Tag Archives: China

     The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government on May 20 strongly condemned the “briefing” published by anti-China organisation “Hong Kong Watch”, which made untruthful, slandering and smearing remarks against the legislation of Article 23 of the Basic Law and requested the Government of the United Kingdom (UK) to impose so-called “sanctions” on HKSAR Government officials, deliberately misleading the public and smearing the Hong Kong National Security Law (NSL) and the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance (the Ordinance).

     A spokesman for the HKSAR Government said, “The so-called ‘sanctions’ mentioned in the ‘briefing’ smack of despicable political manipulation to intimidate the HKSAR officials safeguarding national security. These grossly interfere in China’s internal affairs and Hong Kong affairs, and violate the international law and the basic norms governing international relations. The HKSAR despises such so-called ‘sanctions’ and is not intimidated by such a despicable behaviour. The HKSAR will resolutely continue to discharge the duty of safeguarding national security.”

     The HKSAR Government spokesman said, “The HKSAR is an inalienable part of the People’s Republic of China, and as a local administrative region that enjoys a high degree of autonomy under the principle of ‘one country, two systems’, comes directly under the jurisdiction of the Central People’s Government. The core essence of the Sino-British Joint Declaration is about China’s resumption of the exercise of sovereignty over Hong Kong. It did not authorise the UK to interfere in Hong Kong’s affairs after its return to the motherland. The UK has no sovereignty, jurisdiction or right of supervision over Hong Kong after its return to the motherland.”

     The spokesman also said, “The HKSAR Government steadfastly safeguards the rights and freedoms enjoyed by Hong Kong people as protected under the law. Since Hong Kong’s return to the motherland, human rights in the city have always been robustly guaranteed constitutionally by both the Constitution and the Basic Law. The NSL and the Ordinance also clearly stipulate that human rights shall be respected and protected in safeguarding national security in the HKSAR, and that the rights and freedoms, including the freedoms of speech, of the press, of publication, of association, of assembly, of procession and of demonstration, that Hong Kong residents enjoy under the Basic Law and the provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights as applied to Hong Kong, shall be protected in accordance with the law. Nonetheless, just as the case with other places in the world, such rights and freedoms are not absolute. The ICCPR also expressly states that some of them may be subject to restrictions as prescribed by law that are necessary for protection of national security, public safety, public order or the rights and freedoms of others, etc.

     “Following the successful enactment of the Ordinance, the shortcomings in the legal system and enforcement mechanisms for the HKSAR to safeguard national security are addressed. We must once again emphasise that the Ordinance is a piece of legislation to defend against external forces that endanger our national security, acting like a sturdier door and a more effective door lock to defend our home. The HKSAR Government strongly urges these organisations with ulterior motives to stop smearing and interfering in Hong Kong affairs which are internal affairs of China. It is incumbent upon these organisations to ensure that their remarks concerning the NSL and the Ordinance are fair and just, and stop making scaremongering remarks.

     “We must also point out that the HKSAR law enforcement agencies have been taking law enforcement actions based on evidence and strictly in accordance with the law in respect of the acts of the persons or entities concerned, paying no regard to their political stance, background or occupation.

     “Not only is ‘Hong Kong Watch’ an anti-China organisation, many of its members are also anti-China and destabilising forces in the front line, who have called for so-called ‘sanctions’ by foreign countries against officials of the Central People’s Government and the HKSAR Government repeatedly. Members of the public in Hong Kong and the international community should see the organisation in its true colours and not to be misled by its skewed remarks with ulterior motives. The HKSAR Government will continue to safeguard national security fearlessly, so that the HKSAR can focus its efforts on developing the economy, improving people’s livelihood and maintaining the long-term prosperity and stability of Hong Kong.” read more

     Police are investigating a fatal traffic accident happened in Mong Kok this afternoon (May 20) in which a woman died.      At 4.50pm, a medium goods vehicle (MGV) driven by a 54-year-old man was trav… read more

     A spokesman for the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau (CEDB) today (May 20) appealed to members of the public to stay alert to fraudulent WhatsApp messages purported to be sent by the Secretary for Commerce and Econ… read more

     The Development Bureau (DEVB) announced today (May 20) that the Smart Site Safety System Labelling Scheme (4S Labelling Scheme) and a series of relevant measures will be jointly launched by the DEVB and the Construction Industry Council (CIC) to drive a wider adoption of 4S in the industry for providing a safe working environment for site personnel.

     Speaking at the launching ceremony of the Labelling Scheme, the Secretary for Development, Ms Bernadette Linn, said the Government has been striving to speed up the adoption of technologies for site safety and to promote the full adoption of 4S in recent years. Currently, all capital works contracts with a contract sum exceeding $30 million have fully adopted 4S. The Government has also subsidised private works projects to widely adopt 4S through the Construction Innovation and Technology Fund (CITF) and provides the latest information and support on relevant training and equipment through the CIC. However, adoption of 4S at private worksites remains relatively low. In this connection, the Government will roll out three new measures to promote and facilitate a wide adoption of 4S in the industry.

     The Buildings Department (BD) will introduce mandatory measure starting from July 1. Conditions will be imposed under the Buildings Ordinance requiring the adoption of 4S to provide qualified supervision of building works when granting the first approval or major revisions of superstructure plans of private development projects. For building works with estimated cost exceeding $30 million and involving the use of mobile plants and tower cranes, registered contractors are required to adopt relevant 4S alert systems.

     Under the 4S Labelling Scheme jointly launched by the DEVB and the CIC, applications can be submitted to the CIC. After on-site inspection and evaluation of proper usage of 4S, the CIC will approve the application and issue the labels. The issued label will be placed in a conspicuous place around the construction sites for identification and ease of monitoring. The list of worksites with labels will also be uploaded to the CIC’s website, with a view to encouraging more worksites to adopt 4S. It is expected that around 500 worksites (including public works and private works), representing more than 60 per cent of the total number of construction sites at present, will participate in the scheme and labels will be issued to the first batch of around 100 worksites in July this year and the approval will be largely completed by the end of this year.

     Regarding subsidising the application of 4S in private works projects, the CITF has increased the amount of funding available to each applicant for 4S from $6 million to $7.5 million from April 1, 2023. Premised on this basis, the scope of support of the CITF will be extended to cover the relevant additional expenses in various aspects of adopting 4S, including upgrading the network capacity, additional manpower to be employed for maintenance and technical support, helping applicants obtain quotations for commonly used 4S products in advance from suppliers etc. arising from the use of 4S. To further support the industry to adopt 4S, the DEVB and the CIC have launched respective packages of 4S products for different types and scales of private works projects.

     Representatives attending the launching ceremony of the 4S Labelling Scheme included members of the Legislative Council, government departments, statutory bodies, developers’ associations, professional bodies, contractors and subcontractors’ associations, and construction trade unions. Sharing the view that 4S can effectively enhance site safety, they expressed support for the DEVB and the CIC in promoting a wide adoption of 4S within the industry on all fronts.

     Following the launching ceremony, representatives from the DEVB, the CIC, and the BD conducted a sharing session to brief the industry on the details of the new support measures for 4S.

     For details of the 4S Labelling Scheme, please visit the following website (www.cic.hk/4s-labelling/en/home).

      

     A spokesman for the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) said today (May 20) that the department has launched a pilot enforcement operation, codenamed “CLEARSKY”, across various districts in the recent days. The operation has achieved significant results by proactively enhancing inspections to target buildings with dripping air conditioners, complemented by education and publicity efforts.

     From May 3 to 16, the FEHD conducted a number of large-scale operations in the Eastern, Central and Western, Yau Tsim, Sham Shui Po, Tsuen Wan and Yuen Long Districts. The FEHD inspected a total of 64 private buildings and housing estates in these districts and issued 182 nuisance notices to owners or occupiers of premises with dripping air conditioners that caused environmental hygiene nuisances, requiring them to abate the nuisances within a specified period. During the operations, FEHD staff also distributed promotional leaflets to occupiers of 139 flats and reminded them to take proactive measures to prevent air conditioners from dripping.

     The spokesman said, “Operation ‘CLEARSKY’ adopts a new enforcement mode. Rather than handling problems at individual flats, the FEHD identified buildings in districts with frequent dripping air conditioners according to past experience and records. Enhanced inspections are carried out proactively to the target buildings, and enforcement actions are taken on a number of flats with water dripping in the same building simultaneously. These efforts aim to enhance the effectiveness and mitigate the nuisance caused to the public.”

     The operation is planned before the onset of summer. The FEHD first conducted a territory-wide publicity and education work from April 26 to May 2. This included distributing promotional leaflets with property management agents and local community members, as well as displaying posters and banners to remind the public to properly address the issue of dripping air conditioners and not to cause nuisance to others. Enforcement actions were then launched on May 3. 

     The spokesman said, “The FEHD will later assess the effectiveness of the pilot enforcement operation, and consider extending the operation to other suitable districts and buildings with more serious dripping problems.”

     In accordance with the Public Health and Municipal Services Ordinance (Cap. 132), if a person allows his air conditioner to discharge water in such a manner as to be a hygiene nuisance to others, the FEHD may issue a Nuisance Notice to require him to abate the nuisance within a specified period. A person who fails to comply shall be guilty of an offence and may be prosecuted. Upon conviction, offenders are liable to a maximum penalty of a fine of $10,000, as well as a daily fine of $200 as long as the nuisance continues.

     The spokesman calls on members of the public to check their air conditioners regularly. If water dripping is detected, they should expeditiously repair them and not cause nuisance to others, or affect public health and environmental hygiene. For more information, please refer to the leaflet on the FEHD website (www.fehd.gov.hk/english/pleasant_environment/library/aircon/CheckMaintainAC.pdf).