political refugees

		Back To Last Page
HK Comment P09	China Daily Hong Kong Edition	Fung Keung 2013-07-25
Pro-refugee groups misguided
Many non-governmental organizations’ executives, human-rights lawyers and Church groups leaders in Hong Kong criticized the SAR government on July 22 for not providing satisfactory welfare for the 5,000 “political refugees” trapped in the city. Fernando Cheung Chiu-hung, a Labour Party lawmaker, plans to table a motion in the Legislative Council (LegCo) soon, urging the government to thoroughly review the welfare system for asylum seekers. According to press reports, Cheung told the 100 or so asylum seekers who gathered outside the venue where a government welfare panel met on July 22: “We are obligated to provide the basic needs of those who face persecution and come to Hong Kong as a transition. Your situation is totally unacceptable.” Sad to say, those people who sympathize with “political refugees”, including Cheung, are misguided and ill-advised. Some of them might even have their own hidden agendas. Hong Kong people are unquestionably sure that most of the 5,000 asylum seekers are economic refugees, fleeing poverty in their home countries in Africa and South Asia. If they were seeking political asylum, they would have gone to the mainland, which is party to the United Nations Refugee Convention (Hong Kong is not). The central government has the obligation to find willing “host countries” (such as Canada and Australia) to resettle political refugees should they decide not to stay on the mainland. Why did the refugees choose Hong Kong and not the mainland? They have a higher living standard in this city than on the mainland. Many of them know darn well that they don’t have a genuine political persecution case to present to the investigators if they go to the mainland. If we improve the welfare of these 5,000 asylum seekers, Hong Kong will become a magnet for those who live in dire poverty in Africa and South Asia. This tiny city would become inundated as thousands head our way. Many Hong Kong people left for the United States in the 1960s and 1970s for the same reason (they were not persecuted by any government) — seeking a better life. The 5,000 asylum seekers in Hong Kong each receive HK$1,200 per month in housing allowance, HK$1,000 for groceries and a small travel allowance. The allowances, not lavish by Hong Kong or international standards, meet the basic needs of the refugees. Any improvement in the payouts would undoubtedly provide an incentive for poverty-stricken Africans and South Asians. Many of them in fact are living on the mainland now, waiting for an opportunity to cross the Shenzhen River to come to Hong Kong. This imaginary scenario would bring home my point. Assuming that many Hong Kong people earn HK$8,000 a month, if a certain Western country says it would offer a monthly allowance of HK$15,000 to anyone who resettles in it (no questions asked), wouldn’t this group of local people be tempted to emigrate? NGO officials, human-rights lawyers, religious leaders and political refugees spoke up for the asylum seekers in front of the LegCo panel on welfare services on July 22. Their arguments surprised few people as they focused on the interests of the refugees and not those of Hong Kong people. Their views invariably were narrow and restricted. We should take a broad, open and sustained view to the “political refugee” issue. Hong Kong is too small to become a haven for economic refugees who take advantage of Hong Kong people’s sympathy. Hong Kong people aren’t compassionless and cold-hearted. But we need to balance the interests of citizens who work hard to create wealth and those refugees who aspire for a better life in Hong Kong. We don’t owe the economic refugees anything. The author is coordinator of the B.S.Sc in financial journalism program at Hong Kong Baptist University. We should take a broad, open and sustained view to the “political refugee” issue. Hong Kong is too small to become a haven for economic refugees who take advantage of Hong Kong people’s sympathy.”

新版英漢辭典

HKBU Communication and Public Relations Office

For your information please. Eva CPRO 文章總數: 1 篇 1. 新版英漢辭典 [星島日報] 2013-07-23 E06 專欄 細說新事 辛翠時 專欄 E06 1 . 星島日報 辛翠時 2013-07-23 細說新事 新版英漢辭典 培生教育亞洲有限公司（Pearson）在香港書展舉行前推出了一本《朗文當代高級辭典（英英．英漢雙解）》第五版，策劃編輯王偉文是中文大學師弟，日前送來一本，供辛翠時參考。老實說，自己的書架上已有多本字典、辭典，朗文版本的也有三本，這部新辭典在書架幾乎無容身之地，何況近年興起字典手機版，用智能手機查字典，快捷便當，印刷本字典還有競爭力嗎？

10:16 AM

HKBU Communication and Public Relations Office

Actions

To:

M

Fung Keung

 

Tuesday, July 23, 2013 10:16 AM

To help protect your privacy, some content in this message has been blocked. If you're sure this message is from a trusted sender and you want to re-enable the blocked features, click here.

For your information please.

 

Eva

CPRO

 

 

 

 

文章總數: 1 篇

---

1.	新版英漢辭典  [星島日報] 2013-07-23 E06 專欄 細說新事 辛翠時

 

專欄 E06	1 .   星島日報	辛翠時 2013-07-23
細說新事

 

新版英漢辭典

 

培生教育亞洲有限公司（Pearson）在香港書展舉行前推出了一本《朗文當代高級辭典（英英．英漢雙解）》第五版，策劃編輯王偉文是中文大學師弟，日前送來一本，供辛翠時參考。老實說，自己的書架上已有多本字典、辭典，朗文版本的也有三本，這部新辭典在書架幾乎無容身之地，何況近年興起字典手機版，用智能手機查字典，快捷便當，印刷本字典還有競爭力嗎？ 　　王兄有電郵傳來，聲言字典有獨特之處，很適合本港學生使用。翻開此辭典一看，有新亞書院師弟馮強（浸會大學國際新聞與財經新聞碩士課程主任）的序言，他從實際用家的角度出發，指出這本辭典有三大特點：一、提供超過一萬八千個同義詞、反義詞和相關詞，並設「詞語辨析專欄」，有助豐富學生的詞彙；二、辭典提供英語詞搭配，如Ability（能力）詞條列出二十五個可搭配的形容詞，令人歎為觀止；三、本辭典提供語體（Register）專欄，指出了詞語在語體上要注意的地方，並設例子說明。 　　看了馮強的序言，急忙隨手一翻，翻出H部，在Habit這個單字，便列有八個解釋，在詞語配搭（Collocations）一欄，列出六個Habit的用語、六個形容詞、三個片語、四個詞語辨析如Habit、Custom、Tradition、Practice等，學生或讀者看了這麼詳細的例子和解釋，對Habit這一個字必然有比較深入的認識。 幾頁之後又有一單字Hairstyle（髮型），竟然列出十六張不同髮型的圖片，顯示出各種髮型如Straight、Layered、Dreadlocks、Bunches（雙馬尾）、French Plait、Plait、Frizzy、Flattop、Pongtail、Pigtails、Curly、Crew Cut、Bald Head、Bun、Bob、Wavy，用馮強的說法歎為觀止矣，所有中學生、大學生宜人手一冊。

 

文章編號: 201307230030231

Ethnic time bombs in Asia

HK Comment P06	China Daily Hong Kong Edition	Fung Keung 2013-07-20
Ethnic time bombs in Asia
Egypt’s elected former president Mohammed Morsi was toppled by the military on July 3. The uprising against his rule, with 14 million people protesting on the streets at one point, is a reminder of the ticking political time bombs in Asia. During his 12-month presidency, Morsi allegedly attempted to grab more power for his Muslim Brotherhood organization, ignored the interests of minorities and women, and made little effort to improve the grassroots’ livelihood. At the brink of bloody clashes between Muslim Brotherhood members and Morsi’s opponents, the military stepped in to restore order. The clash of religions in Egypt resonates loud and clear in Asia. Countries facing similar volatile situations include Myanmar (Buddhist vs Muslim), the Philippines (Christian vs Muslim) and Indonesia (Muslim vs Christian). The clash of religions resoundingly underscores the centuries-old clash of civilizations. Asian leaders must learn the lesson of Egypt’s uprising to prevent bloody revolutions in their countries. Ruling parties, supported by secular or religious organizations notwithstanding, must study and possess the political finesse to have the minorities’ interests at heart and share power with minority groups if feasible. Egypt’s authoritarian Morsi was accused of failing to deliver promises he made during the election a year ago. He had promised to improve the economy, boost employment and heed the needs of minorities and women. At present, Egypt’s unemployment rate stands at 13 percent (and 40 percent among young people) and food and fuel prices are soaring. Egypt’s military, led by General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, has appointed an economist, Hazem al-Beblawi, to be the prime minister, who, in turn, has named another liberal economist Ahmed Galal as finance minister. Galal has a doctoral degree from Boston University in the United States. It is obvious that Egypt’s new leaders under the “temporary constitution” realize where the country’s major problem lies — people’s livelihood. Al-Beblawi’s transitional government must work with the Muslim Brotherhood in forming a coalition government when parliamentary elections are held in February 2014. The Muslim Brotherhood, which voted Morsi to power, is simply too big and powerful to be slighted. Let us take a look at the political landscapes in Asia. The Philippine government has waged a war against fighters in the Muslim-held stronghold in Mindanao for many years. There doesn’t seem to be light at the end of the political tunnel. The Muslims in Mindanao want an independent state. They have fought for independence since the Spanish occupation of the Philippines in the 1800s. The conflict in Indonesia’s Malacca state, where, in the past two years, 4,000 people have been killed in Christian-Muslim fighting, and 500,000 displaced, underlines the entrenched and bloody religious feud. Today, the Karen and Shan minority groups in Myanmar fight against the government in the east of the country, while small armed groups of the Rohingya people are active in the western part of the country (the Rohingya use refugee camps in Bangladesh as bases). Sporadic conflicts also occur in other regions of Myanmar. Due to internal conflicts, around 160,000 Myanmese refugees have to live in Thailand. This writer has little intention of haranguing the ruling parties in the Philippines, Indonesia and Myanmar and other Asian countries and telling them how to run their governments. The uprising in Egypt, however, should touch Asian leaders’ nerves. Caring for the minorities’ interests and sharing power with secular and minority groups are lessons Asian leaders can learn from the fall of the Morsi government in Egypt. Egypt’s transitional leaders must try their best to avoid a civil war between the Muslim Brotherhood and other secular and Christian groups. They should learn from the experience of Nigeria. In 1991, the Nigerian military didn’t accept the election success of a Muslim-led party, which engendered a civil war that lasted for 10 years with thousands of people killed. The political time bombs in Asia can be defused with a mastery of the political skills of moderation, compromise and respect for pluralism. The author is coordinator of the B.S.Sc in financial journalism program at Hong Kong Baptist University.

名人作家耀書展

am730  2013-07-17紅出版全新出品 名人作家耀書展

紅出版推出了一系列精彩紛呈的新書，浸會大學傳理學院新聞系首席講師馮強則有《英語實戰力》，詳細分析英文報章的評論，既實用又易學 (定價$69)。書展期間，買得越多，折扣越多。購買1本書可獲8折優惠、3本可獲7折，而5本更可獲6折優惠。

Free paper market poised for shake-up



Victor Fung interviewed by the SCMP on June 29


Observers expect consolidation after publisher Sing Tao said it had talks with Swedish owner of Metro Daily about purchasing the newspaper

Hong Kong’s free newspaper market is bracing for consolidation. An announcement by Sing Tao News last week that it might buy Metro Daily has sparked expectations for other acquisitions and the closure of some free papers.

Sing Tao said it had been in talks as part of a syndicate to acquire the Hong Kong business of Swedish free paper publisher Metro International but that negotiations ended in mid-May. The publisher said in the statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange that it was possible the syndicate would restart negotiations.

“Consolidation is now the buzzword for this market,” said Clement So York-kee, professor at the School of Journalism and Communication at the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

“The proposed Sing Tao deal reflects the situation.”

The city’s free paper market is crowded with six publications. Five are in Chinese. One is in English, The Standard, which is published by Sing Tao. They all fight for advertising dollars. Sing Tao also publishes Sing Tao Daily and the free paper Headline Daily.

So said the free newspaper market in Hong Kong can be expected to change given the saturated nature of the sector.

“The free newspaper market in Hong Kong has reached a plateau after impressive development over the last decade,” he said.

“Not all of the operators are making money, and it is natural for some of them to consider making changes, like leaving the market, focusing on certain segments of the market, or possibly co-operating with other companies.”

A Sing Tao spokeswoman declined to comment.

Victor Fung, a lecturer in journalism at Hong Kong Baptist University, said if Metro Daily was bought, other free papers, including Next Media’s Sharp Daily and HKET Holdings’ Sky Post, would be put into more difficult situations.

Headline Daily, launched in 2005, leads the sector with an average daily circulation of 880,000, exceeding its nearest rival by about 50 per cent. Launched in 2002, Metro Daily, the city’s first free paper, has a daily circulation of 400,000. It is the only paper distributed in MTR stations.

“I don’t think it will be easy to buy Metro Daily, unless Sing Tao’s offer is really high,” said Fung.

He said although the paper may not be making much profit its position as the sole free paper at MTR stations had intangible value. “If Sing Tao buys it, it can, in addition to Metro Daily, distribute Headline Daily and The Standard in the subway.”

He said Sing Tao’s inability to use the MTR network to reach commuters was a “big setback”. “The readership represents quality. They are the middle-class people with consumption power on their way to work,” he said.

If the deal is realised, the other players including AM730, Sharp Daily and Sky Post will lose their competitiveness, according to Fung. “If so, there is big chance they will be closed,” he said.

HKET, the publisher of Hong Kong Economic Times, remains confident about the operation of its free daily. The company said in its latest financial report that advertising income from paid publications decreased but that income from Sky Post offset the drop. The company said its net profit in the year to March 31 fell 19 per cent year on year to HK$62.0 million as revenue increased 3 per cent to HK$1.03 billion.

HKET said it had invested more in Sky Post, which will affect its income performance in the near term, adding that its entry into the free daily market was necessary to broaden its advertising income base.

If you are interested in Egypt's latest uprising, you might be interested to watch this half-hour news program on a new TV station called United Broadcasting: http://www.unbtv.com/2013/0713/2773.shtml
 The commentator is me, Victor Fung