The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority:
Due to special circumstances in the vicinity of the hospital, Queen Elizabeth Hospital today (November 18) appealed urgently for all patients in the hospital to stay in safe locations indoors. Patients of the Specialist Out-patient Clinics are advised against going to the hospital today and should call the clinics later to reschedule the appointments.
Since there are still unstable factors affecting the roads and traffic conditions and more time should be given for schools to make good preparation for class resumption, classes of all schools (including kindergartens, primary schools, secondary schools and special schools) will remain suspended tomorrow (November 19).
Based on the current situations, primary schools, secondary schools and some special schools are expected to resume classes on Wednesday (November 20). Please pay attention to the Education Bureau (EDB)'s further announcement. As for kindergartens, schools for children with physical disability and schools for children with intellectual disability, classes will remain suspended until Sunday (November 24).
During class suspension, schools must keep their premises open and parents may send their children to school if needed. Schools should arrange for staff to return to school under safe and feasible conditions to look after students who have arrived at school. They should maintain contact with parents and allow students to return home only under safe conditions.
Parents whose children have been offered a Primary One place are originally required to register with the school to which they have applied on Wednesday (November 20) or Thursday (November 21) during school hours. In view of the recent social situation, the registration period will be extended to this Friday (November 22) i.e. from November 20 to 22. Parents who are unable to register within the specified period due to matters of grave importance or traffic conditions should notify the responsible person of the school in advance to make alternative arrangements. Otherwise, they will be deemed to have given up their discretionary places.
The EDB reminded schools again to make good preparation for class resumption, work out contingency measures for class arrangements to meet various emergency situations and notify parents as soon as possible. If individual schools are under special situations, they may proactively contact the bureau and appropriate support will be provided as necessary.
The EDB reminded students again to stay at home and not to wander in the streets. They should stay away from danger and must not participate in unlawful activities.
The following is issued on behalf of the Judiciary:
Attention duty announcers, radio and TV stations:
Please broadcast the following as soon as possible and repeat it at suitable intervals:
The Judiciary has announced that having regard to the situation in the vicinity of Jordan, subject to any directions of the presiding Judge or Judicial Officer, all hearings of the Lands Tribunal and Labour Tribunal originally scheduled today (November 18) and thereafter until further notice have been or will be adjourned to a date to be fixed. Relevant parties of the proceedings should keep in view of public announcements.
The registries and offices of the two Tribunals have also been closed today until further notice.
The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority:
The Hospital Authority (HA) today (November 18) appeals to the public, to accord top priority to the well-being of patients, to work together to maintain normal public hospital services. Currently, there are traffic disruptions over the territory, blocking access to public hospitals. HA appeals to the public to avoid blocking access roads in the vicinity of hospitals to avoid affecting patient services.
The HA spokesperson said, "patient conveyance, inter-hospital patient transfer and operation of individual hospitals have already been affected to a certain extent. The HA is also concerned about the possible impact to patient food, blood products and other supplies, and in particular urgent patient specimens due to the traffic disruptions."
In response to social media posts initiating public assembly in HA workplaces, the spokesperson for HA appeals against holding these activities in public hospital access roads, within the hospitals and areas adjacent to hospitals including the HA Building which locates next to Kowloon Hospital and Hong Kong Eye Hospital, to ensure smooth hospital operations and a suitable environment for patient care.
The HA has already reminded members of public and staff, in different platforms at various occasions, that public assemblies should not be held in public hospitals to avoid causing conflicts. Staff expressing views should be mindful of the perceptions of patients and their families, as well as relations with the patients. The HA also advised colleagues to avoid exposing themselves to undue risks of legal and professional responsibilities.
The HA trusts that staff will continue to uphold their professionalism and mutual respect to provide an equitable service regardless of the patients' identity and background. This is a universal value to be supported and safeguarded by the community at large.
The Registration and Electoral Office today (November 18) made the following statement to clarify online rumours about the design of ballot papers:
November 24 (Sunday) is the polling day of the District Council Ordinary Election. For every ballot paper issued on the polling day, there is an angled cut at the upper left corner on its front. This is to facilitate electors with visual impairments to insert their ballot papers into braille ballot paper templates correctly so that they can mark the ballot papers by themselves. The angled cut is not formed by polling staff deliberately to spoil the ballot paper, as online rumours have falsely claimed.
