LegCo election to go ahead, apparently. Millions rejoice. It would be interesting to know what officials thought when making the decision. Did they wonder whether public opinion would see sticking to the schedule soon after the Tai Po fire as disrespectful or callous? Were they concerned that postponement would make the polls look expendable? Did they worry that turnout might be lower if (say) voters stayed away as a form of protest? Or did they calculate that voters would be even more exhausted by prolonged promotional campaigns?
Or maybe they just went by the book. The CE can postpone an election for two weeks for public safety reasons (like a major typhoon). Anything longer would require the use of emergency powers.
Kevin Yam on the release of Miles Kwan…
Normally, HK law enforcement officers LOVE to have the media swarm around the vehicle taking arrested persons out of the station and have the media take as many photos and videos as they want.
…But if one looks closely at this video [here] of Miles Kwan leaving the police station, one will see that the HK police made all efforts to try and stop the media from filming. They only failed because they underestimated the size of the media contingent present at the scene.
Peggy Wong distances herself. (Why do these people all have that ‘DAB look’?)
A former Tai Po resident writes in the Diplomat…
How could fire alarms be disabled for a housing estate of over 4,600 residents? If the government enforced safety standards as necessary, could this have been prevented in the first place? How is the government not more concerned with the underlying series of oversights that have led to this tragedy?
John Lee just ordered a judge led independent commission to investigate this result. This along with letting that poor kid go does renew my hope that justice will be served.
@Mark Bradley: Will the judge have the same “independence” the national security judges have? Or even more “independence”?