HK Govt Still Running Behind Omicron

Many elderly mistrust the govt, feel left behind in pandemic

It is very interesting to read some comments from Hong Kong seniors about why they refuse to get vaccinated.

After reading them, I don't blame them.

Sit Pui-yu, 72, knows that without getting the jab, he won't be able to eat in a restaurant, or shop for food, and blames the authorities for it.

There aren't many people who can help seniors

"The government has never truly taken consideration of the elderly in every single measure and policy it has carried out since the start of the pandemic, said the single elderly man who lives by himself in a public housing flat in Wong Tai Sin.

Another case in point -- being forced to use a smartphone that was donated to him and having to learn how to use it for the LeaveHomeSafe app for contact-tracing purposes. If you are unvaccinated then you are barred from entering many venues from February 24.

"I have lost trust in the government, so I have no confidence in its vaccination program," he said.

What is tragic is that he has no one to complain to anymore about it -- almost all the district councillors and opposition lawmakers and activists have resigned, fled the city, or jailed, so there is no communication channel between the grassroots and the government.

And then there are family doctors who are too scared to recommend that their elderly patients get vaccinated in case they suffer side effects, which doesn't help the situation at all, as well as adult children who are terrified something will happen to their parents if they get a jab.

Lee (right) says resources are stretched to limit

Today the number of cases recorded was 1,347, with only two imported. 

Another child, a three-year-old girl who tested preliminary positive is in critical condition but health officials did not have more information to disclose to the media. When reporters asked how many children were seriously ill in hospital, again there was no answer to the question. These children are too young to be vaccinated at the moment. 

Dr Larry Lee Lap-yip, a chief manager at the Hospital Authority said the healthcare system was strained to the limit.

"The number of confirmed and preliminary-positive Covid-19 cases has seriously exceeded the capacity that we can tolerate at hospitals," he said. "Our current isolation facilities are also full."

He said isolation beds would be prioritised to children, the elderly, and patients in serious condition. 

"If the situation worsens, we will not rule out suspending services in some public hospitals to turn them into Covid-specific treatment facilities," Lee said. "Facing the current crisis, we hope everyone will work together for the public good and save critical hospital resources for patients who need it the most."

Shouldn't that have been the case all along?

Chan says HK needs to run as fast as Omicron

Up until now, if anybody tested positive and was asymptomatic, was immediately sent to hospital. Now the health authorities realise this is not completely necessary and more importantly they are running out of beds and resources, as a number of nurses and doctors have also contracted Covid-19.

It is seriously shocking how behind the ball this government is in dealing with this wave, when the authorities claimed they were preparing for the possibility of the fifth wave.

In an interview with China Daily that was published five days ago, Secretary for Food and Health Sophia Chan Siu-chee said the government was preparing for the fifth wave "because from overseas experience, we know Omicron, this mutant strain, has a very high transmissibility. So we know it will come. Now we are in a very severe situation, and we are really trying our best to fight the virus, through timely measures. So, time is of the essence, because we have to be running as fast as the Omicron."

How about running faster than Omicron? That might be a start...

 

Beijing Changes the Rules in HK

These posters are useless with "elections" postponed to 2022

Political commentator Albert Cheng King-hon points out in a commentary today that in 2004 the National People's Congress Standing Committee laid out a five-step process on how to amend the chief executive or Legislative Council election process.

He notes that most of the pan-democratic opposition camp had already resigned from Legco in November, giving the government a carte blanche to pass bills quickly. "So it is totally unnecessary to insist that only patriots run Hong Kong," he writes.

Lam looks on as Tung Chee-hwa takes his seat

However, Cheng says any chances to the city's electoral process should be followed by what is laid out in the Basic Law, in that changes must be passed by a two-thirds majority in Legco, followed by consent by the chief executive, and then that decision is reported to the NPC for approval.

But three years later that was amended and instead the chief executive must report to the standing committee if there are changes to be made and then that is approved by the standing committee.

Today even that formality was ignored by the NPC and it went ahead and changed the make up of Hong Kong's election committee to vote for the next chief executive; Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor watched the proceedings in the Great Hall of the People and agreed with it afterwards like a willing conspirator.

The election committee will be increased from the current 1,200 to 1,500 and bar district councillors from being able to participate. This committee will also decide who can run for Legco.

Meanwhile the makeup of Legco will change. There are currently 70 members -- or rather there should be 70 members, half of which are elected. But now the NPC has decided unilaterally to add 20 more of its own choosing to shrink the proportion of of elected versus appointed.

And of course every member of Legco would have to be a "patriot", in that they love Hong Kong, China, AND the Communist Party of China.

Wang says electoral system has HK characteristics

Wang Chen, vice-chairman of the National People's Congress Standing Committee described the changes as "a new democratic electoral system with Hong Kong characteristics". 

Before the changes the odds were already stacked against the pan-democrats in Legco, but now Beijing wants to make sure once and for all that it will win -- and any meaningful opposition is destroyed. The reason for Legco was to represent the views of all Hongkongers, but now it will only represent the views of some people, or rather "patriots". 

It is another sign that "one country, two systems" is being dismantled before our eyes and we are helpless to stop it.

"I fully respect that the central government takes the lead to improve the electoral system," Lam said in a statement on Friday, adding the city would speed up work to complete legislative amendments quickly, as there were a number of elections in the coming 12 months.

Voting for the election committee will be held in December, while the next chief executive will be voted on in March. That means the elections last September have effectively been postponed until 2022.

Mike Lam hugs his wife upon his release

China Daily reported that 80 percent of Hong Kong residents support "patriots governing Hong Kong", while only 68.6 percent support Beijing's attempts to "improve the city's electoral system".

Who did China Daily talk to and how many? It's amusing the numbers are 80 and 68, as Beijing seems to like 8s and 6s.

While some on Twitter remarked how this choosing of legislators was similar to the colonial era, others were more focused on the 14 of the 47 who were granted bail. Earlier this evening four were actually released much to the relief of them, their families and supporters. The other 11 will be heard tomorrow in court.

The four released on bail today were: pro-democracy activist Mike Lam King-nam, social worker Hendrick Lui Chi-hang, district councillor Clarisse Yeung Suet-ying, and barrister Lawrence Lau Wai-chung. As part of the bail conditions they must observe a curfew, not contact foreign officials, and do and say nothing that harms national security.

While brought some relief to this otherwise depressing day, one can't help but think Hong Kong's last free elections were in 2019. That year was the last of many, including the Tiananmen Square candlelight vigil and the last mass peaceful protests.

We will not forget why and how we got here.

Stephen Chow's Vision of a "Better Future"

The Hong Kong Youth Military Summer Camp in San Wai, Fanling

Ah Hong Kong kids. Many are very sheltered or their lives are so micromanaged by their parents that the children don't know what to do with themselves when they have five minutes to spare.

But hey -- what about some boot camp -- PLA style?!

For the past 13 years, the People's Liberation Army has held an annual summer boot camp and its latest endorser is Hong Kong comedian and filmmaker Stephen Chow Sing-chi.

He recently visited the camp and talked to some of the 400 participants of the 15-day program at the PLA's San Wai Barracks in Fanling.

Stephen Chow is pleased by the young people's PLA training

At their graduation day, they performed drills, shadowboxed, and sang revolutionary songs in the 35-degree Celsius weather.

China Daily reported Chow said of the participants: "They overcame challenges and hardships through arduous training in this garrison's summer camp. To my surprise, they spent time experiencing this special training, instead of playing around. For me, it is remarkable that they do this."

It's also important to note that Chow is an adviser to the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.

"If more young people were to take part in this summer camp, Hong Kong would have a better future," he added.

How so?

This "better future" phrase is so simplistic. Singing revolutionary songs?

Discipline, hard work and training is good, but a better future?

Perhaps by going through bootcamp, more young people would be more disciplined and hardworking, but these days it's not enough. Maybe they will get better grades, but perhaps their parents cannot afford to send them abroad for further education, or they don't have the right connections to get a job.

The way things worked 20, 30 years ago is different from now, and many middle aged people either forget or don't realize how things have changed so much.

Admittedly the camp did push some kids to change their lazy habits into more productive ones, or they learned the value of teamwork and perseverance.

But a "better future"? It's kind of ironic hearing it from a comedian whose characters are known for mostly being lazy and thinking of quick-fix solutions that don't always go the right way...

The Chinese Riddle

Rupert Murdoch with Xi Jinping in the Great Hall of the People

The Chinese like to talk in riddles, particularly their leaders.

Chinese President Xi Jinping received Rupert Murdoch in the Great Hall of the People today. The News Corp chairman probably wanted to pay his respects in the hopes that he might get a sign that the ban would be lifted on his Wall Street Journal website.

Wen Jiabao's family's wealth was unraveled by the NYT

According to Xinhua Xi said: "[We] welcome foreign media and correspondents to cover China stories, introducing China's development to the world, and helping the world grasp the opportunities (afforded by) China's development."

What did Murdoch say in return?

He apparently said to China Daily: "We are very happy, in my newspapers and different news outlets, to try and foster more understanding between our two countries (the United States and China), I think not just on a formal basis, but also with people themselves."

What Xi and Murdoch said need to be taken with huge grains of salt because Chinese state media aren't the most accurate when reporting what people, particularly foreigners say. Their words can be massaged to fit the agenda, and here it's to give the impression that China is open for reporting.

Wendi Deng on the day her divorce was finalized in New York

But what of blocking not only WSJ, but also The New York Times, Reuters and Bloomberg sites?

And not issuing journalist visas to both The New York Times and Bloomberg apparently in retaliation for them publishing stories about senior leaders' families and their web of wealth?

Meanwhile it's interesting Murdoch is making this pilgrimage after his 14-year divorce from Wendi Deng, who wasn't able to help him crack the China market... or perhaps she had other things in mind?

In any case it's no illusion that Murdoch is keen for global media domination and China is the biggest market he has yet to conquer. Apparently 21st Century Fox is looking for a Chinese partner to build theme parks around popular films and TV shows like The Simpsons.

Will we see a Simpsons' themed park in China soon?

Will China let him in?

Does Xi's statement above give any indication?

The (Quiet) China Invasion

Get more news from the motherland right on your doorstep!

State-owned China Daily is flexing its soft power by having its weekend edition distributed in the Saturday paper of the Vancouver Sun, and probably every other newspaper across the country in the Postmedia Network.

In the December 12 edition, there's a message to readers in the top right corner explaining the North America edition of China Daily will be renamed Canada Edition, and that it will be printed in Vancouver.

A letter to readers about China Daily

It goes on to say there will be interviews with Canadian politicians, heads of think tanks, academics and experts on the China-Canada relationship. And there will be profiles of Chinese businesses in Canada, and vice versa. In other words, stories on people who have positive things to say about the Chinese mainland...

Funnily enough it finishes the letter with "Most of all, we want you to enjoy this publication".

Flipping through it, there are lots of soft news stories, like how the Four Seasons Beijing is one of the top hotels in the Chinese capital, complete with a picture of the hotel's general manager receiving an award from the Canadian Consul-General.

It's the perfect platform for politicians and controversial figures to get their message across without the reporter fact checking their statements, and for the government -- oops I mean the paper -- to "report" on what Beijing thinks of Canada.

We wonder how much China Daily is paying to have its paper distributed within a relatively legitimate newspaper. But with print dying a slow death, The Vancouver Sun as well as the mighty Washington Post and has periodic China Daily supplements in The New York Times to supplement its income.

You can't really blame them for being willing accomplices, but at the same time, it is a sneaky way to literally get into potential readers' homes and present another view of China that is thinly-veiled propaganda...