from the floor, you need to think about whether it is achievable.” Her paraplegia has also caused physiological issues. She cannot use her hands and feet to test the temperature of things. “While I take a shower, I have to use the remaining normal parts of my body to test the water temperature,” she explained.
by their Taiwan study tour on “We may share more informathe operations of the disabled tion with the public about the sexual service there in 2011. sexual and reproductive health needs of the disabled, and In 2017, RTHK’s talk show exchange experience and best broadcast Women’s Talk which practice linked to such awarefocuses on topics such as sexual ness,” said Ms. Chak. relations, desires and orientation had also highlighted the sexual She added that the association equality of disabled females. has been offering tailor-made sexuality education programs She suggested that the gov- for children, youth and adults ernment should pass the with intellectual or physical legislation to increase the disabilities upon requests from number of sexuality counsel- agencies or schools to address ling and rehabilitation centres the specific needs of different for disabled people. disability groups.
“When you are bound to a wheelchair, your body is prone to water retention and you can’t sit up straight, ” she said. Sammy Kam, the owner of an online sex toy store 18 Gift, However, Rabi thought that offers discounts to disabled media has played a critical role in people who purchase toolkits changing the general perceptions as a way to support them in satof the sexual rights of disabled isfying their sexual needs. people. “They might want to know what sex is, what mastur- “Some disabled people may bation is, through television.” think that they are labelled as special and therefore turn down The approach of media on the my discount,” said Mr. Kam. topic of sexual autonomy of disabled people have become more To increase public awareness liberal in recent years. of the sexual needs of disabled people, Ms. Chak of The In 2014, the Hong Kong Women Family Planning Association Christian Council published a said will hold workshops regbook of short stories and video ularly to educate people from on the sexual needs of disabled different communities. interviewees, which was inspired
“At our Youth Health Care Centers, integrated medical and counselling services are available for disabled persons that can better address their individual needs,” she said. Rabi hopes that the community will be more understanding of the sexual needs of disabled people one day. “It will be a long and hardfought process,” said Rabi.
14 POLITICS
Five years ago, when Vanessa Lee Wing-kai was in high school, she chose to study for an International Baccalaureate Diploma, a qualification which was less known in Hong Kong at the time. “The proportion of IB to Hong Kong Diploma of Education students was about 30 to 100. There were two classes of IB students, while there were eight classes of DSE students,” said Ms. Lee. In fact, she does not think studying IB made her better than any DSE students. “IB will only become an advantage if its diverse and integrative learning style suits you,” said Ms. Lee. Over the past few years, the number of students admitted to universities in Hong Kong through non-JUPAS (Joint University Programmes Admissions System) programmes such as IB rose significantly. According to data provided by the University Grants Committee, those with IB diplomas increased by 4% over four years.
In 2013, Gabriel Matthew Leung, Dean of the Department of Medicine at the University of Hong Kong, said in an open seminar that he hoped to take up the responsibility to ensure local DSE students their right to university education by increasing the overall departmental JUPAS admission quota to more than 75%. Previous record of JUPAS admission numbers online showed a total intake of 150 students for Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery programme at HKU in 2012. But this year, less than half of the 235 students admitted to the Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery programme at HKU were JUPAS high school leavers, according to data from HKU.
Teddy Tang Chun-keung, the Acting Chairman of the Hong Kong Association of the Heads of Secondary Schools, says different programmes in universities are allowed to make their own decisions and there are no generally-liked standardst on student admission at the moment.
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Reported by Phoebe Lai Edited by Candice Wong
That raised questions on whether non-JUPAS students were given an unfair advantage by Hong Kong ’s eight UGC-funded universities.
Take Chemistry as an example, according to the UCAS tariff points calculator, getting grade 5 in Chemistry in DSE is equivalent to getting grade H6 (6 marks) in Chemistry in IB higher level.
Earlier this month, legislator Ip Kin-yuen released an official statement of reply from the Education Bureau which contained non-JUPAS student admission numbers from each UGC-funded university in the past 5 academic years. The Hong Kong Association of the Heads of Secondary Schools suggested setting up a public test score conversion system for universities as a way of comparing IB and DSE scores. Teddy Tang Chun-keung, the acting chairman of the association, explained that the
conversion system would be of public interest and would benefit the universities. “It could clear the air since it is suspected there were unfair treatments among the systems,” Mr. Tang said. “It would harm the universities’ credibility if things were not clear and it has intensified distrust in society.” Mr. Tang emphasised the conversion system could act as a benchmark for both Hong Kong society and universities. He pointed out that the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service in the U.K could be a model of reference for the conversion system. According to the UK government’s educational updates, UCAS is a “centralised” tariff point calculation system that compares various qualifications students have for university admission, including GCE A Levels, IB and HKDSE. The point system was updated in 2017. “Using a qualification’s size and grading structure to calculate total tariff points”, according to the online
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He described that IB is intended for students that take the time to explore. It contains a broader spectrum of knowledge that is to be learnt and graded, based on their performances in a diverse series of more extensive and integrated assessment. DSE, on the other hand, uses one standardised examination to conclude three years of scheduled learning on topic-based content.
Joe Hui Hon-wing
Ms. Lee is a former IB student from St. Paul’s Co-educational College and an undergraduate in her third year in MBBS at the University of Hong Kong.
lecturer from The Education University of Hong Kong
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Institutions in Hong Kong carry the freedom to incorporate the IB system to their practicum, given they have the resources to support the cost, which obviously comes from the amount the parents are willing to pay for their children to study IB.
introduction of the modified system, the UCAS tariff points calculator can show the equivalence of multiple systems indicated by the points. In other words, achieving a certain grade of a subject in DSE could be equal to achieving a different grade of the same subject in IB as long as the same points were generated. However, Joe Hui Hon-wing, a lecturer at the Education University of Hong Kong in the Department of Education Policy and Leadership, said a score conversion system would not be effective in Hong Kong. “Both systems cannot be measured simply by comparing them directly,” he said.
“I was planning to study overseas after high school and I have been more familiar with English growing up so IB was more manageable for me,” she said, “My brother studied IB too.” Timothy Chiu Lok-hin, a year four MBBS student also at the University of Hong Kong came through JUPAS. He said he was never introduced to anything about IB in secondary school. “I was at La Salle College and they do not offer IB,” he said. “I was not considering going overseas or transferring to any international schools, so IB was never in the picture.” Both Ms. Lee and Mr. Chiu studied science subjects in their respective secondary schools, yet their assessments and areas of study were completely different under the two systems.
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Ms. Lee said IB seems to offer a more open and self-initiated learning experience. For instance, she was required to write up an extended research essay for each of the topics for Chemistry in 1000 to 2000 words. “IB focuses a lot on experiential learning,” she said, “Part of your passing grade requires you to conduct either a service project or an activity which must be self-initiated and conducted outdoor. We need to write a proposal and a reflection for it.” On the other hand, Mr. Chiu believed DSE is more topic-based, which focuses more on what could be learnt in books and notes. “The only assessment I did that I thought was similar to those of IB was the Independent Enquiry Study Report,” he said, “ Still, only a written report is concerned. Basically, there is hardly any assessment that allows students’ integration of different kinds of knowledge in DSE.”
S6 student reaches $91,500. This implies Ms. Lee could have been paying $7,625 each month in her last two years of high school if no school scholarships had been granted. Mr. Hui, the lecturer in the Education University of Hong Kong, pointed out the Hong Kong government has never fully funded the 30 schools which have been offering the IB practicum. “IB is recognised internationally, but it is not a local system,” he said. “It is impossible for our government to support any practicum running in schools that would not be an easy target of centralised control.” The lecturer said it is pointless to set up a conversion system between the two exams unless they are allocated with the same amount of resources from the government, and have the same learning context and assessments.
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Different programmes in universities are allowed to make their own decisions and there are no generally-liked standards on student admission at the moment.
Despite being a scholarship recipient in secondary school, Ms Lee said she was still paying around $7,000 per month in her 2-year IB practicum. According to the Education Bureau, Ms. Lee’s Alma mater, St. Paul’s Co-educational College, is currently one of the most expensive local DSS schools. Their maximum school fee per year per S5 and
Teddy Tang Chun-keung Acting Chairman of the Hong Kong Association of the Heads of Secondary Schools
18 BUSINESS
Investors unfazed over grey areas of Bitcoin regulation Reported by Rachel Yeo Edited by Jade Li
Hong Kong has seen the rise of money laundering and illicit payments this year. According to the Hong Kong Police Force, there were 3,671 cases of deception-related crimes reported in the first half of 2018, including email scams and investment fraud. In addition, Hong Kong’s antifraud squad has discovered that thousands of Hong Kong bank accounts have been used to launder about $4 million over the past year.
Leonhard Weese President of the Bitcoin Association in Hong Kong (Photo credit : Leonhard Weese)
Some of these fraudsters made use of Bitcoin, a popular type of cryptocurrency, to commit these crimes. First founded in 2009, Bitcoin transactions do not have to go through any bank or centralised authority. Instead, it makes use of peer to peer technology and transactions between any two parties are encrypted to ensure security. Therefore it is possible to conduct transactions anonymously, enabling fraudsters to make use of its anonymous nature for ransom or blackmail. This also makes it difficult for police to identify users. As a result of these crimes, local banks are increasingly wary about cryptocurrencies , which makes it more difficult for investors to obtain bank accounts to trade Bitcoin. For example, local cryptocurrency exchange Gatecoin received a notification from Hang Seng Bank that their company bank account would be suspended with no explanation last year. The exchange then opened up a foreign bank account in order to continue their operations. Banks are also charging high interest rates for many
cryptocurrency exchanges in order to discourage investors to mine Bitcoin locally, according to the Bitcoin Association of Hong Kong. T h e s e c o n c e r n s h av e prompted some countries to scrutinise their current cryptocurrency policies. Among them, China is one of the most stringent regulators of cryptocurrency trading. Authorities there have started to ban Bitcoin miners, while also freezing bank accounts associated with cryptocurrency exchanges. They have even blocked internet or mobile access to anything related to cryptocurrency trading. The Leading Group for the Special Campaign against Internet Financial Risks have announced that authorities will continue to monitor and shut down Bitcoin mining operations. Compared to the mainland, Hong Kong’s regulations on Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies remain lax, although the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong warned digital currency platforms and firms in February that regulators are monitoring
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them in case of potential fraud and market manipulation. In September 2017, the SFC highlighted that if cryptocurrencies offered in any Initial Coin Offering, that is a type of fundraising mechanism in which cryptocurrencies are exchanged, were in the form of “shares”, “debentures”, or interests in a “collective investment scheme”, they would fall under the definition of “securities”. “In such cases, dealing in or advising on the digital tokens, or managing or marketing a fund investing in such digital tokens, might constitute a ‘regulated activity’ and would require registration or a licence from the SFC,” said a spokesperson from the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau. “Our financial regulators are closely monitoring the development of Initial Coin Offerings and cryptocurrencies in Hong Kong. They are also taking appropriate measures
to safeguard the interest of the investing public.” the spoksperson said.
“When there is regulation, it is no longer a decentralised entity,” he added.
But to date, there have been no attempts to redefine cryptocurrency as money or impose restrictions on its trade in Hong Kong. Despite the risks involved, some investors prefer cryptocurrencies because they are relatively unregulated.
For 24-year-old freelance investor Martin Lo Tik-Him, banning Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies will not stop people from investing in them.
One of them is 29-year-old Eric Chu Pak Hang, who has been trading Bitcoin since June 2017. “I think that the fact that there is no regulation on Bitcoin in Hong Kong at the moment is a good thing for traders. There is no tax involved [and] the trading platforms don’t have to give our information to the government,” said Mr. Chu.
“Let’s say [if] the Hong Kong government bans cryptocurrency, people can still buy cryptocurrency from exchanges outside Hong Kong,” he explained. Bitcoin was first introduced to Hong Kong in 2014. As it became increasingly popular among local investors, former financial secretary John Tsang expressed some uncertainty over Bitcoin and its future.
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“Due to the difficulty of tracing the source of funds, the Bitcoin platform is attractive for money laundering activities, and the international community may join forces to ban or regulate Bitcoin, affecting the value of Bitcoin,” Mr. Tsang wrote in a blog post in 2013. The Hong Kong Financial Services and Treasury Department has also classified the threat from Bitcoin as “low”, according to their 2018 Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Risk Assessment report.
Education Centre to release the Chin Family website, an educational site with articles and graphics to help the public be aware of the risks of cryptocurrencies. “It’s not a very common asset yet, and we barely know how it will develop and be adopted in the next years,” said Leonhard Weese, the president of the Bitcoin Association in Hong Kong. “If we had legislated about Bitcoin in 2014, most of it would be outdated already,” he added.
The Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau has decided to focus on taking measures to educate the public about the risks of cryptocurrency trading.
Without much government intervention, investors have to take extra precautions to ensure that they are making the best out of their investments.
This year, they have placed advertisements in MTR stations, as well as print and digital media. They have also collaborated with the Investor
“We are considered the early adopters of this new technology and there is considerable risk involved. Some people invest because they believe in the technology, others do it for the profit,” said Mr. Chu. “I must say that investors should only invest what they are willing to lose.”
Mr. Weese also advises investors to do proper research before setting up Bitcoin wallets, run network nodes and store assets in wallets they control themselves. “There will be some big crashes and disasters in this industry too, and the best way to protect yourself is to only invest in things that work, and to always control your own keys,” he shared. The government has put in place some recommendations for investors to be careful about investing in Bitcoin and other virtual currencies. “‘Cryptocurrencies’ are highly speculative and are associated with various kinds of risks. Their prices may be susceptible to significant fluctuations due to speculative activities,” said Dr. Kelvin Wong, Chairman of the Investor Education Centre, in a press release. “Investors may suffer significant monetary loss as a result of volatile prices.” They have also advised the public not to invest in Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies, unless they fully understand the risks that they are going to take. Before investing, they should also be well educated on the risks of hacking and misappropriation of their assets.
A Bitcoin ATM machine located in Mongkok, where people can purchase Bitcoin or complete Bitcoin-related transactions conveniently.
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22 HEALTH & ENVIRONMENT
Not enough counsellors for local university students Reported by King Woo Edited by Kenji Chan
The counselling service leaflets and posters only can find in the Counselling and Development Centre.
ratio is around 1 to 2,800. Other the Hong Kong Jockey Club public universities in Hong Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention at the UniverKong are around 1 to 1,000. sity of Hong Kong. The recommended ratio of schools counsellors to students is And 33 post-secondary students 1 to 500-700 students, according committed suicide between 2013 At Hong Kong Baptist Univer- to the US National Association and 2016, according to a report sity, six full-time psychological of School Psychologists. from the Education Bureau. counselors serve the university’s nearly 11,000 students. The mental health of Hong More university students need That means one counselor per Kong students is alarming, with counselling than secondary 1,766 students. suicides by full-time students school students, said Political aged 15 to 24 increasing more Assistant to the Secretary for At City University of Hong than 70% over the last five Education Jeff Sze ChunKong, the counsellor student years, according to a report by fai. He added that university The ratio of psychological counsellors to students in universities in Hong Kong falls far below standards recommended by the US National Association of School Psychologists.
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Even if the student wants to find the counsellor for support, the student needs to wait for a long time from making an appointment to have a conversation with a counsellor.
said that only a few students will actively seek help from counsellors. Most are unaware that school counsellors can help mental illness. The universities counselling services are too dependent on the students initiative, he said. “The number of counsellors in universities are not enough for the students,” Mr. Yu said. “Even if the student wants to find the counsellor for support, the student needs to wait for a long time from making an appointment to have a conversation with a counsellor.”
At Hong Kong Shue Yan University, there are only two full-time Isaac Yu counsellors for students, Mr. Yu registered counselling psychologist at the Hong Kong Psychological Society said. “They are fully scheduled by providing counselling service to students. The students find it difficult to have a fast counsellors find it difficult to scheduled meeting with the monitor and take care of every counsellor,” he said. student’s mental health. The Education Bureau is input“University students are suf- ting more resources to promote fering from different levels of student awareness of mental pressure such as study pres- health. For example, more sure, relationship and new than $90 million went into the environment, etc. It is diffi- Joyful@School scheme, a govcult for counsellors to discover ernment campaign in primary students’ mental health when and secondary public schools they are deteriorating,” Mr. to raise awareness and underSze said. “The counselling ser- standing of mental health. vice is poor when there are a Universities are not covered in mass number of students from this scheme. different backgrounds with difMr. Yu said that to improve the ferent pressures.” effectiveness of counselling Isaac Yu, a registered counsel- service, universities should ling psychologist at the Hong have a screening assessment Kong Psychological Society, for all students.
“When the counselling centre discovers some of the students’ mental situations are more critical compared to other students, they should be able to have an active action to suggest those students to receive counselling. “The universities can let the students who are on training as a professional social worker or psychologist to provide some prevention assessment for the students. It may help to improve the counselling efficiency in universities,” Mr. Sze said.
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The universities can let the students who are on training as a professional social worker or psychologist to provide some prevention assessment for the students. It may help to improve the counselling efficiency in universities. Jeff Sze Chun-fai Political Assistant to the Secretary for Education
24 CULTURE & LEISURE
The unseen upset in our slangs Reported by Amy Ho Edited by Dorothy Ma
When using trendy words, Hong Kong people may not be as happy as they appear to be. A conversation among Hongkongers may go something like this: “Talking with you off-theground people is meaningless!”. Scroll down the page of a Hong Kong online forum and you might come across questions like this: “Do you think classical music is off-the-ground?” What does “off-the-ground” (pronounced as lei dei) mean in Cantonese? A plane taking off? No. To start your path to success? No. Does it mean a subject which is not in contact with the ground? Literally, yes.
been used to describe those who are clueless about the reality of the society.
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Using slangs with political connotations is also a form of political participation.
When John Tsang Chun-wah, the former Financial Secretary of Hong Kong claimed he was a “bourgeois” in 2013 with a monthly salary of almost $370,000, the community was shocked and people sarcastically labelled themselves as the “poor”. Soon scholar and opinion leader Dr. Horace Chin Wankan came up with the term “off-the-ground bourgeois” to address the stratum of people who are absolutely out of touch with the hardship of the majority. Since then, the idiom has
Shiu Ka-chun Lawmaker from the Social Welfare functional constituency.
2017.
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Cantonese slangs always comes from the concern of the youth in the society. Leung Wai-mun Director of Chinese Language Centre
at The Hong Kong Polytechnic Univeristy
The city’s politicians and what they say have now become a contributing factor to local slang: “689”, referring to CY Leung, the city’s former Chief Executive, now means incapable as an adjective; “DQ”, abbreviation for disqualified, is commonly used after four legislators were disqualified by the court; and “God asks me to”, after Carrie Lam, the city’s leader, explained her reason for running in the Chief Executive election. “There are more politics-related trendy expressions these days,” said Shiu Ka-chun, legislator for the social welfare constituency. “Usage of those slangs is a declaration of political stance, and represents public sentiment,” Mr. Shiu told The Young Reporter.
“The more confined a society, the more slang would be created,” wrote Mr. Shiu in an article published in 2016. “With Hong Kong’s coterie political authority, you are basically unable to change the government, the policies, and the Legislative Council, or threaten the power of the president of Legco or the Chief Executive. What can you do except laugh at them?” Mr. Shiu explained in an interview. “This is also an expression of discontent, but with more bitterness and resignation,” he said. Behind the trendy expressions is a metaphor on the imbalance of power in Hong Kong’s political system in which people cannot make any institutional changes in their own society, Mr. Shiu said. The increasing number of Cantonese slang that originate from political issues may reflect
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young people’s increasing interest in politics. A student from Hong Kong Baptist University, Lau Hiu-ching, 20, is one of them. She uses these expressions when discussing politics. “Teenagers always have the courage to taunt at and challenge the authority,” Ms. Lau said. Slangs often originate from what teenagers are concerned about, Leung Wai-mun, Director of Chinese Language Centre and Assistant Professor of the Department of Chinese and Bilingual Studies at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University pointed out. Dr. Leung believes that more young people care about politics nowadays and are taking part in political movements. As a result, more political trendy expressions are created. “In general, Hong Kong has become more politicised,” said lawmaker Mr. Shiu. Several political campaigns in recent years were organised by members of the public - the Queen's Pier protest, the AntiHong Kong Express Rail Link movement, the Anti-national Education Movement, and the Umbrella Movement, which involved an estimated one million participants. Mr. Shiu compared today’s slang with the era when trendy words would originate from the leisure industry, for instance, movies and celebrities. But the
sentiment in using slang evidently switched. “The meanings carried by slang are no longer light and joyful — not ‘I laugh because the world is beautiful’, but ‘I want to at least laugh before I die’,” he said. However, he believes that using these slang which have implicit ridicule of government officials, is also a way people express their concern about society and to some extent, a form of political awakening. “A single political campaign is short-lived but the awareness can be long-lasting... Nowadays, perhaps fewer people actively participate in political movements, but I see an increasing awareness in politics,” he added. Ms. Lau, the university student who is interested in politics from time to time believed that using political-related trendy expressions is a reminder that she has to pay attention to what’s going on in the community even if she is overwhelmed by school work. “It is to remind myself of the situation of our society — what’s real, what people notice and how it is all portrayed in the media,” she said.
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With Hong Kong’s coterie political authority, you are basically unable to change the government, the policies, and the Legislative Council, or threaten the power of the president of Legco or the Chief Executive. What can you do except laugh at them? Shiu Ka-chun legislator for the social welfare constituency
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28 SOCIETY
Discovery Bay community outraged as boathouse families face eviction Reported by Katherine Li and Akane Nakasuji Edited by Michael Shum and Sharon Pun
On September 9, the usual tranquillity of Sunday evenings in Discovery Bay was disrupted by thousands of residents participating in a demonstration, against the impending eviction of Discovery Bay Marina Club boathouse residents. They have to move because Hong Kong Resorts, a company which owns most of the development projects in the area, have new plans for Tai Pak Bay. All dressed in white shirts, the demonstrators marched from Marina Club on to
Discovery Drive and up Sienna Road. They gathered at the centre of the North Plaza at around 6 pm, right before the commencement of their community hall meeting. “We want Hong Kong Resort to understand that their actions don’t just affect Marina residents, but this entire community,” said Henry Moreno, one of the organisers of the demonstration, who is also the chairman of 208 affected boathouse members.
Mr. Moreno moved to Marina Club with his wife and three children just two years ago because they could not afford an apartment on Hong Kong island. His boat cost him around $4.4 million, of which he still owes $3 million in mortgage. However, once evicted with nowhere to berth, his vessel will be worth nothing. “I am close to facing personal bankruptcy,” said Mr. Moreno. “I still have three kids who go to school here, two in Discovery Bay International School which
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is owned by Hong Kong Resort and one in Discovery College, who would be out of school if we can’t make things work. I have a family to take care of, so leaving the marina with nowhere to go is definitely not an option. But right now I really don’t know where we can go.” Discovery College and Discovery Bay International School are the two main schools in the area. At Discovery College, 27 students from 21 families would be directly affected, excluding staff members. Around 90 out of the 220 boathouse families send children to schools in Discovery Bay. Mark Beach, principal of Discovery College, has mentioned in an email to staff members that they need to be watchful of signs such as depression and dropping grades not only among the directly affected students, but also their friends and classmates. “My eldest daughter Emily goes to Discovery College and is already in her diploma
year,” said Liz Hemmings who lives in the marina. “Both my daughters grew up here, go to school here, and have so many friends here. It will be heartbreaking for them to be apart from each other.” Ms. Hemmings feels that it is important to acknowledge the fact that people in the boathouse community are not billionaires who are about to lose their “fancy pleasure yachts”. Many families are on mortgage while others have spent their life’s savings on the boathouse. This would be an economic disaster for all of them. “If anyone thinks that this just affects us, then they are wrong,” said Ms. Hemmings. “There are some very vulnerable people, such as our helpers and boat boys, who would be out of a job. Once we leave, they would have to go back to their own countries, and it would be very difficult for them to come back here.”
Diana and Nicklaus Von Der Luhe are residents of the Marina Club who also believe that this would be a huge blow to the entire community, on which their daughter, who suffers from disabilities, has strongly relied on. “Everyone here knows our daughter Catherine,” says Mrs. Von Der Luhe. “They helped her find a job and really took care of her. Sometimes she can have seizures when she is outside, and without this community that we know would help her, it would be terrifying and potentially dangerous.” Even though all residents of the marina are aware that December 31 will be the expiry date of their debentures as stated in their contracts, the eviction notice still came as a shock to them for many reasons. Ms. Hemmings explained that all of them were expecting a new form of contract or a renewal of debenture because
On September 23rd, hundreds of Discovery Bay residents, including those who live in the Marina Club, gathers on the Tai Pak Beach beach with their banner.
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the Marina Club has just raised their berthing fees in May and have hired new staff for the clubhouse during the Summer. “We have been continuously asking Hong Kong Resorts for a long time ago what they are planning to do when our debentures end. The answer we always got was ‘we will let you know soon’. A while ago, the company suddenly started to voluntarily sponsor the DC Parent Association along with multiple other sports clubs, so we all thought things were
improving. Until suddenly, the eviction notice drops. We don’t know how we are supposed to interpret this chain of events,” said Ms. Hemmings. What frustrates the residents even more is that they think they are being ignored by the developer. According to Ms. Hemmings, the Chow family which owns the company have berthed their gigantic yacht, Zeepaard right next to the residents’ boathouses and threw a party there a week after the eviction notice.
Ms. Hemmings said that residents have submitted a list of nine questions to Hong Kong Resort, which have been ignored so far, along with two other lists of questions submitted prior to the last one. Up till mid-October, the company has not replied to the boathouse residents’ requests for meetings. Hong Kong Resort also has not answered The Young Reporter’s request for comments, nor has it responded to any questions from the media.
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“The marina situation is an injustice really, because many of these people have contributed so much to our community,” said Talek Harris, a resident of Discovery Bay and attendee of the demonstration. “Maybe the legality of it is that Hong Kong Resort can throw these people out of their homes, but in a moral sense, this is very reprehensible.” Another Discovery Bay resident, Jenny Jones, also believes that even though it is the company’s business to make money,
the eviction destroys the trust between them and the entire community which will harm their long-term interest. “They will also make more money if they act responsibly so that people feel that Discovery Bay is a positive place to live and worth investing in. Who will want to buy property here if they know Hong Kong Resort can change plans on a whim without consulting them, and destroy their life’s savings overnight?” said Ms. Jones. However, according to Eliza Xue, a lecturer from Hong Kong Baptist University on Law for Hong Kong Business, it will be difficult to contest company’s decision on legal grounds.
About a hundred march from the Marina Club to the North Plaza in protest against the Hong Kong Resort’s decision to evict boathouse residents, a decision that they believe would negatively impact the entire Discovery Bay community.
or any signal substantial enough to make the residents believe that they will not be evicted, the developer could be stopped by the intervention of Doctrine of Estoppel. This Doctrine prevents one party from withdrawing a promise made to a second party if the latter has reasonably relied on that promise. “The families are desperate to find homes,” said Amy Yung, District Councillor for Discovery Bay who has been actively seeking a solution, “I have contacted the government to arrange a meeting between them and the leaders of these Marina Club residents, so that the residents can express their will and explore different options with help.”
“The developer is protected by law since they have complied to their contract by giving four months’ notice in advance. A notice was served in time on August 31,” said Ms. Xue, “We cannot guess why Hong Kong Resort choses to keep its plan in the dark, but it is entitled to do so for commercial reasons.”
Meanwhile Ms. Yung has made long-term and short-term plans. In the long run, there is a marina in the northern part of Lantau Island, so that is a possibility to be discussed with the government. In the short term, she will help identify different locations to house these boats.
But Ms. Xue thinks that if the marina residents were misled in any way by Hong Kong Resort or its staff, such as an official representation that the contract would be renewed
“This entire community will work together and do whatever we can to help,” Ms. Yung concluded with determination. “We will not let our friends and neighbours suffer alone.”