The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority: The Hospital Authority (HA) spokesperson today (April 29) said that 13 general out-patient clinics (see table below) will provide holiday clinic services on Labour… read more
The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority: During the service demand surge, the Hospital Authority is closely monitoring the service demand of Accident and Emergency Departments and the occupancy rate … read more
The Chief Executive, Mrs Carrie Lam, today (April 28) attended the opening ceremony of the 2019 Beijing International Horticultural Exhibition in Beijing. She visited the Hong Kong Garden and other gardens.
Other government officials attending the opening ceremony included the Director of the Chief Executive’s Office, Mr Chan Kwok-ki; the Under Secretary for Home Affairs, Mr Jack Chan; the Director of Architectural Services, Mrs Sylvia Lam; and the Director of the Office of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region in Beijing, Mr John Leung.
The theme of the Expo is “Live Green, Live Better”. It will be held in Yanqing District of Beijing from tomorrow (April 29) to October 7. The exhibition covers an area of 503 hectares with multiple exhibition areas. The Hong Kong Garden, located in the Chinese Garden Exhibition Zone, has an area of about 2 000 square metres. The theme of the Hong Kong Garden is “City of Contrast”. It reflects Hong Kong’s contrasting urban and rural settings and raises people’s awareness on urban greening.
The Hong Kong Garden mainly comprises three components, namely the Architectural Pavilion, the Artistic Feature Wall and the Horticultural Garden. The steel-frame architectural feature and the intersecting greenery showcase the contrast of the hyper-dense cityscape and urban greening in Hong Kong. The unique cityscape of Hong Kong is expressed abstractly on the Artistic Feature Wall, enabling visitors to learn more about the iconic buildings in Hong Kong.
The Home Affairs Bureau is responsible for co-ordinating the project. Planning and construction are led by the Architectural Services Department, while the Leisure and Cultural Services Department provides seasonal flowers for planting and display. read more
In response to media enquiries on the procession today (April 28), a government spokesman made the following statement:
Since the return to the Motherland, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) has been exercising “Hong Kong people administering Hong Kong” and a high degree of autonomy in strict accordance with the Basic Law. The “one country, two systems” principle has been fully and successfully implemented.
Human rights and freedom in Hong Kong including freedom of speech and freedom of assembly, etc. are fully protected by the Basic Law, the Hong Kong Bill of Rights Ordinance and other legislation. The rule of law and judicial independence are the core values of the HKSAR. The HKSAR Government attaches utmost importance to them and is determined to fully safeguard them. In addition, the Department of Justice has all along upheld its constitutional responsibility in handling its prosecution work in strict accordance with the law in an impartial, professional and apolitical manner.
The Fugitive Offenders and Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Legislation (Amendment) Bill 2019 (the Bill) aims to deal with a murder case which happened in Taiwan in early 2018 involving Hong Kong residents. At the same time, it seeks to plug the loopholes in Hong Kong’s overall co-operation mechanism in criminal and juridical assistance matters, including the geographical restrictions and impractical operational requirements under the existing laws. The Government’s proposed amendments, which have been thoroughly and prudently considered, can achieve these two objectives.
The proposed amendments do not pinpoint any particular jurisdiction. After the legislative amendments, Hong Kong can, where necessary, using the same set of standards and under the principle of mutual respect, handle serious criminal cases by case-based surrender arrangements with a jurisdiction that does not have any long-term surrender of fugitive offenders arrangement with Hong Kong. The proposed legislative amendments will not affect any long-term agreements in force.
All existing human rights and procedural safeguards provided for in the current legislations will be maintained under the case-based arrangements. These include the double criminality principle, protection against death penalty, restriction against re-surrender, rule against double jeopardy, application for habeas corpus and right to appeal and judicial review, etc. The Government will thoroughly and carefully consider each case. The executive authority and the court will perform their respective gate-keeping roles in handling all surrender requests. The Government will reject any surrender request if it could not meet the legal requirements.
The Taiwan murder case has clearly shown that serious crimes can happen in any place and at any time. It is just a question who the unfortunate victim may be. Hence, we have to plug the loopholes in the current mechanisms as quickly as possible. After the Bill is passed, the Government will have the legal basis to deal with the requests on juridical assistance in criminal matters and surrender of fugitive from Taiwan as soon as possible.
The Government understands that there are different views in the community on the proposed legislative amendments. The Legislative Council has established a Bills Committee and will soon commence scrutinising the Bill. The Government hopes that the Bills Committee can start its work as soon as possible during which we will continue to explain the legislative proposals in detail to the Legislative Council and the public and exchange views. read more
The 7th Hong Kong Games (HKG) Opening Ceremony was held at the Hong Kong Coliseum this afternoon (April 28). The Acting Chief Executive, Mr Matthew Cheung Kin-chung, officiated at the ceremony and witnessed the official opening of the 7th HKG with an audience from the 18 districts.
Addressing the ceremony, the Secretary for Home Affairs, Mr Lau Kong-wah, said the biennial HKG provides a platform for competition and exchanges between athletes, enhances communication and fosters friendship among the 18 districts, and promotes sports culture in the community. The HKG can also identify young athletes with potential for further training to become elite athletes in future and bring glory to Hong Kong, he added.
After the Acting Chief Executive’s announcement of the official opening of the 7th HKG, an athlete representative from Yuen Long District, the overall champion of the 6th HKG, took an oath on behalf of all participating athletes of the 7th HKG.
Mainland Olympic gold medallists Wei Qiuyue (women’s volleyball) and Wang Zhen (men’s race walking) and Hong Kong elite athletes Sarah Lee and Au Chun-ming held the torch to enter the venue and lit the cauldron of the Games. They were joined by former member of the Hong Kong Cycling Team Wong Kam-po, who led athletes of the 18 districts to take part and helped to raise the energy of the HKG.
A number of Hong Kong elite athletes also participated in various performing sessions at the ceremony to show support for the 7th HKG.
The ceremony’s programme featured a variety of performances, including displays by winning teams of the 18 districts’ cheering team competition in the pre-show to demonstrate the uniqueness and vitality of their districts. There were also dragon and lion dances; a grand dance show; demonstrations of artistic gymnastics, rope skipping, basketball and tai chi; and performances by pop singers.
Highlights of the opening ceremony will be broadcast on TVB Jade between 10.30pm and 11.30pm tonight.
Also officiating at today’s ceremony were members of the Legislative Council Mr Ma Fung-kwok and Mr Lau Kwok-fan; the President of the Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China (SF&OC), Mr Timothy Fok; the Permanent Secretary for Home Affairs, Mrs Cherry Tse; the Director of Leisure and Cultural Services, Ms Michelle Li; the Commissioner for Sports, Mr Yeung Tak-keung; the Chairman of the 7th HKG Organising Committee, Mr David Yip; and the Executive Adviser of the 7th HKG Organising Committee, Mr William Tong.
The 7th HKG comprises eight sports competitions, namely athletics, badminton, basketball, futsal, swimming, table tennis, tennis and volleyball. In order to boost the lively atmosphere of the Games, finals competitions will be held in the HKG Finals Fortnight on May 18, 19, 25 and 26. Members of the public are welcome to watch the competitions at venues of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) and cheer for the athletes. To encourage more people to witness these exciting events, finals of the eight sports competitions will be webcast live. Four of the final competitions will be broadcast live on Radio Television Hong Kong TV 32, namely the swimming, volleyball, futsal and basketball finals to be held on May 18, 19, 25 and 26 respectively. Members of the public can also take part in community participation programmes like the Dynamic Moments Photo Contest and voting and guessing activities. Details of these programmes and the competition schedule are available on the HKG designated website www.hongkonggames.hk.
The 7th HKG is organised by the Sports Commission and co-ordinated by the Community Sports Committee along with the 18 District Councils; the LCSD; the SF&OC; and relevant national sports associations as co-organisers. The Hong Kong Jockey Club is the Principal Contributor.
