The future of Hong Kong in the new era |
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Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Christopher Hui delivered a keynote speech on the first day (Oct 13) of the virtual China Institute Executive Summit 2020, highlighting the latest financial developments in Hong Kong and the city’s role as an international financial center. He said Hong Kong’s role as an international IPO center has been enhanced with a broader and deeper financing platform, attracting new economy sectors such as fintech and biotech. Mr Hui spoke on the opportunities in the asset and wealth management sector, with the introduction of new fund structures and tax concession measures, and highlighted the growth in fintech developments and green finance. Mr Hui pointed out that Hong Kong, with its rule of law, independent judiciary and strong international regulatory structure, has remained resilient and open to international business and capital flow amid various challenges over the past decades, including the 2003 SARS epidemic and the 2008 financial crisis.
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ADMINISTRATION & CIVIC AFFAIRS |
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Delivery date of Policy Address postponed |
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Chief Executive Carrie Lam announced (Oct 12) she will postpone her Policy Address to seek the central government’s support for proposals to aid Hong Kong’s recovery. Speaking to the media, Mrs Lam said the Policy Address is a very important event and she hopes to use the 2020 Policy Address to instill more confidence among Hong Kong people. The Chief Executive said she will go to Beijing to discuss the proposals with various ministries and commissions later this month. Depending on the progress of the talks, Mrs Lam said she aims to deliver her Policy Address by the end of November. The Chief Executive will also visit Shenzhen to attend the celebration of the 40th anniversary of the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone’s establishment on Oct 14.
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Social distancing measures extended |
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Social distancing measures currently in place in Hong Kong will be maintained until Oct 22. The Food & Health Bureau said it is worrying that the average number of locally confirmed COVID-19 cases continued to increase over the past week, with a number of cases with unknown sources of infection reported, indicating the existence of silent transmission chains in the community and highly probable rebound in the epidemic situation. All requirements and restrictions applicable to catering businesses and scheduled premises will be maintained. Activities and facilities involving higher health risks such as dancing, steam and sauna facilities will continue to be suspended or prohibited from opening. Unless exempted, the prohibition on group gatherings of more than four people in public places will continue. The requirement for wearing a mask at all times when on public transport and in all public places will also remain in effect. The community treatment facility expansion at AsiaWorld-Expo was successfully completed, with the facility handed over to the Hospital Authority on Oct 9. The expansion will enhance Hong Kong’s ability to cope with another potential wave of the epidemic in the future, reducing the pressure on public hospitals.
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Secretary for Food and Health attends WHO meeting |
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Attending the virtual meeting of the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Committee for the Western Pacific (Oct 6), Secretary for Food and Health Professor Sophia Chan said Hong Kong has responded promptly and successfully to a few COVID-19 epidemic waves so far. Noting that there are still sporadic local cases among the recent confirmed cases, indicating the existence of silent transmission chains in the community, she said the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government will spare no effort in containing the spread of the disease using the containment strategy. Prof Chan also shared experiences of running the Universal Community Testing Program and reaffirmed the Government’s commitment in maintaining close collaboration with the WHO and the regional committee in combatting the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Dedicated arts and culture webpage launched |
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Adapting to the challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic, the three Hong Kong Economic and Trade Offices in the United States launch (Oct 13) a dedicated arts and culture webpage “Hong Kong Arts and Cultural Experience” to further enhance cultural ties and exchanges between Hong Kong and the United States, bringing some of the best of Hong Kong’s diverse arts and cultural programming to the US audience. This virtual space will showcase Hong Kong’s unique and vibrant arts and cultural scene in the coming months. They include webinar discussions, performances, cross-genre collaborations, art exhibitions along with exciting developments driven by the West Kowloon Cultural District.
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Behind the scenes of chamber opera “Mila” |
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The creative team and cast of Hong Kong original chamber opera “Mila” took part in a webinar panel discussion (Oct 6), offering insights on the development and creative process of this unique multi-lingual opera sung in three languages (English, Cantonese and Tagalog) and featured specially built musical instruments. They also discussed their experience during the North American premiere of “Mila” in Dec 2019 in New York and San Francisco. The session also featured a short documentary with previously unreleased behind-the-scenes footage recorded from the North American leg of the “Mila” journey.
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Hong Kong as a global aviation hub |
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Join air cargo experts and supply chain specialists from Hong Kong and the US to learn about the latest air logistics developments and growth opportunities in Asia brought by the rise of e-commerce and new logistics tech at the “Hong Kong as a Global Aviation Hub - Unleash the Opportunities in the Post Covid-19 World” webinar on Oct 28 at 9:00 AM (EST). Robert Marsh, President of GlobalMesh, will moderate the panel discussion that features Cissy Chan, Executive Director (Commercial) of Airport Authority Hong Kong; Elliott Paige, Director of Air Service Development if Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, Andy Wong, Head of Innovation and Technology at InvestHK and Simon Wong, CEO of the Logistics and Supply Chain MultiTech R&D Centre.
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Economic and investment outlook in Asia 2021 |
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What is the economic and investment outlook next year? Learn more about financial services opportunities in Asia and hear from leading financial professionals as they share the latest insights and market intelligence at this upcoming “Economic and Investment Outlook in Asia 2021” webinar on Oct 29 at 9:30 AM (EST). Speakers include Henri Arslanian, PwC Global Crypto Leader and former Chairman of the FinTech Association of Hong Kong; Johanna Chua, Managing Director, Head of Asia Pacific Economic and Market Analysis at Citigroup in Hong Kong and Anna Fan, Director of Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) in New York. The webinar is organized by HKTDC New York office, in partnership with the US Commercial Service.
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Hong Kong and its Basic Law |
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The Basic Law (BL) is the constitutional document of the HKSAR. Put into effect on July 1, 1997, it enshrines within a legal document the important concept of “One Country, Two Systems”.
Q: Do Hong Kong people enjoy a wide range of personal freedoms?
A: Chapter III of the Basic Law guarantees a wide range of rights and freedoms to be enjoyed by Hong Kong people. The provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, and international labor conventions as applied to Hong Kong continue to remain in force. (BL Articles 27-39) The extensive rights and freedoms of Hong Kong people are borne out by, for instance, the fact that Hong Kong residents participate freely in processions and assemblies; newspapers regularly comment on or criticize government decisions and policies, and people express freely their opinion in Hong Kong’s open society.
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