South China Morning Post - Hong Kong Politics

Hong Kong unions likely to ‘tread carefully’ as mandatory allegiance requirement for civil ...

Sun, 17 Jan 2021 09:55:57 GMT

The dissolution of a civil servants’ union formed during the 2019 anti-government protests in Hong Kong is likely to be an isolated incident but various public sector employee groups will become more cautious as a result of the government’s oath-taking requirement, according to a veteran unionist.The warning from Leung Chau-ting came hours after the Union for New Civil Servants announced its disbandment on Saturday night in response to the requirement for the 180,000-strong workforce to pledge…

Civil service union formed during Hong Kong protests becomes first to disband in response to ...

Sat, 16 Jan 2021 17:54:40 GMT

A civil servants’ union formed during the 2019 anti-government protests in Hong Kong has become the first to disband since it became a requirement for public sector workers to pledge allegiance to the city and its mini-constitution. Union for New Civil Servants chairman Michael Ngan Mo-chau announced the move in a Facebook post late on Saturday night and said the disbandment was in response to the oath-taking requirement which could result in some members having to leave the government. The…

National security law: Beijing’s retaliation against London’s BN(O) pathway ‘down to ...

Sat, 16 Jan 2021 14:00:18 GMT

Beijing’s plans to retaliate against London’s move to offer British National (Overseas) passport holders a pathway to the right of abode boil down to making public officers with such documents prove their loyalty, analysts have said.Civil servants and other officials could soon find themselves faced with a hard choice between keeping their BN(O) passports and keeping their jobs, they said, responding to the Post’s exclusive report earlier this week that the central government was mulling…

Hong Kong decries latest US sanctions over opposition arrests as ‘insane, shameless and ...

Sat, 16 Jan 2021 06:30:04 GMT

Hong Kong’s government has lashed out at the United States for “insane, shameless and despicable” interference in the city’s internal affairs after the departing administration in Washington slapped sanctions on six officials over the enforcement of the national security law.Echoing the government’s rejection of American intervention on Saturday was one of those on the latest sanctions list, Tam Yiu-chung, the city’s sole delegate to China’s top legislative body.Both Tam and the local…

Pro-establishment Hong Kong lawmaker sorry for calling into Legislative Council Zoom meeting ...

Fri, 15 Jan 2021 09:19:17 GMT

Pro-establishment lawmaker Kwok Wai-keung has publicly apologised for using his phone while driving – to call into a Legislative Council Zoom meeting – saying he will “deeply reflect” on his behaviour following the incident.Speaking to the press on Friday flanked by three party colleagues, the Federation of Trade Unions legislator also promised to “strictly follow the road traffic control regulations”, and to cooperate in the event of any investigation into the apparent infraction.Lawmakers…

Hong Kong Home Affairs Bureau senior official steps down, citing family time

Fri, 15 Jan 2021 05:55:55 GMT

A senior Hong Kong home affairs official has resigned citing family reasons, becoming the second top political appointee to leave since city leader Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor took office in July 2017.In a statement issued on Friday, the government confirmed that Jade Lai Wing-yu, political assistant to the secretary for home affairs, had tendered her resignation “due to her need to take care of her family”.“She is currently on leave and will leave the government effective January 20. The…

Hong Kong lawmaker admits driving while attending panel meeting conducted by video conferencing

Thu, 14 Jan 2021 14:13:20 GMT

A Hong Kong lawmaker has admitted he was driving while taking part in a Legislative Council panel meeting conducted by video conferencing on Thursday.Federation of Trade Unions lawmaker Kwok Wai-keung was seen in his car asking a government minister a question, just one day after Legco members approved a motion allowing certain formal meetings to be held online amid the ongoing coronavirus crisis.Officials attended the meeting in the morning to answer lawmakers’ questions on the government’s…

Hong Kong national security law: leading internet service provider admits blocking protest ...

Thu, 14 Jan 2021 13:50:49 GMT

A leading telecoms company has become the first internet service provider to admit blocking one of the most popular websites devoted to the anti-government movement in Hong Kong because it may violate the national security law.Hong Kong Broadband Network (HKBN) revealed on Thursday it had complied with an official request to disable customers’ access to HKChronicles, which contained information, articles, photos and videos related to the social unrest that erupted in 2019, along with personal…

Hong Kong pushes WTO to form panel over ‘Made-in-China’ labelling row after ...

Thu, 14 Jan 2021 10:55:13 GMT

Hong Kong has taken further action against the United States at the World Trade Organization in its battle to undo Washington’s unilateral decision to make the city tag its exports “Made in China”.Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Edward Yau Tang-wah on Thursday said the government had asked the WTO’s dispute settlement body to set up a panel to look at the conflict, something that could happen by February 22 at the earliest.Yau said the city had no choice after US authorities…

National security police arrest lawyer and 10 others accused of helping 12 Hong Kong fugitives

Thu, 14 Jan 2021 01:06:57 GMT

National security police have arrested a lawyer and 10 others on suspicion of helping 12 Hong Kong fugitives in their bid to flee the city.A police source confirmed the arrests early on Thursday of eight men and three women aged 18 to 72 for “assisting offenders”, an offence under the Criminal Procedure Ordinance carrying a maximum penalty of 10 years in jail.Lawyer Daniel Wong Kwok-tung, who is also a Kowloon City district councillor, wrote on his Facebook page that officers from Hong Kong…

Mainland Chinese authorities accuse lawyer who helped detained Hong Kong fugitives of ...

Wed, 13 Jan 2021 16:51:17 GMT

A mainland Chinese lawyer facing disbarment after handling a case involving 12 Hong Kong fugitives captured at sea has been accused by authorities of “endangering national security” with his tweets about the plight of the detainees, the Post has learned.Officials from the Sichuan provincial Department of Justice made the allegation against human rights lawyer Lu Siwei on Wednesday after appeal proceedings, in which he defended his handling of the controversial case, had ended. Lu had earlier…

National security law: Beijing ‘mulling’ public office ban on British National (Overseas) ...

Wed, 13 Jan 2021 15:02:22 GMT

Beijing is mulling whether to ban British National (Overseas) passport holders in Hong Kong from public office in retaliation over London’s decision to offer them right of abode, the Post has learned.Officials were divided, however, on whether they should also call for the more drastic step of denying Hongkongers with such BN(O) status the right to vote in the city.These proposals are believed to be in a suite of Hong Kong issues to be discussed when China’s top legislative body meets next week…

Coronavirus: Hong Kong’s Legislative Council moves some formal meetings online

Wed, 13 Jan 2021 11:55:56 GMT

Hong Kong’s legislature will allow certain formal meetings that require a vote to be held online as the city struggles to contain its fourth wave of coronavirus infections.The passage of a motion on Wednesday extended the use of Zoom, cloud-based software for video conferencing, from informal policy briefings in the Legislative Council, to formal meetings of all panels, bills committees or subcommittees appointed by the House Committee.Under the new arrangement, voting at a virtual meeting will…

Small-house rights of Hong Kong male villagers fully restored after Court of Appeal reverses ...

Wed, 13 Jan 2021 07:11:55 GMT

Appeal judges have overturned a lower court ruling to reinstate male indigenous villagers’ full rights to build three-storey homes on both private and government-sourced land in space-starved Hong Kong.The Court of Appeal ruled on Wednesday that New Territories villagers’ so-called ding rights were “constitutional in its entirety”, allowing them to continue building houses not just on land they owned, but also on plots swapped with, or granted by, the government.A High Court ruling earlier on…

Hong Kong protests: spotlight on judge for ordering removal of yellow masks in court and riot ...

Wed, 13 Jan 2021 00:00:18 GMT

A Hong Kong judge’s demand that court attendees and a lawyer remove their face masks during a hearing this week because they were yellow in colour – the hue associated with anti-government protesters – has ignited a debate among legal scholars and experts on whether he went too far.The drama unfolded in courtroom 7 of the District Court during a session on Monday presided over by Judge Ernest Lin Kam-hung, who was hearing the guilty pleas of four suspects involved in an illegal assembly.While…

Hong Kong Law Society unable to offer ‘realistic timeline’ for return of clients’ funds ...

Tue, 12 Jan 2021 13:17:53 GMT

Hong Kong’s Law Society has insisted that it had to shut down a large law firm and freeze its accounts last month “to protect the public and clients” from impropriety, but it stopped short of saying how much longer those affected would have to wait to be made whole.The society’s leaders on Tuesday also said the affected clients would have to hire their own lawyers for legal advice, prompting a group of victims to accuse it of “indifference” to their plight, and to reiterate their calls for…

National security law: Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam accuses the West of hypocrisy, defends mass ...

Tue, 12 Jan 2021 10:53:39 GMT

Hong Kong’s leader has defended the city’s recent mass arrests of opposition figures and accused foreign politicians of adopting “double standards” for condoning 2019’s often violent anti-government protests, only to condemn last week’s storming of the US Capitol by a mob of supporters of President Donald Trump.Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor on Tuesday hit back at statements of condemnation from Western governments over the arrests, while also singling out what she called hypocrisy…

Uncertainty over 900 jobs as US owner of lifestyle labels such as Timberland, North Face to ...

Tue, 12 Jan 2021 10:24:28 GMT

The American owner of several major lifestyle labels including Timberland and The North Face will relocate its regional brand office from Hong Kong to Shanghai while its logistics and human resources hub will shift to Singapore, with about 900 workers facing uncertainty from the move.Denver-based VF Corporation – which also owns popular labels such as Vans footwear and Dickies apparel – said on Tuesday it would relocate the centre of its brand operations to Shanghai.The company’s Asia logistics…

Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam distances herself from adviser’s call to clamp down on residents ...

Tue, 12 Jan 2021 05:02:49 GMT

Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor has distanced herself from an adviser’s call for Beijing to strip residents who acquire foreign citizenship of their right to live in the city.Lam on Tuesday said her de facto cabinet had not discussed the dual nationality proposal, lodged by a senior pro-establishment figure this week as Hong Kong braced for a surge of emigration after Britain offered locals a new route to citizenship.The new visa scheme for those eligible for British National …

Coronavirus: Carrie Lam puts Hong Kong on alert for muted Lunar New Year celebrations as expert ...

Tue, 12 Jan 2021 02:31:16 GMT

Hong Kong’s leader has warned residents not to drop their guard against Covid-19 and to brace for muted Lunar New Year celebrations, as an expert called for all festivities to be cancelled with the number of cases threatening to spike again.Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor expressed concern on Tuesday over the prevalence of cases in public hospitals, elderly care homes and large construction sites, as well as among paramedics and ferry staff.Experts urge tougher crowd controls as 41…