#MoreGunsLessCrime? Less guns, less crime

By Season Ho

Weeks ago, a gunman opened fire at Oregon’s Umpqua Community College in the United States, killing nine people and injuring seven. President Barack Obama commented that these kind of shootings are becoming all too ‘routine’. Yes, indeed. As a Hongkonger living 8,000 miles away from the States – I, too, am becoming numb towards these news headlines.

“Somehow this has become routine. The reporting is routine. My response here at this podium ends up being routine, the conversation in the aftermath of it … We have become numb to this." 

- Barack Obama

The numbness Obama mentioned is not because people are now apathetic towards human lives, but because these incidents are overly-frequent that Americans started to ‘get used’ to them. Since Obama got reelected in November 2012, there have been 993 mass shooting events in the United States, not including the Umpqua one this time. Almost 300 of them are in 2015.


The Second Amendment and its endless debate

Debates on gun control are heated up after the incident again, same after every other shooting. Obama has been trying to push gun control reform in his administration, only to encounter opposition from the Republican Party.

Like what the President said, mines are made safer when Americans are killed in mine disasters; communities are made safer when Americans are killed in foods and hurricanes. How to make a community safer when Americans are killed by guns? Gun control might be, or should be the best solution, but the Conservatives don’t think so. They continue to wave the flag of The Second Amendment and use the hashtag #moregunslesscrime online to resist any form of gun controls. They want a change on gun laws too – they want more guns.

The Second Amendment to the United States Constitution was adopted back in 1791. It protects the right of the people to keep and bear arms and is part of the first ten amendments contained in the Bill of Rights. The Supreme Court of the United States has ruled that the right belongs to individuals but the right is not unlimited and does not prohibit all regulation of either firearms or similar devices.


Mental illness – is it really the cause?

As the US presidential election is approaching, candidates of the two sides are holding firmer to their stance towards gun control. GOP candidate Ben Carson said that if he face an active shooter, “I would not just stand there and let him shoot me." By this he means that he can defend himself if he has a gun. “The shooter can only shoot one person at a time," Carson argued. “He cannot shoot a whole group of people. So the idea is overwhelm him so not everybody gets killed."

In fact, arguments from both sides are pretty clear. The Democrats want stricter gun laws, so that when less people own guns and carry guns around, it is less likely for these campus shooting to happen. Just take a look at Australia. After the 1996 Port Arthur massacre that killed 35 people and injured 28, John Howard, Australia’s prime minister at the time, led the drafting of National Firearms Agreement (NFA) which sharply restricted legal ownership of firearms. It also established a registry of all guns owned in the country and required a permit for all new firearm purchases. About 650,000 legally owned guns were peacefully seized, then destroyed, as part of the buyback. The average firearm suicide rate in Australia in the seven years after the bill declined by 57 percent compared with the seven years prior. The average firearm homicide rate went down by about 42 percent.

When the results of stricter gun control seems loud and clear, The Republicans insists that guns itself don’t kill people, it is the person behind the gun that kills people. Thus, they advocates more resources on mental health education. Let’s take a look at the mental health statistics in the US: A report in the American Journal of Public Health, published in February 2015, suggested that only 5 percent of the 120,000 gun-related killings were committed by people diagnosed with mental disorders. When Donald Trump say that “this isn’t guns, this is really about mental illness,” is it really the case?

Even it is really about mental illness, like what Obama has said, America isn’t the only country with mentally-ill people, but it is the only advanced country that has the gun tragedy so frequently.


A problem bigger than terrorism

For every American killed by terrorism in the US and around the world, more than 1,000 died from firearms inside the U.S. during the recent decade with available comparative data. The gun fatalities cover all manners of deal, including homicide, accident and suicide. From 2001 to 2013, there were 3,380 American deaths by terrorism, and 406,496 deaths by firearms in the US, according the to US State Department. Which one, then, should you fear more? Gun ownership or terrorism?

I have tried to think of some new insights on the issue, only to find out that there won’t be any. Nothing wow, nothing new – the only way out is a stricter gun control. Even owning firearm might be one of the fundamental rights of the Americans, the obsession towards gun ownership is quite hard to understand. It is a matter of life and death, it is high time to stop the next episode of tragedy before it happened.

不先修心，何以養性

作者：何樂思

今年八月底，屯門大興邨分別只得11及13的歲男童，與女童性交並以手機拍下影片，令社會嘩然。只是社交網絡不時流傳性愛影片，如有男女在巴士上做出不雅行為、在連鎖服裝店更衣室交歡、在大廈天台口交等等，皆在網上引起熱議，接連震驚社會，甚至震驚得有些麻木之餘， 亦令筆者有感於香港兒童及青少年的性知識貧乏，加上社會、學校及家長亦少作討論，情況令人憂心。

無論是娛樂新聞對女性身材的渲染、美容整容廣告、有關性愛經驗的文字，甚至是無數的免費色情影片等等，有關男女關係的資訊在現今社會已是垂手可得。而性教育除包括生常識，亦包括兩性互相尊重及正確的性價值觀。時下男女依賴網絡摸索性知識，但缺乏合適引導，學校教育亦無深入探討，加上兩性關係及性方面的對錯是非難分，兒童及青少年可說是求助無門。

現時教育局沿用1997年制訂的《學校性教育指引》，指引建議學校把性教育融入各學科課程。然而，這只是一個「建議」－ 實則香港並無任何必修的性教育課程，只靠小學常識課、中學的生物課以及一些講座對有關性的議題「蜻蜓點水」。筆者本以為2008年藝人陳冠希的裸照事件會引起家校對性教育的關注，但隨後事件不了了知，似乎仍未足夠喚起學校關注性教育。18年前，互聯網沒有普及、色情手機程式並未出現，客觀環境差之千里，指引根本追不上青少年成長的需要；教育局沒有將性教育列為必修課程，試問學生的性知識可從何來？香港性教育、研究及治療專業協的學校性教育工作者意見調查結果顯示，多於四成的中學沒有對外邀請認可機構到校提供性教育，只是由老師或班主任講解，或每年舉辦一兩次有關性教育的講座，有些中學甚至對此隻字不提。

幾年前有一宗案件，一名「手機色魔」利用手機交友程式，訛稱自己是婦科女醫生取得少女信任，然後聲稱可憑裸照斷症。少女們紛紛傳送裸照供其檢查發育有否異常，待受害人把裸照上傳，色魔便以裸照恐嚇或誘騙對方，又稱性交可治病，藉詞凌辱女事主。並騙得40多名少女，包括多名學生傳上裸照，並與其中4人非法性交，年紀最小的只得13歲。事件證明青少年不敢向人傾訴性方面的問題，又或者不知跟誰傾訴，性知識貧乏下誤墮色魔圈套。

世界衛生組織在2010年推出《歐洲性教育的標準指引》(Standards for Sexuality Education in Europe)，並在2013年發送到歐洲各個衛生部門。指引提出孩童由出生開始到成年期間應該被灌輸的性知識。例如6-9歲的幼童，應學會「不同的個人選擇－包括組織家庭、懷孕、不孕不育、收養、以及接收避孕的基本資訊」，還有「觸摸自己的身體時的享受和愉悅(自慰及手淫)」。12-15歲時就要獲得各項避孕服務的資訊。香港家長可能會覺得指引過於大膽，向小朋友灌輸這類知識「會不會太早」、會否令孩子變得「早熟」等等。但「上醫治未病」，與其讓他們自己「摸着石頭過河」，更應更早教授少年正確的知識。屯門大興邨的風化案就是好例子，男女童只是11及13歲，若果要在青少年成年後或上大學後才教，就已經太遲。

英國、美國及新加坡等與香港發展程度相若的城市，性教育課程推行已久。又有不少調查發現越來越多青少年從色情影片來得到性知識，英國更有老師及家長在討論應否加設「色情影片教育」，令學生對正常的性愛有所認識，以免學生對性生活有非現實的幻想，解答學生在看色情影片時的各種疑問。

總而言之，香港政府應盡快更新性教育課程，並把其列為必修課，使每間中小學都向學生提供循序漸進的性教育，助學生建立正確價值觀。香港社會關心下一代的教育，卻只限於學業成績或專業知識，忽略了兒童及青少年在個人成長上的需要。家長關心的考試科目及範圍，幾乎成為了孩童學習的惟一指標，但其實兒童成長過程中的各種疑惑，政府、學校、家長及社會各界都應對此更加重視，讓下一代除了在學業成績上出眾，也可以健康正面地成長。

美FB增檢舉功能防用戶自殺

記者/何樂思　編輯/陳衍揚
Original article: http://goo.gl/rttXGE

【本網訊】Facebook化身守護天使？該社交網站早前與美政府、華盛頓大學社工學院及數個防止自殺機構合作，上周三起新增「檢舉自殺」選項。當用家注意到朋友發布有自殺傾向的負面資訊時，可利用新功能去幫助他們。

Facebook會主動聯絡有可疑的當事人。(網上圖片)

若用家看到朋友發布有可疑的更新，用家可在帖子的右上角選項中選擇檢舉(Report Post)，然後Facebook會提供一系列選擇，例如聯絡對方、聯絡其他朋友提供幫助或聯繫自殺求助熱線。然後Facebook會審閱該帖，若他們亦認同內容有可疑，便會主動聯絡當事人。其後，當事人使用Facebook時便會彈出提示，他可以選擇向朋友求助或要求支援，例如致電熱線或聯絡區內專家，以處理其情緒問題或自殺傾向。Facebook亦會提供一些打氣短片，由一些曾企圖自殺的過來人分享經驗。

新增功能可支援手機及桌面版Facebook，但暫時只供美國一半Facebook用家使用，計劃於數月內擴展至全美國。

(《哈芬登郵報》)

Hong Kong Model United Nations 2015 Opening Speech

by Season Ho

Dear honourable guests, advisors and students,

On behalf of the Hong Kong Model United Nations Club, I would like to give my heartfelt thanks to all of you for supporting our Hong Kong Model United Nations 2015. Thank you Ms Annie Wu, Ms Elsie Leung, Mr. J Ian Burchett and Mr. Patrick Mansier, for sparing the time out of your busy schedule to join our ceremony.

With this edition there starts a new cycle in the life of HKMUN. We strive to offer you an unforgettable experience, by relying on the experience of the past editions, further enhancing the features that made HKMUN such a special project and, at the same time, introducing new and unconventional approaches to MUN’s.

The story of HKMUN started in 2005 with a handful of people who wanted to establish the first international MUN in Hong Kong and a landmark for MUNs in the region. Despite setbacks and unavoidable circumstances, they achieved their goal by organizing the first HKMUN in 2005 to the best of their abilities. It was built with hard work, driven by ambition and professionalism and supported with the help of friends and family. It achieved its purpose as a promoter of the core values of the UN, a forum for young professionals to exchange ideas, but it also became much more: it became a community, a family where bonds are created and shared for a lifetime. In spite of the passing of time and its continuous expansion, HKMUN remains faithful to its original values – professionalism, equality, integrity, commitment to excellence, high levels of academic achievement and social integration.

The theme proposed for this year’s conference challenges you to go an extra mile in the service of humanity. We live in an era of great uncertainty, but also one of profound opportunity for us to make a difference for the sake of others. The human family grows ever so steadily, with more than seven billion members, and this provides us with an opportunity to communicate, collaborate, and find a common ground in order to shape the future that we want and need.

Model UN conferences constitute such a unique experience because, while recreating the work and functioning of the UN and other organisations, as well as the fascinating universe of international relations, they also offer the opportunity for innovation. MUNs help create the premises where fresh ideas can be exchanged and out-of-the-box solutions can be tested for some of the most challenging international issues. On some occasions, they constitute examples of cooperation and creativity that should be taken into account by the “real diplomats”. On other occasions, they present the delegates with the bitter shortcomings of the current state of international affairs that they will have to address as future diplomats. Notwithstanding the outcome, the experience that the participants acquire is invaluable.

Distinguished participants, I strongly encourage you to take full advantage of the opportunity brought forward by HKMUN. I encourage you to be creative, test the limits of current international relations, while remaining realistic, learn as much as you can from this experience and bear these lessons in mind when entrusted with real decision-making power in your future careers.

To conclude, I sincerely hope that you will remain mindful of the fact that even if this conference is a simulation, the problems that you are invited to address are very real. They are not simply numbers in a chart, data in a report or an interesting doctrine; they are or will be part of the everyday reality of actual people. Therefore, they need to be addressed with wisdom, utmost care and perfect awareness of the impact that they will have on the lives and destinies of real people.

I welcome you all and wish you the best of luck in the hope that you achieve what you came looking for in HKMUN 2015.

北韓網絡「與世隔絕」九小時

北韓網絡「與世隔絕」九小時
24/12/2014 港聞
記者/何樂思　編輯/張浚浩

Original report at: http://goo.gl/6CxcYx

【本網訊】北韓網絡系統疑遭駭客入侵，中斷逾九小時，受影響網絡現逐漸回復正常。美國白宮和國務院拒絕透露是否美國政府所為，中國政府則否認參與。有網絡保安專家形容，「北韓猶如在世界的網絡地圖上被除掉」。

索尼早前因一部有關刺殺金正恩的電影，受到駭客攻擊，美國指北韓是始作俑者，北韓否應，反指美國的指控缺乏實質證據。美國總統奧巴馬揚言，華府會為是次攻擊「提出相應的回應」，但未有透露詳情。

瘋傳數據加重負荷

事發在當地周二，北韓網絡懷疑受到駭客入侵，網路中斷長達9小時31分鐘。美國互聯網服務供應公司Arbor Networks表示，其系統在當地時間周六至周一，偵測到針對北韓的網絡攻擊，懷疑駭客不停傳輸大量數據到北韓網絡，令其負荷過重，一度中斷。

北韓網絡小 易被癱瘓
Arbor Networks網絡保安部總監Dan Holden表示，北韓網絡規模較小、連線有限，攻擊其網絡至癱瘓相對簡單，不能一口咬定事件與美國政府有關。他又表示，北韓互聯網並不精密，任何一個因不能看這部電影而失落的人也可發動攻擊。

網絡保安公司CloudFlare主席Matthew Prince亦表示，是次網絡攻擊是在一人能力範圍以內，故未能肯定是否網絡攻擊。

北韓為世界上其中一個最少網絡連線的國家，只有少部份民眾才能使用電腦，雖然擁有寬頻網絡，但只有少部份獲批准的民眾才可使用全球性網頁（World Wide Web），其餘只可連接國內的內聯網。此外，雖然超過一百萬人正使用手提電話，但網絡只供北韓的幾個主要城市使用，不可以打電話出國或接聽國外電話。

（CNN）

New venue did not bring wine-lovers down

Hong Kong Wine and Dine Festival

By Season Ho and Dennis Hung


The 4-day opening party of the Hong Kong Wine and Dine Festival ended yesterday, with a record number of visitors, despite a late venue change. According to the Hong Kong Tourism Board, the Festival attracted an estimated 130,000 visitors on the first three days, compared to 140,000 for the whole of last year’s festival.

Organized by the Hong Kong Tourism Board and sponsored by CCB(Asia), the opening party is a lead-in to the month-long Hong Kong Wine and Dine Festival, offering a huge array of wines and gourmet food.

Due to the Occupy Central protests, the Festival is being moved across the Harbour, from last year’s venue near the Central piers, to the former airport runway adjacent to the Kai Tak Cruise Terminal this year. The entrance fee was hence waived to compensate for potential woes.

Nevertheless, wine-lovers were not deterred from visiting the Festival. Visitors’ response was so overwhelming that the Tourism Board had to issue a warning on Friday night, advising people not to join the Festival that night as it already reached its capacity.

The party has received overwhelming compliments, except for the widespread transport delays.

First-time local visitor Asta said the transportation arrangement was inadequate for such a massive event, and she believed that the MTR-accessible Central is a better choice. “The cruise terminal is much less convenient compared to Central,” she said.

Having considered the potential traffic problems, the Tourism Board had arranged free shuttle bus service. The shuttle bus ran between the Terminal and Lam Tin, Kowloon Tong and Tsim Sha Tsui East. A bus to Ngau Tau Kok and a minibus to Kowloon Bay were also available.

An Australian tourist Raymond paid his first visit to the Festival, “the transportation arrangement is disappointing, I was stuck in the bus for almost an hour,” he said. Yet, he expressed that the event was overall quite ‘impressive’ and he ‘enjoyed the music with a glass of wine in hand’.

The Festival features over 250 stalls, which are divided into 5 themed areas: Discovery Zone, Party Wine Zone, Everyday Wine Zone, Country Pavilions and the premium Riedel Grand Tasting Pavilion.

Local wine-seller Chan was surprised at the sales of his products. “I was worried about the business because of the relocation, but it turned out to be unexpectedly good,” Chan said.

The party livened up as soon as special light effects started, along with live music and band performance. The panoramic view of the Victoria Harbour together with Hong Kong skyline forms a stunning backdrop to the Festival, making wine-tasting at night a delightful sensational experience.

Financial Secretary John Tsang visited the Festival on Saturday upon return from London on a business trip. He expressed his initial concern over visitors’ reaction to the event, and he was grateful to the organisers for their prompt response to the unforeseen influx of visitors.

The Festival continues until the end of this month in other locations. Street carnivals and other wine-tasting and dining events will take place across the city. Featuring over 1,000 exhibitors, the 7th Hong Kong International Wine & Spirits Fair will soon kick off on the 6th of November.

Rash statements ruining government’s image, said Kathy Chan

By Season Ho

The Hong Kong government has been heavily criticized for being not transparent enough, constantly hiding things from the public in recent years. Kathy Chan, Chief Consultant of the Public Communication Strategic Consultancy Limited, expressed her concern towards the handling of different scandals by top government officials, saying that they are always unaware of the consequence they might face after making rash statements publicly.

Kathy Chan, Chief Consultant of the Public Communication Strategic 

Consultancy Limited (Photo from hknews.hksyu.edu)

Chan cited the bad example of CY Leung’s wife, Regina Tong Ching Yi, when responding to the comments made by CUHK scholar Choy Chi Keung towards her relationship with her daughter, Leung Chai Yan. Tong made lengthy criticism on Choy’s comment, saying that he is “cold-blooded” and question his professionalism as a teacher. “You can clearly see whether Tong has cooled things down or fanned the fire by making these rash statements in front of the camera.”


“Do you think this is really a private family matter or it is about public interest?” Chan asked. She said that there is rarely anything can be considered as private affairs when it comes to a top government office like CY Leung, and officials should always be aware of their words and actions.

University Students Joined Hong Kong's 'Umbrella Revolution'

Our Voice
P.12, October Issue

Report by Season Ho
Photos by Season Ho and Henry Chau

University Students Joined Hong Kong's 'Umbrella Revolution'

University students kicked off their class boycott for democracy and universal suffrage on September 22, launching a week-long protest that became known as the 'umbrella revolution'. The protest were followed by chaos between police and protestors and the blocking of major roads around Hong Kong.

The movement made front-page headlines and was covered widely by international and local media, and was documented through social media platforms such as Facebook.

The class boycott on September 22 started with a kickoff ceremony at the Chinese University of Hong Kong'a main campus in Sha Tin. The organizer, Hong Kong Federation of Students estimated that 13,000 people secondary school pupils, exchange students, teachers and the general public.

“We have to tell the that Hong Kong people are willing to sacrifice much more,” Alex Chow Yong Kang, the secretary general of the Hong Kong Federation of Students, said. “These 13,000 students are the future pillar of the society, and they are willing to take risk even they know that the PRC government might not respond to them. Can CY Leung hear our voice?”

As a symbol of the campaign, students dressed in white and wore yellow ribbon. Shue Yan Action, the class boycott committee in HKSYU, estimated that at least 150 students joined the kickoff .

A participant from Shue Yan, Chan Yee Man said that she sent mails to professors, expressing her decision to attend the class boycott.

“I knew the risk and I knI might not have enough attendance to let me sit for the final examination, which means I have to retake some of the subjects next year,” the journalism student said. “But I think the democracy of Hong Kong is more importantithout the freedom to have universal suffrage, there’s no point for us no matter how educated we are.”

Earlier on September, members of Shue Yan Action h banners outside the Lady Lily Shaw Hall. The Office of Student Affairs, however, sent staff to take them off within minutes justification was that Shue Yan Action didn’t submitted the application of banner display.

“We treat all student groups equally, if they have any needs, the OSA will try to help in whatever way that is within our limit,” OSA replied to Our Voice’s inquiry on the incident.

The OSA did provide the 35th Anniversary Plaza for Shue Yan Action to organize assembly and display posters and leaflets after negotiation.

The spokesperson of Shue Yan Action ,Chan Kwok Hin, said the class boycott was even supported by alumni, “n alumni who owns a printing shop gave us free printing assistance for the class boycott.”

Chan said that throughout the week, volunteers have been going to different lectures to promote their idea of class boycott, and most professors welcome their short presentation. e is optimistic about the emergence of political discussions in SYU.

“We are surprised by the supportiveness and open mindedness displayed by the University, knowing that they were quite conservative politically in the pastthe emergence of political discussions is definitely a breakthrough in Shue Yan,” he added.

Within the six-day class boycott at the Central Government Offices, students and the public occupied the streets of Hong Kong at Admiralty, Causeway Bay and Mongkok. There were incidents where police used pepper spray and tear gas. Huge crowds continue to surge onto the streets and at press time the protests continue.

Communications in a communication agency

Edelman Intern Blogpost

By Season Ho

(Original blogpost posted here at Edelman's Intern Blog)

Hello everyone, I am Season and it is my 3rd week here in the Edelman’s corporate team. I am a penultimate student in journalism and mass communication, hoping to invest my career in the PR industry. Although I have had some prior experience in PR agency, the Edelman experience really fascinates me. From the working environment, work culture to the people, everything is just innovative and youthful. Needless to say, it is a perfect environment for a university student to start their PR career in.

In a PR firm, what matters most is communication. Not only the communication with our clients, but also communication within ourselves – and that’s what I like Edelman most. The beautiful pantry, the meeting rooms and the open office all motivate the Edelman employees, especially interns, to speak up and give new ideas. You don’t have to be exceptionally bold or outspoken, the atmosphere of Edelman will push you to be an active team player, and the following are the great opportunities for you to express yourselves.


1) Brainstorming session

At a leading PR agency like Edelman, giving creative ideas and innovative PR plans that suit our clients are what make us so successful. To produce high quality work for every client, we have brainstorming session in every team. Knowing that all clients have their own needs and own goals to reach, we clearly separate brainstorming sessions for different clients, enabling us to focus on a specific client’s needs. During the brainstorming session, our manager makes sure that everyone in the team knows clearly about our client’s background. As an intern, you don’t need to worry about knowing little, the manager will introduce you the partnership of Edelman with that client, and what work we have done, so that we can give ideas promptly according to the background. Edelman always encourages bold and exaggerated ideas, and every person and every idea has equal worth. Moreover, other team players will give me some comments on my suggestions, for example, whether it suits our clients and whether it is feasible, etc. Therefore, every brainstorming session is for the team serving a specific client to communicate and know each other better, and it is very rewarding to the clients and also to our team.


2) Training session

Working in Edelman is not only about giving your best, but also receiving the best. As interns, we were given access to Edelman’s proprietary training tools, engaged in client’s project and attended clients’ meetings. To equip every employee has the most updated skills and understanding in the industry. For example, I had the APAC Compliance training where our Global Compliance Officer, Randy Corley, came to our office for a direct presentation and discussion on various highly important compliance topics. That’s where I learn about Edelman’s compliance and ethics organization, and the global standard. Nevertheless, we had a client presentation, where I learn how the PR business is evolving. It’s no longer just about media engagement, but also executing suitable opportunities for our clients. The whole training is very practical and I feel like learning and absorb new ideas like a sponge.

3) Weekly catch-up with manager

As I am a part time intern, I don’t work every day and that’s why communication with my manager on my schedule and work progress is very important. Every week, on my first day of work, I have a 15-minutes catch-up with my manager, Chaanah. I share with her my work on hand, time management and raise questions if there is any. This weekly catch-up session is a casual meeting for me and my manager to sit together, sharing our whereabouts and knowing more about each other. I am especially grateful that Chaanah asks me in every catch-up if I have any things I want to try, so that I can be exposed to different opportunities and a great variety of events I like. As a newbie in the industry, there is still a lot for me to try and learn, and the catch-up session allows me to share and adjust my expectation, also clear my doubts and questions at work.


4) Vision and Mission

It is a presentation by our managing director Andrew regarding Edelman Hong Kong‘s new vision on our new fiscal year. That’s where I first know about the ‘Team Dragon Boat’ – a system focusing on team work, skillset, training, roles and quality execution. This has helped all of us to learn and understand the vision and mission of Edelman Hong Kong. Andrew also presented the performance of our office in our last fiscal year and performance from each practice. I truly felt the hard work, commitment and passion of my colleagues, how they helped our client to grow their business as well as expanded our work from small project to retainer. I also learned that the creative work and great campaigns we have produced and received industry awards.

Like what Andrew described, I have learnt ‘what worked, what we have learnt and what we can do better’. It is really an enjoyable and fruitful meeting for me, as an intern, to know about the past achievements of our office. It makes me really feel like a part of this family, a crew of the “Team Dragon Boat”.

After that, we also had drinks at a bar nearby, when the whole office put work aside and chill out with great drinks. That is what I called ‘work hard, play hard’.


We are a big family that work hard, play hard and laugh hard together.

In these 3 weeks, I have already learnt a lot from these meetings, trainings and presentations in whatever formats, and I am really impressed at how much Edelman is willing to invest in the interns. Instead of just working every day, I gained a lot from these communication opportunities. I am looking forward to learning more during internship at Edelman. Way to go, Season!

Former Gov’t Under Secretary urges student leaders to ‘exit’ from chaos

By Season Ho

By Season Ho

As the Occupy Central movement stepped into Day 16, the police have became increasingly aggressive in clearing the road blocks in the occupied area. Julia Leung Fung-yee, the former Under Secretary for Financial Services & the Treasury, said in a seminar today that it is the high time for the leaders of the movement to retreat in order to win the hearts of the general public.

Julia Leung Fung-yee, Former Under Secretary for Financial Services
& the Treasury (Photo from hknews.hksyu.edu)

Leung believes that objectives of the current movement are not clear for both the leaders and the protestors. ’The 3-ji might have clear plans and strategies for retreat originally, but the decision to break into the Civic Square twisted the whole campaign and made a force kickoff of the Occupy Central movement.’


As the impact of the class boycotts is spread around University and secondary school campuses, and political discussion starts widely among the youth, Leung thinks that it is already a ‘great achievement’ for the current scale and influence of the movement.


‘Knowing when to exit makes a successful student leader,’ said Leung, and she believes it is high time for the student leaders to retreat, as the number of protests went down and the public starts to feel annoyed by the traffic disturbance.


‘I am a realistic person,’ and the ‘reality’ she expressed is that Hong Kong is still part of China. ‘We can only extend the boundaries and make the cage larger, it is impossible for us to escape from it.’

ATV struggles amidst limited resources

By Season Ho


As the consultation for the free-to-air television license has ended, whether ATV can get the chance to lengthen its license is in doubts. Chiu Yue Keung, the Assistant Vice President of ATV, said in the assembly of Shue Yan University today that ATV is constantly facing difficulties in production due to limited money and resources.

Chiu Yue Keung, Assistant Vice President of ATV

(Photo from hknews.hksyu.edu)

The recent winning of the exclusive broadcasting right for the Hong Kong Premier League is seen to be a remedy for the 57-year-old TV company, which has been widely criticized for replaying old TV dramas and reality shows. “The most difficult thing is that we have limited money but people expect us to produce great stuffs,“ Chiu said.


When being asked about the dominating performance of TVB, another free-to-air TV station in Hong Kong, Chiu admitted that TVB has far more resources than ATV. “Putting brand-name goods all over your body doesn't always make you look good,” Chiu criticized.


Chiu also mentioned that an ATV news reporter got severely injured during the tear gas attack in Occupy Central, but all employees work hard to sustain program qualities. “We(ATV) have a lot to watch, just that people did not appreciate it,” said Chiu, “but we will continue to work hard despite having limited resources.”

Hart remains confident in Hong Kong’s political safety

By Season Ho

‘I am absolutely an enthusiast (in Hong Kong's social affairs),’ said Clifford A.Hart in a talk at Hong Kong Shue Yan University this afternoon. The Consul General of the United States, Hong Kong and Macau, however, emphasized that as an 'outsider', he does not support any particular political parties or organizations.

Clifford A Hart, Jr.,Consul General of the United States, 
Hong Kong and Macau (Photo from hknews.hksyu.edu)

Being questioned about the recent protests and class boycott, the Ambassador said he has no worries about the safety of local Hongkongers nor the native Americans in Hong Kong, and he believed that protests in Hong Kong are generally peaceful.

Hart also expressed confidence to the Hong Kong Police Force for being 'professional' and "well-trained', which has the ability to deal with the current political activities in Hong Kong.

Hart believed that freedom of speech and press are the important 'fundamentals' of Hong Kong, and he expressed his respect to the HKSAR government in confronting different challenges to achieve universal suffrage.

諾獎得主訪港中學 分享成功之路

by Season Ho

記者/ 何樂思

「每個人在生命中都曾得到過一些獎項，而我卻特別幸運，得到一項令人特別有興趣的榮譽。」諾貝爾經濟學獎得主莫理斯教授(Sir James Mirrlees)，昨午到閩僑中學為其畢業典禮作演講嘉賓。他分享了自已學習里程上，遇過的不少良師益友以及學生，又強調以不成功不死心的精神去拆解難題，以及從能者身上獲得的靈感，均是他成功的關鍵。

莫理斯頒發獎學金及畢業證書給閩僑同學

衝出小鎮 走進劍橋

諾獎得主莫理斯教授,以「諾貝爾獎之路」為題，於閩僑中學演講。對於論文發表後二十五年才獲獎，莫指實是喜出望外，又強調獲獎並非自己功勞。莫理斯表示，他從小喜歡閱讀；在蘇格蘭一個只有約二千人的小鎮長大，雖然山明水秀，但培養知識方面卻不太適合；因為最近的書店已在五十英里以外，買書就像「不可能的任務」。但他感謝父母為他的找尋讀物的努力。

縱因盲腸炎錯過劍橋大學的入學試，他亦進入了愛丁堡大學，用三年時間完成本為期四年的數學碩士，其後更在劍橋大學以兩年完成學士課程。他表示，「我的祖父在七歲的時侯離開學校，父親則在十七歲；兄長則是十五歲；最後我們之間終於有一人成功進入大學。」


劍橋氣氛 讓人勇於創造歷史

他指在劍橋時，身邊的人均是出類拔萃，得到過不同獎項。雖然大家都得過諾獎、菲爾茲獎等世界殊榮，但他卻強調沒有人一開始便追求獎項；獎項只是結果，而大家也是追求學問，醉心研究及互相學習的一群，令他獲益良多。他認為劍橋的學習氣氛，就好像每個人都能有大發現，每個人都有能力創歷史；這亦令他有決心去進行研究。

他在講座中提到，在印度生活的一年令他改變了很多；啟發了他去用經濟學改變貧窮問題；於研究稅務體制時亦想過，如何用有錢人的才富轉移去協助貧困人士。有內地來港的楊同學於畢業典禮後表示，莫理斯的分享令他對學習充滿動力，又指莫從小鎮長大，受教育後又有志去幫助貧窮人士，令他感到十分鼓舞。

現場近六百位師生參與畢業典禮

金句摘錄

"My grandfather has left school at 7, my father at 17; my brother, 15. At last one of us went to university."

「我的祖父在七歲的時侯離開學校，父親則在十七歲；兄長則是十五歲；最後我們之間終於有一人成功進入大學。」

"Nobody said about getting a Nobel prize, it just happened, we all want very much to make discoveries, thinking new thoughts. Cambridge tells you it is very normal to do so."

「沒有人一直想著要得到諾貝爾獎，這只是一個結果；我們只是一心想有新發現、想著一些新想法。而劍橋告訴你，這是正常不過的事。」

資料檔案

邀諾獎得主演講 閩僑中學望增加名氣

位於北角的閩僑中學，在五月九日邀請到諾貝爾經濟學獎得主兼莫理斯（Sir James Mirrlees）教授到校演講，主題為「諾貝爾獎之路」。校長黎柱權表示，一所中學邀請諾獎得主並不容易，希望同學從中學習到學者風範，並為校增加名氣，培養學生歸屬感。

黎表示，希望學生能從他得獎路上的經歷，學習到追求知識的精神。他指，在去年九月開始，經過多方努力游說，莫理斯在十二月才正式接受邀請。被問到設經濟學方面的講題；黎表示，希望每個同學以至社會大眾都能明白其演講，並從中受惠，固不想主題過於學術性。

為迎接諾獎得主到來，校方設計了一系例活動，包括「追蹤諾貝爾」、數理週等；並在英文堂教授相關詞語，以及由老師設計展板供同學參考。黎指，雖然老師的工作量因而増加，但慶幸老師均支持是次活動。

閩僑曾被人標籤為「寶馬山三寶」之一，被指壞學生聚集，校風並不良好。黎指，近年校方以「多元培育」為宗旨，推行不同活動，校風較以前純樸，學生成績亦有顯注進步。他希望講座能令學校增加名氣，並改變在大眾心中的形象，在收生方面更有競爭力，增加學生歸屬感。他指，希望學生因而為學校驕傲。

【視像新聞】林鄭月娥重申政改須依基本法 (05/04/2014)

by Season Ho

記者/何樂思 彭焯煒
編輯/呂懿家

視像新聞報道：https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TvffqpUTj70

【本網訊】政務司司長林鄭月娥率領多名局長及官員落區，出席基本法推廣活動。她重申，任何普選的建議必須以《基本法》為基礎。

(影片截圖)

(影片截圖)

《基本法》頒布24周年，政務司司長林鄭月娥、律政司司長袁國強及政制及內地事務局局長譚志源等多位問責官員，到東區出席基本法推廣活動。林鄭月娥在開幕禮表示，為期5個月的政改諮詢踏入最後一個月，呼籲市民把握機會表達意見。他們隨後在小西灣出發，先後到筲箕灣及天后派發政改諮詢宣傳單張。

林鄭月娥在活動結束時，被問到為何有21位政治任命官員出席活動，而特首梁振英則未有出席。她強調，特首在政改諮詢有不可或缺的重要角色，亦關心整個專責小組的工作。她指，各個司局長和官員只是應東區區議會的邀請，主動參與活動。

落區宣傳期間，社民連及學民思潮等團體到場示威，表達爭取公民提名的訴求。學民思潮發言人黎汶洛在活動現場派發公民提名宣傳單張，被警員阻止，更一度發生碰撞。

原文及報道：http://jmc.hksyu.edu/shuo/?p=27563