With Covid largely under control, the Hong Kong government is to further relax restrictions on social gatherings – this time by allowing bigger tour groups and wedding ceremonies. If this trend continues, the list of unrestricted activities will become huge and unmanageable. Maybe it would be easier just to say which activities are still banned public health risks. The list would be: a) pro-democracy protests; b) beaches; and that’s it. Much simpler.
Obviously a CCP puppet administration fears dissent. But what’s with the sandy-shorelines hang-up? HKFP asks why the Hong Kong government is still keeping beaches closed when malls, restaurants and other indoor facilities are allowed to operate. They fail to find an answer, unless you count the relevant organs’ mumblings about swimmers being unlikely to wear masks in toilets and changing rooms.
A few days ago I tentatively suggested that Xi Jinping would get a name-check in Hong Kong’s delayed-for-rectification policy address, and the great man’s ‘Thought’ might even be mentioned. Seems the tentativeness was unnecessary…
The esoteric concept is expected to be written into the five-year development blueprint that will be unveiled after party meetings later this month. Everyone from diplomats to executives to sci-fi writers are under pressure to incorporate the broad, often fuzzy tenets of Xi Thought into their policies.
For the first time in many years, I am actually looking forward to a policy address. It will be interesting to see not only how much extra Mainland-style rhetoric and ideology it includes, but whether Beijing’s officials throw out the traditional lame livelihood initiatives – or even change the longstanding and tedious structure of the speech (which reflects the fact that it was written by a committee going through each policy bureau’s area in turn).
Apple Daily reports that the Mega-Bridge to Nowhere’s revenues equal just 4.3% of running costs. We don’t get a breakdown (basically a state secret), but the paper says revenues just about cover staff costs (presumably relatively low-paid Mainlanders). The really big recurring item must be maintenance. And what are the electricity bills like? (I guess immigration and other officials are paid for directly by the relevant taxpayers.) Forget about debt servicing. Clearly, it would be wrong to say the Zhuhai Bridge was an incredible squandering of wealth – it will go on being one for decades.
If the Mega-Bridge to Nowhere’s revenue is 4.3% of costs, just wait for the totally unnecessary 3rd runway (HK$150bn) with zero utilisation. Now that we no longer have KA and CX/UO has announced a maximum 50% of fleet operation in 2021, the HKIA is primarily now for foreign (mainland) airlines, albeit at a tiny fraction of pre-Covid levels. A whiter shade of pale Elephant.
Xi-ism elides into Schism
Re: “The list would be: a) pro-democracy protests; b) beaches;”
c) electing a new LegCo (stopping the government from breaking the Basic Law).
Yes, c) does sort of count as a), but it does go a long way to explaining b).
My theory is they’re keeping the beaches shut for two reasons:
1) because no one with any money or hold over the government cares very much if the beaches are shut indefinitely;
2) they have something that can be shut indefinitely with little blowback so that they can say it still isn’t safe enough to elect a new LegCo, despite doing equally dangerous stuff like citywide testing or reopening schools, and they can still arrest people for public health violations rather than protesting.
@ Who will fight them on the beaches? –
Consider a third option for keeping beaches closed:
3) too hard.
Remember this is still Hong Kong… Politically motivated or not.
Huge barriers on the promenade at Shek O are to prevent a second wave.
Why is the government even pretending to have an annual Policy Address. This is a colonial relic which should be done away with and is associated with governments who serve the people, giving the people an idea of the governments’ priorities and spending therefor. In China there is no such disclosure, why do they seek to continue do it here? If memory serves me, last year at this time we learned that the government increased the police budget for manpower by some 25% as well as some additional number in the tens of millions for new equipment. Why does the government think people need to know about these kinds of expenditures? Okay, let them know about the beefing up of the police force but why disclosing other items?
I regularly go lap swimming in the excellent Hong Kong public pools, which are presently open, are fairly crowded with old geezers doing the Mao breaststroke, and the changing rooms are equally crowded. It seems to me beaches present less risk than the pools. The HFP article helpfully distinguishes between the 2, indicating that they will (as I have seen) impose limits on maximum number of visitors to the pool.
Jet Plane.
I think it elides more closely into Jism.
Just ask Allen Semen.
Phew, just when we thought that our ‘core values’ had been abandoned the Jockey Club saves the day with the announcement that it wants to charter a private jet to fly in some jocks from Europe to ……… launch a Covid cure? Silly me, to boost revenue for its International Races in December.
These VIPs, unlike returning HKers, would not have to spend 14 days at the No Star Rambler Hotel in Tsing Yi. Instead they would enjoy a fast tracked 7-day sojourn at a country club.
https://www.scmp.com/sport/racing/article/3106269/jockey-club-offers-private-jet-plan-slash-quarantine-top-european
If this proposal is approved it is indeed time to storm and liberate our beaches.
I was on Cheung Chau the other weekend and popped over to Kwun Yam Beach for a couple of craft beers at the beach bar. The LCSD-controlled beach area was, of course, cordoned-off and empty. But the small sliver of non-LCSD sand on each side was packed with people. Had the whole beach been open, this same number of people could have been spaced 10m apart. Instead, thanks to our visionary government, they are crammed 10cm apart. Tell me again how this is supposed to control the spread of the virus?