Tag Archives: China

     The Tobacco and Alcohol Control Office (TACO) of the Department of Health (DH) conducted an operation today (October 20) against illegal waterpipe smoking activities in no smoking areas in Tsim Sha Tsui.

     During the operation, law enforcement officers (including plainclothes officers) issued a total of three fixed penalty notices to persons illegally smoking waterpipes at a bar. The TACO’s investigation is ongoing and prosecution may also be taken against operators of the bar who are suspected of contravening the Smoking (Public Health) Ordinance (Cap. 371) (the Ordinance) and the Criminal Procedure Ordinance (Cap. 221) for aiding and abetting smoking offences.

     Under the Ordinance, conducting a smoking act in statutory no smoking area (such as indoor areas of bar or restaurants) is prohibited. Any person doing a smoking act in statutory no smoking areas are liable to a fixed penalty of $1,500. Besides, where smoking products (including waterpipe) are sold, in bars or otherwise, restrictions on the sale and promotion of smoking products stipulated in the Ordinance apply. Venue managers of statutory no smoking areas are empowered by the Ordinance to request the smoking offender to cease the act; if the offender is not co-operative, he/she may contact the Police for assistance.

     Also, under the Criminal Procedure Ordinance, any person who aids, abets, counsels or procures the commission by another person of any offence shall be guilty of the like offence. A spokesman for the DH appeals to operators and venue mangers of bars/restaurants not to assist any person in breaching the statutory smoking prohibition, or provide a waterpipe apparatus and tobacco to customers for use.

     A DH spokesman stressed that the TACO will follow up and investigate every complaint about illegal smoking and will conduct inspections and take enforcement actions in the venue concerned. It will also conduct joint inspections and enforcement actions (including plainclothes operations) with other law enforcement agencies from time to time with a view to enhancing the effectiveness of law enforcement. The DH will continue to closely monitor and to take stringent enforcement actions to tackle illegal waterpipe smoking.

     Due to deeper inhalation and a longer smoking session, waterpipe users usually inhale more toxins than they would when smoking cigarettes. For more information on the hazards of waterpipe smoking, please visit www.livetobaccofree.hk/pdfs/waterpipe_leaflet_new.pdf. The spokesman cautions against waterpipe smoking or the use of other smoking products. Smokers should quit smoking as early as possible for their own health and that of others. read more

     Hongkong Post said today (October 20) that a data security issue involving Hongkong Post account holders was identified. The incident involved an unauthorised party making countless attempts, through Hongkong Post’s electronic service function, to test and try to guess the registered email addresses of Hongkong Post’s account holders, and eventually by chance located 7 249 email addresses which were registered with Hongkong Post. 
      
     Hongkong Post confirmed that the incident only involved the email addresses of its account holders but the unauthorised party could not get hold of the account holders’ personal information such as the account login name and password, and the account transactions with the Department. Hongkong Post did not find any indication that there was any leakage of or tampering with the account holders’ personal information or any suspicious activities of the accounts concerned. 
 
     Upon identification of the incident on October 18, Hongkong Post had immediately on the same day written to inform all affected account holders of the incident and advised them to be alert to any suspicious emails or unsolicited communications. Hongkong Post had taken immediate measures to further tighten up the system security. It had also reported the case to the Police and sought advice from the Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data (PCPD) on October 18 and made a report to PCPD today. According to the established government procedures, Hongkong Post had reported the case to the Government Information Security Incident Response Office, and are seeking advice from the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer to further enhance the security measures. Hongkong Post will continue to closely monitor the situation.
      
     Hongkong Post wishes to alert members of the public to refrain from clicking on any embedded links or providing any personal or financial information such as credit card information, or making any payment to suspicious emails or SMS messages alleged to be sent by Hongkong Post. Hongkong Post reiterates that it will not send embedded hyperlinks via emails, SMS messages or social media pages for collecting personal information or requesting for payment. For enquiries, members of the public may call the Hongkong Post General Enquiry Hotline at 2921 2222. read more

     â€‹Hong Kong Customs yesterday (October 19) detected a drug trafficking case involving baggage concealment at Hong Kong International Airport and seized about three kilograms of suspected cocaine with an estimated market value of about $3.2 million.

     A 59-year-old male passenger arrived in Hong Kong from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, via Sao Paulo of Brazil and Doha of Qatar yesterday. During customs clearance, Customs officers found the batch of suspected cocaine concealed in the false compartments of his check-in suitcase. He was subsequently arrested.

     An investigation is ongoing.

     Following the resumption of normal travel and exchanges with the Mainland and other parts of the world, the number of visitors to Hong Kong has also been increasing steadily. Customs will continue to apply a risk assessment approach and focus on selecting passengers from high-risk regions for clearance to combat transnational drug trafficking activities.

     Under the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, trafficking in a dangerous drug is a serious offence. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a fine of $5 million and life imprisonment.

     Members of the public may report any suspected drug trafficking activities to Customs’ 24-hour hotline 2545 6182 or its dedicated crime-reporting email account (crimereport@customs.gov.hk) or online form (eform.cefs.gov.hk/form/ced002/).

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     The “Immersive Hong Kong” roving exhibition was launched in Bangkok, Thailand, today (October 20), the second stop in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) after its debut in Jakarta, Indonesia, in July this year.
 
     Organised by the Information Services Department and themed “Hong Kong – Where the World Looks Ahead”, the exhibition showcases the city’s unique strengths, advantages and opportunities to visitors of the ASEAN community and invites them to visit, do business with or invest in Hong Kong.

     With art technology, the “Immersive Hong Kong” exhibition allows visitors to virtually immerse themselves in different visuals representing the city with a creative twist. The four thematic zones, namely “Financial Bridgehead”, “I&T Brain Bank”, “Blossoming Creativity” and “Diversity and Greenery”, feature multiple interactive art projections and naked eye 3D displays that showcase the multifaceted appeal of Hong Kong.
 
     Visitors can also enjoy the vibrant and colourful skyline of Hong Kong, illustrated by Hong Kong artist Messy Desk (Jane Lee), at a photo corner in the venue. Promotional videos on Hong Kong and digital panels with information and experience sharing by ASEAN companies and talent based in Hong Kong are also on display, showing visitors what makes the city one of the most desirable places to visit, live, work and invest.
 
     To encourage more people to visit Hong Kong, an interactive game, “Snap a cool shot @Immersive Hong Kong”, is also featured as part of the exhibition. The top 300 winners will each receive an economy class round-trip air ticket from Bangkok to Hong Kong. The tickets are sponsored by Hong Kong International Airport’s “World of Winners” Tickets Giveaway Campaign.
 
     To give Thai audiences a taste of Hong Kong’s cultural offerings, a trombone quartet from the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra performed at the exhibition venue today, while a pop music performance by SENZA A Cappella will be staged on the final day of the exhibition (October 29).
 
     The exhibition is set to run at Siam Discovery, a major shopping centre in the capital city, until October 29. Admission is free and visitors will be offered souvenirs during the event. More information on the exhibition is available on the dedicated page on the Brand Hong Kong website (www.brandhk.gov.hk/hkpromotion-asean2023).

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     A total of 103 nomination forms for the 2023 District Council Ordinary Election were received by the Returning Officers for the 18 District Committees constituencies (DCCs) and 44 District Council geographical constituencies (DCGCs) today (October 20).
 
     This brings to 282 the total number of nomination forms received since the start of the nomination period on October 17. The nomination period will continue until October 30.
 
     The number of nomination forms received for each District Council is as follows:
 

	DCCs		DCGCs
District Council	No. of nomination forms received today	Cumulative total	No. of nomination forms received today	Cumulative total
Central and Western District Council	2	6	4	8
Eastern District Council	10	14	3	10
Kowloon City District Council	2	2	0	8
Kwun Tong District Council	3	3	2	13
Sham Shui Po District Council	3	5	3	5
Southern District Council	0	0	3	7
Wan Chai District Council	2	5	1	2
Wong Tai Sin District Council	6	10	0	8
Yau Tsim Mong District Council	1	9	1	9
Islands District Council	3	6	1	3
Kwai Tsing District Council	7	12	0	6
North District Council	3	8	3	5
Sai Kung District Council	9	12	2	8
Sha Tin District Council	4	15	4	6
Tai Po District Council	0	10	3	7
Tsuen Wan District Council	1	9	1	7
Tuen Mun District Council	3	11	3	9
Yuen Long District Council	4	16	6	8
Total	63	153	40	129

 
     The Registration and Electoral Office reminds nominees that due to limited space in the Returning Officer’s office, each nominee shall be accompanied by only one companion during submission of the nomination form. Please refer to the “Points to Note for Submission of Nomination Forms” on the election website (www.eac.hk/pdf/distco/2023dce/Points_to_Note_for_Submission_of_Nomination_Forms(Eng).pdf).
 
     Particulars of the nominees received today will be available on the election website (www.elections.gov.hk/dc2023/eng/nomination2.html). read more