A jog in Lai Chi Kok Park

Yesterday afternoon, I went to Lai Chi Kok Park for a jog. Although it was hot, there are still a lot of people enjoying jogging, walking, acrobat cycling, and so on. Tens of people were jogging on the path for some kilometers and sweat dropped from foreheads, necks and arms continuously. During my jog, I saw a group of BMX cyclist racing their bicycles up and down the ramp, or even jump up and land on track. This attracted about 100 audiences, mostly youth and photographers. They enjoyed the racing and showed enthusiasm on the sports.

After my jogging, I took a leisure walk on the paths with continuous trees alongside. Because the park is just next to Mei Foo, a private housing estate with 50000 residents, a lot of residents took a leisure walk in order to inhale fresh air and do some exercises, despite of fear of H1N1 swine flu. A smaller Lingnan style garden is built in the centre of the park. The garden has traditional Chinese arches with calligraphy, pavilions, high trees and a pond with stones. That creates harmonious environment to the rest of park and the estate. Some foreign domestic helpers (usually Filipinos or Indonesians) enjoyed their Sunday off, gathered under pavilion, shades of trees and chattered happily. About ten young people wearing traditional Chinese costume and clothing of cartoon figures posed on platform corridor of the pond and produced some interesting movements. They also interested the lush scenery and played happily.

About 45 minutes later, I walked on the way home. The people enjoyed themselves peacefully. But I think that there was still a defect: playing music not allowed, even in daytime. The law leads to damage of vibrant atmosphere and a suppression of freedom of expression. I think playing some musical instrument like erhu, dizi without amplifier and at sound level below 70 dB will not lead to great disturbance to residents and other visitors.

 

The original text was distributed on 9:32pm, 18 May, 2009.

 

因應經濟融合 香港實施道路右行制刻不容緩

近年來國內經濟高度增長,沿海地區包括廣東省工商活動,人流,貨流量大幅提升,粵港運輸容量亦處於頗高水平.隨著深圳灣通道落成,港珠澳大橋即將興建,兩地間運輸需求也隨之增加.可是,香港和澳門居民使用右舵車輛及靠左行駛,而內地居民使用左舵車輛及靠右行駛,雖然現時廣東省道路未有因容許部份港澳車輛駛進,產生大量交通事故,但只是因為港澳車輛比例偏低和主要由專門往來兩地的大型車輛司機駕駛所引致.
隨著珠江三角洲經濟逐漸融合,香港和廣東省政府有意放寬往返兩地的車輛管理限制,更多香港車輛將會進入廣東省道路網絡.不少香港司機會對廣東省道路和右行車輛陌生,很大可能成為道路隱患.由此看來,統一道路通行方向是解決上述問題的其中一項重要方案.不過,香港特區政府一直未有充分考慮上述問題,更未有一套相關時間表.
其實,因應經濟融合而改動道路通行方向已有先例.瑞典當局於1953年提出將道路左行制轉為右行制,後來能排除萬難,於1967年正式執行.冰島當局也在1969年將其道路轉為右行.
在此,本人提出下列建議,將香港道路轉換至右行制及其一系列過渡方案:

在策劃興建或改造道路時,須詳細考慮轉換至右行制對車輛動力的影響;

於2014至2017年間,香港道路應當轉為右行;

要求即時修訂交通條例,允許左舵車輛註冊,並優先讓同時持有香港及內地行車證車輛(尤其是大客車和貨車)轉換,因上述車輛在內地行駛的里程相當可能較在香港行駛的里程多;

考慮同時有左門和右門車輛在過渡期間行駛,為減少上落客貨的不便和危險,以及對道路交通妨礙,建議在轉換道路通行方向前兩年至轉換後三年將大部份市區和市鎮道路改為單向行車,即一段道路只許同一方向車輛,反方向車輛在鄰邊平行道路行走.
相關網頁: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,941144,00.html (時代雜誌 Times, 英文, 1967年9月15日)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dagen_H (英文維基百科),於2008年4月22日瀏覽.
http://www.gopetition.com/online/26713.html

原文發佈於2009年4月22日,8:55pm

5 years after opening of West Rail Line

On 20^th December, 2003, West Rail Line opened and tens of thousands of people flocked to the trains in order to experience the speed of trains. West Rail is a suburban railway line that runs between Tuen Mun to reclamation area in Sham Shui Po, inner city of urban part of Hong Kong. The average speed is 60 km per hour and it just takes about half an hour to finish the whole journey.

Since 1986, many residents in Tuen Mun, a new town in west suburb in Hong Kong and pressure groups had begun to call the authorities to build a regional railway line to Tuen Mun. Due to the great increase of population in Tuen Mun and Yuen Long, about 7 km northeast from Tuen Mun, and inadequate jobs available within those two districts, many residents had to commute to urban areas and the traffic flow became larger. In addition, the soar of property prices from 1984 to 1997 forced many lower middle income families moving to the two towns. Thus the government of Hong Kong built some new highways and approved to build West Rail in December, 1996, operated by KCRC(merged with MTRC in 2007), in order to fulfil the huge commutation demand.

At that time, I lived in Tsuen Wan south, an urban area where West Rail passed through. I hoped that the railway can bring a way of access to rapid transportation, as the thought of many residents there. After the start of construction from 1998, there was a great change at the nearby. For example, some area of parks was demolished and fenced to give the way of construction. Many places were dug. Sand and dust rose over the sky and ground.

When the railway was at the final stage of opening preparation, KCRC announced the fare was at high level. We were very disappointed because our expectation on diverting traffic flow was almost ended.

On the first month of its opening, the daily patronage was about 100000 people and there was a gradual increase of passage flow due to the contribution of daily and monthly passes at a reduced price, and further fare decrease after merged with MTRC.

Meanwhile, there had been a great increase in population in Tuen Mun and Yuen Long in the past decades and social problems in those communities have become worse. For example, many families there involve marriages between Hong Kong and mainland China, and a lot of people, usually men have to work in Guangdong province, thus they cannot live together very often and a lot of domestic conflicts occur. Although those towns have been developed for more than thirty years, the jobs within those towns are scarce and the wages are at bare subsistence level. Many people still have to get their jobs in urban areas and their expenditure on transport are at high level, although they consumed shorter time on transportation due to rapid West Rail service.

There are two extensions of the West Rail Line , which one extend from Sham Shui Po to Tsim Sha Tsui, downtown of Hong Kong, and the other one extend from Kam Sheung Road, 4 km east from Yuen Long town, to Lok Ma Chau, border of Hong Kong and Shenzhen. I hope the two extensions will bring a larger amount of passengers and fully utilize our railway resources. We also hope the authorities can put forward building more industrial and commercial facilities in northwest suburb to help residents in those areas.

Reference: http://www.legco.gov.hk/yr05-06/english/panels/tp/tp_rdp/papers/tp_rdpcb1-etwb_t_cr_1_16_581_99-e.pdf

 

The original text was distributed on 6:19pm, 20 December, 2008.

25 years of linked rate in Hong Kong – review and outlook

In 1983, due to the negotiation of Hong Kong’s future between China and UK, many people lost the confidence to Hong Kong’s economy and the exchange rate of Hong Kong dollar reduced rapidly. In October 1983, the Hong Kong Government took measure to stabilize the exchange rate, including imposing linked rate to US dollar. This helped the steady growth of Hong Kong’s economy for more than a decade. In the Asian financial crisis in 1997, the mechanism reduced the bad impact to the trade and the reduction of purchasing power of the public.

But the external factors have been changed a lot in the past 25 years. For example, global economic decline derived from over-expansion of loans, especially in sub-prime, probable further decrease of the exchange rate of US dollar due to huge amount of debts of the government of USA, and these make Hong Kong dollar being vulnerable to depreciation of US dollar. Therefore, some financial experts and politicians suggested that Hong Kong dollar exchange rate should include factors of basket of currencies, or peg with yuan. However, the global foreign exchange rates are still based on US dollar and basket of currencies are still unreliable to purchasing power of Hong Kong dollar.

One solution is to make the band of exchange rate of Hong Kong dollar to US dollar wider. When the rate of Hong Kong dollar is high for a few of months, the authorities should increase the base rate. The benefits of this mechanism are reflecting the actual value of Hong Kong dollar, allowing steady increase in exchange rate and reduce the negative impact of changing of rate.

The government of Hong Kong should change the composition of monetary fund. At least one quarter of the fund should be used for purchasing precious metals because most of the existing circulating currencies in the world are based on bonds and thus they are unstable. The history has proved that gold and silver are the most reliable currencies. In fact, half of the total circulating Swiss francs are backed by gold reserves and the exchange rate of Swiss franc has been increased in the past 40 years. Moreover, the inflation of Swiss franc is quite low for a long time. Thus it should be the best method to stabilize the financial system of Hong Kong!

 

The original text was distributed on 10:15pm, 17 October, 2008.

Feelings of 2008 Olympic Games by a Hong Konger

The Beijing Olympic Games started on 8/8/2008 and its opening ceremony was a quite fascinating extravaganza because harmony, the basic spirit of Chinese traditional culture and the achievements of Chinese civilization were performed systematically. But we are very sorry that there some sections were ‘created’ by illusion, including a song was sung by another singer and the ‘footstep fireworks’ display was produced by light projection.
The 2008 Olympics equestrian events have been held in Hong Kong, but most of the Hong Kong people concern about whether Hong Kong Olympic participants can obtain medals or not. Many people think that it is not likely for Hong Kong participants to win any prizes in this Game because Hong Kong athletes do not take a lot of sports training and the professionalism among them are uncommon. In fact, not many Hong Kong citizens aware the development of local sports and the future prospect of Hong Kong sportspeople. The public sectors only offer a few support to the athletes. For example, the training facilities are inadequate and the income of most athletes is barely enough for their subsistence. Worst still, there are not too much welfare, further studies or job opportunities for retired athletes. In addition, the existing education system is not conducive for sports development since it emphasize the actual studies and performance of examinations usually takes the highest place for further studies. Also, the period on sports education in the curricula is very short and the living spaces are crowded, compared to cities in Europe and North America. That inhibits the children to attend sport activities.
As a Hong Konger, it is rather a shame to send a few of athletes to the Olympics for such ‘Asia’s World City’ and a highly prosperous and ‘advanced’ region!

The original text was distributed on 3:49pm, 14 August, 2008

Comment on Finland Unveiled

The book Finland Unveiled, written by Brian Wu Siang-hui, describes a wide range of scenes, including cultures, education, social traditions, which had been seen by the author. It contains a lot of social issues like education methods, language policies, living conditions, internal politics, and even national defence. He had made a lot of comments and compared with the difference of similar issues that occurred in Finland and Taiwan in most of the chapters of the book. The first example is the textbooks applied in Finland are quite easy for the students to grasp because the contents of them are based on the things in actual situations, instead of the texts based on theories that cannot be easily understood by students. The author found that the arrangements of the textbooks are the major reasons for efficient learning among Finnish students. He suggested that the textbooks in Taiwan can be designed in the same way since a lot of contents can be derived from everyday life. He stated that the city planners of Helsinki, the capital city of Finland, consider the needs of different groups of people. There are three sets of pedestrian traffic lights on each post in order to let toddlers and wheelchair users to see the lights clearly. The main streets in the city are usually reserve one third of the space for pedestrians and bicycle users.
He also applied the issues in defence and successful diplomacy to explain the importance of frank and openness in governance for gaining trust among citizens and good reputation from the people all over the world.
        The author stated a lot of instance of the support to Finland and their cultural distinction among Finns, including the preservation of their ethnical heritage like folklores, music and maintaining their own values, in order to emphasize ‘Finnish identification’ and to make sarcasm on Taiwan social values.
The original text was published on 8:48pm, 27 July, 2008.

機場啟用十年-回首與前瞻

時光飛逝,香港赤鱲角國際機場啟用已十年了.回想啟用當天,早上就有不少飛機在荃灣,沙田上空隆隆地經過,我當時站在學校操場上,乍聽之下,一種無形的恐懼便隨之產生.就在那天中午時分,我看過新聞報道,才知道機場航班顯示屏,行李輸送帶等設備無法正常運作,貨運站系統故障,引起一片混亂.電視畫面上旅客不知所措,貨物堆積如山的場景,至今仍歷歷在目.我們亦為這對外門廊的混亂情況,有關當局處理不周而蒙羞.十年過去,香港機場平均每天有條不紊地處理十三萬旅客人次和一萬噸貨物,以及一千四百班航機升降,繁忙程度世界罕見.再者,香港機場連續八年獲評為世界十大最佳服務機場,香港人皆引以為榮.

最近,香港機場管理局銳意擴建客貨運設施,迎接鄰近多座大型機場的競爭.其中擴充貨站並引進不同營辦者可以提升運作水準,效率,更可降低收費,使其現有國際航次頻繁的優勢能被充分利用.隨著A380等超大型飛機的廣泛應用,在不增加航次的情況下可以讓載運量增加一倍,因此機場管理局的當務之急是擴充客運站規模,迅速處理龐大人員流量,而非減少飛行器間矩或興建第三跑道.

因為這樣會令飛行器距離過於接近,碰撞機率大增,危害乘客生命.

 

原文發佈於2008年7月7日,10:12pm

西隧通車十一年有感而發-公共資源的有效運用

今天是西隧通車十一年,每天車流量仍然只有四萬,雖說較最初數字增加一倍,但是只拜機場搬遷,屯門,元朗人口急增所賜.因此,本人提出重新徵收海底隧道通過稅,增加海底隧道收費,將所得撥歸特定基金,補貼西隧,使之能降低收費,既可平衡兩隧車流,善用道路資源,還可以促使通過海隧的小汽車使用者改乘公共交通工具,減輕路面堵塞.詳情列下:
海底隧道新收費建議:
私家車或非專利單層客車35元,輕型貨車或私家小巴30元,的士20元
中型貨車或非專利雙層客車40元,重型貨車50元,貨車額外車軸20元
即每程徵稅10至25元不等(額外車軸10元),
惟專利巴士,公共小巴或政府車輛則可獲免稅,
而0000~0559時通過的任何徵稅車輛,則減收5元.
西區海底隧道新收費建議:
私家車35元,的士30元,小巴或輕型貨車40元,
中型貨車或單層客車60元,重型貨車或雙層客車80元
與現行收費之差額由基金補助.

原文發佈於2008年4月30日,10:42am

一百萬人的故事看後有感

各位,相信你們看過”一百萬人的故事”後,對香港貧民的生活有更加深入的了解,也許會流下同情之淚.你們亦應該對過去一年市內多處因家庭經濟問題而引起的慘劇記憶猶新.從傳媒報道所知的恐怕只是冰山一角,真實情況可能益發普遍,在每天,每一區域幕幕上演.你們若非麻木不仁,定必產生惻隱之心,還要伸出援手,一如古代”見孺子將入於井”寓言故事般,這才是仁者的表現.
今日,無家可歸,大企業推卸責任,製造業職位求過於供等勞動問題持續多時;現行社會福利制度盲點百出;高級文憑,學士學位匱乏,對青少年支援不足,而且社會大眾,決策階層對基層勞工,病殘,青少年的聲音充耳不聞,已經令我們的不滿和怨恨沸騰.

原文發佈於2008年4月28日,10:37pm


住宅供應失衡 高地價乃禍首

近年來,香港市內房價猛漲,部份樓房價格較五年前昂貴一倍,重現 1989至1997年間的熾烈炒風,破壞樓市正常秩序.再者,現行勾地政策中底價不低於市值八成的條款嚴重推高地價,導致房價居高不下,普遍民眾難以負擔住房開銷,租金或按揭供款常常超出稅後收入一半,在現時滯漲下情況更加嚴峻,大眾對此感到吃不消,生活質量隨之下降.此外,近年多個新建樓宇出現囤積居奇和空置問題,一般兩千多套單位的住宅小區從首批開售至全部售出需時三年,數以萬計單位因而空置.與此同時,上百萬居民卻要忍受狹小居住環境,公屋輪候冊上住戶不計其數,引起大量土地資源浪費.產生這種荒謬現象的主要原因是居屋單位短缺,以及當局沒有充分考慮民眾實質收入,盲目推高地價,更胡亂搬出’土地乃稀有資源,不能賤賣’的厥詞,惟現實情況卻與該說法自相矛盾.

炒風猖狂,有價無市,民眾置業難,居屋乏供應,

公屋’排長龍’,就是香港住房實況,

更加是社會矛盾和怨氣的根源!

住房權利實屬人權之一,豈容高房價坑人!

 

原文發佈於2008年6月22日,9:26pm

對香港數碼電視廣播的期望

數碼廣播新頻道的期望(一)

今天,香港兩家無線電視台新增多套通過數碼制式廣播的頻道,而兩家電視台亦已公布有關頻道的詳情.無庸置疑的是,數碼電視廣播可以帶來更多新節目,讓觀眾有更多的選擇.但是,電視台方面未有詳細考慮社會人士的訴求,在一些方面的表現不能滿足民眾的期望.

首先,亞洲電視全天轉播中國中央電視台國際頻道(CCTV-4)明顯與現存的開放式(free-to-air)直播衛星服務和收費電視轉播服務重疊,更有人認定這會對香港事務構成一定的干預和負面影響.

因此,本人建議當局應該向兩家電視台發出指引,促請電視台播放更多不同類型的節目,善用頻道資源,以滿足不同觀眾群的需求,詳述如下:

全天候新聞頻道的非節目時間不能超過十分鐘,確保觀眾能夠更快接收即時和充足資訊內容,並作更深入報道.

鑒於現行牌照條款只規定各免費電視頻道每週僅須播送新聞紀錄片,文化藝術節目各半小時,導致上述兩類節目嚴重不足,故兩者淨播放時間須增至每週135分鐘.

現時市民對真實紀錄片的需求日趨上升,電視台不能再墨守成規,應就觀眾口味轉變提供不同類型的紀錄片,如自然科學,科技新知,歷史人文等,讓未有接駁收費電視的民眾也可欣賞有關節目,播送時數最少佔各頻道廣播時間的四分之一.

再者現時電視台的普通話和外語節目匱乏,不能滿足不同省籍或國籍人士的需要,不利省籍和種族和諧,更與國際大都會的稱號相違背!因此,當局須要求兩家無線電視台撥出三成的中文廣播時數以普通話主聲道播放,新增菲律賓語,印尼語,印地語,烏都語時段,每家電視台每週共最少十四小時,而原來的英語頻道主聲道則須全以英語播送.這樣才能推廣普通話和英語使用,及為外省及外國籍人士提供足夠資訊及娛樂的渠道.

 

原文發佈於2007年12月31日,8:10pm

 

數碼電視廣播一週年

 

香港數碼無線電視廣播自2007年12月31日啟用至今,已經過去一年了.與此同時,高清晰度電視科技亦首度引進,無線頻道總數也從四個增加到十三個.雖然這樣的安排看似為觀眾提供不少選擇,可是新增頻道提供的節目內容不多,尤其在小眾類型節目上.例如電視廣播有限公司的高清翡翠台,其大部份時段僅播放聯播節目的高清晰度版本,或重播原來節目.J2頻道也只是以青年人為對象的劇集,綜藝等節目為主,缺乏文化或創意內容,未必切合今日觀眾的品位.

再者,數碼電視觀眾群日趨上升,自然對內容素質有更高要求,節目的潛在收視隨之上升.因此電視台有必要利用新增頻道,盡快增加文化推廣節目,自然科學,歷史人文紀錄片的總量,滿足民眾需求,並可提升廣告收入,一舉兩得.

香港政府亦有責任監管各電視台引入節目進度,並敦促電視台提供相當數量的普通話,英語及外語節目,保障大眾收視權益,推動種族及省籍共融.此外,有關當局須利用餘下頻道(可容納八套標準清晰度頻道)積極推動公共電視頻道的成立,彌補現行電視內容不足,有助增加公眾對新聞,公共事務,教育及文化的認知以及提供平台,讓團體能製作節目,反映民眾意見及訴求.公共頻道可避免財團干預,更須減少政治介入,以戮力提供’中立平台’,反映各界聲音.

另一方面,香港及其鄰近地區大氣電波頻道非常有限,香港政府有必要向民眾提供協助,包括提供數字電視機選購指引,和向低收入或接受社會援助者發放津貼購買數字電視機,加強推展數碼電視,才可騰出頻道,提供更多電訊及廣播服務,讓香港成為擁有先進通信服務的地區.瑞典,芬蘭,德國,盧森堡現已全面實施數碼電視廣播,美國,挪威亦確定於2009年廢止模擬電視傳送,香港作為’亞洲國際都會’,豈能落後於各發達地區!

原文發佈於2008年12月31日,2:08pm

本地無線電視廣播服務意見

廣播事務管理局現正就兩家無線電視台牌照作中期檢討,並收集公眾對無線電視台廣播服務的意見.本人原欲參與相關的公聽會,惟三次公聽會因滿座未能出席,遂通過書面方式,向有關機構表達意見,內容詳列如下:

兩家無線電視台播放的時事,文化,科教紀錄片的數量略嫌不足.同時,電視廣播有限公司自制片集無論在品質,廣度和深度上亦常常受到觀眾質疑.

時事紀錄片往往未能深入地探討與社會,民生,經濟等議題,只流於描述表面現象,不利於引導公眾討論社會現象和尋求解決方法,更難以有效地推廣通識,與現今教育強調的獨立思考相違背.

據不完全統計,每家無線電視台平均每星期實際僅播放二十多小時人文,科教紀錄片,而天文,科學實驗(例如Mythbusters)和歷史類型節目奇缺,遠不能滿足現時大眾對此的需求.此外,亞視國際台引進部份轉載自DW-TV的節目,讓香港,珠江三角洲民眾認識尖端科技,歐洲社會民風百態,本人也是其觀眾.但電視台對上述節目的宣傳缺乏,觀眾若非閱覽節目表,根本無從得知播放時段及內容概要.DW-TV節目的重播時段更被編排至凌晨一,二時,引起大多數觀眾不便,糟蹋其存在價值.電視台尚未充分利用新增頻道,播放更多科教文化節目,卻播放劇集和綜藝節目,浪費頻道資源.

現今電視劇集被普遍觀眾批評素質低劣,老調重彈,且播放量驚人,早已為人詬病.統計顯示,電視廣播翡翠台每周一至周五,每天播六小時劇集,亞洲電視本港台在同樣時段,更播放達七小時,簡直令觀眾厭倦!

隨著民眾教育水平提高,已經不再滿足於劇集和綜藝節目上.電視廣播的節目編排模式和制作手法,仍然與開播首十餘年的方法無甚分別.例如綜藝節目的內容,格式或多或少殘留著歡樂今宵的影子,定必叫人納悶.

本年初,電視廣播翡翠台和亞洲電視本港台將周一至周五夜間新聞提前播放,對不少夜歸人士而言,損失接收最新資訊的機會.現時牌照條件要求模擬電視頻道在1800至2359時內播放兩節最少十五分鐘新聞報道,令新聞播放次數和時段較少,無法照顧大部份觀眾需求.

針對上述種種流弊,本人有數項建議:

電視台須加強編輯,採訪水準,廣攬各方觀點,深入探討事件真相;

改革節目制作流程,延攬具語言,文學創作素質人才擔任編劇,校對工作,提升劇集素質和引進新編制技巧;

加強對時事資訊,紀錄片,科教節目宣傳,播放包含內容大意之預告,讓觀眾有機會選擇,提高收視;

為符合觀眾的訴求,本人懇請當局制定節目播放時數指引:

撇除非節目時段後,每個綜合頻道在每晚2200時播放四十分鐘新聞和在約0030時播放十分鐘簡訊,並將午間新聞和傍晚新聞分別延長至二十分鐘和四十分鐘.

每家電視台須最少播放:

180分鐘文化節目;

315分鐘科學節目;

科學,人文,歷史和教育節目總計33小時;

360分鐘時事專輯,以扣除轉播時段為準;

為了讓不同省籍人士明白節目內容,在所有中文廣播時段,最少三成以普通話主聲道播放;全面數碼廣播實施後,英語頻道節目須全以英語播出;針對港澳和珠江三角洲五十萬馬來群島和印度次大陸祖籍人士需要,在新增數碼頻道提供上述人士為對象的節目,每星期最少共提供14小時菲律賓語,印尼語,印地語,烏都語節目.

因應人口老化,長者節目會有一定觀眾支持,在0700至1559時播出60分鐘長者健康,活動資訊節目.

由於近年兒童人口下降(四至十三周歲人口從1993年時的七十多萬減至2008年時約六十萬),以及小學全日制普遍推行,建議將原有頻道的兒童節目最少播放時段減至每個頻道每日45分鐘.

下列節目每個頻道建議播放上限:

劇集每日(0000至2359時)300分鐘;

電影每星期19小時(指定電影頻道除外);

動畫每日60分鐘.

 

原文發佈於2009年7月25日,2:29pm