Since the outbreak of the novel coronavirus, the Indian government has not been able to contain the situation and cumulative total of confirmed cases crossed a ten million threshold, there are nearly 160,000 confirmed cases at present, while cumulative number of deaths broke the 150,000 mark, and the number of patients is still climbing on a daily […]
The British government announced last year that it would offer a British National Overseas (BNO) visa for BN(O) passport holders and their close family members from January 2021. Beijing reacted strongly, and announced that it would no longer accept the BN(O) passport as a travel document. Other countermeasures may also be in the pipeline. One […]
In January, after it emerged that a British barrister, David Perry QC, had been briefed by the Department of Justice to prosecute a public order case in Hong Kong, he was subjected to an unprecedented campaign of political intimidation in his own country. This was designed to secure his withdrawal from the case, and it […]
Workers check product quality at the Hebei Xinglong Equipment Co Ltd in Fengrun District, Tangshan of North China's Hebei province, on Dec 17, 2020. (PHOTO / XINHUA) China’s better than expected economic growth in 2020 amid the pandemic, accompanied by multiple structural improvements in the economy, indicated the internal circulation – the domestic cycle of […]
After the turmoil in 2019, the National Security Law has restored order and stability in the community. Hong Kong is now ready to capitalize on its unique position under the “one country, two systems”, and the strength in legal and dispute resolution services as well as to make the best use of the opportunity brought […]
The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the vulnerabilities and structural weaknesses of many economies across the world, and their recovery is likely to be slow, arduous and uneven. Asian countries and regions must reconsider their approach to economic development and growth, especially because they face the double challenge of climate change and ageing demographics－not to mention […]
(PHOTO BY CAI MENG / CHINA DAILY) Today's world is witnessing historic changes. Asia may play a prominent role in the development of the world's civilization as it once did a few centuries ago. And recently, China has set out clear development objectives. By 2035, it will achieve socialist modernization. By 2050, it will develop […]
The 5G-enabled methodology has powered the rapid development of the telemedicine sector. Apart from remote diagnosis designed for individual patients and family-centered care, remote surgery, 5G has also facilitated mobile healthcare and other forms of remote medical treatment. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic having a devastating impact on economies and human lives, telemedicine has been effectively […]
(MA XUEJING / CHINA DAILY) That the new novel coronavirus clusters reported in many parts of China is alarming news goes without saying. But what is perhaps of greater concern is the high percentage of infections among elderly people compared with earlier figures. Why is the infection rate relatively high among the elderly this time? […]
That China will no longer recognize the so-called British National Overseas passport as a valid travel document or proof of identity is a fully justified move in response to the United Kingdom's latest meddling in Hong Kong affairs.op China's countermeasure took effect on Sunday after the UK announced that from that day Hong Kong residents […]
“In crisis management, be quick with the facts, slow with the blame.” The golden rule in public relations rings true in Hong Kong, especially when the city is struggling with the double whammy of the COVID-19 pandemic and an economic recession. The ongoing “ambush-style lock-downs” implemented by the health authority in restricted areas over a […]
Recently some people debated the existing method of selecting the chief executive (CE) again, claiming that election is the only way to prove the “legitimacy” of the CE, or the government for that matter. However, it has long been shown through international as well as Hong Kong’s own experience that election is not a reliable […]
Upon his election as the new Hong Kong Bar Association Chairman, Paul Harris said in his inaugural statement to the press that he “would campaign for changes” to the Hong Kong National Security Law (NSL), which no doubt is an effective law in combating the crimes and violence perpetuated by anti-government protesters from 2019. He […]
The international landscape has become increasingly complicated, with mounting instability and uncertainties that will persist for some period of time. The COVID-19 pandemic has posed challenges to economic globalization, leading to sluggish economic growth and shrinking global markets. Although domestic demand is already a major pillar of China’s economic growth, contributing to 89 percent of […]
High on US President Joe Biden’s agenda will be the restoration of some of the major international agreements abandoned by his predecessor over the past four years. Atop the list is the Paris climate agreement, which addresses the most existential challenge confronting the planet, followed by the international agreement on Iran’s nuclear program, from which […]
African cities have remarkably transformed in terms of political, socioeconomic and infrastructural development over the years. The upward trajectory, fairly prompted by the UN Agenda 2030, the African Union’s Agenda 2063 and the budding potential of the newly launched African Continental Free Trade Area, has occasioned an unparalleled demographic growth spurt largely signified by increased […]
(LI MIN / CHINA DAILY) The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated and intensified many preexisting trends in the international system. None of them is more important than the dramatic rise of China. During 2020, we saw China’s successful handling of the pandemic and the contrasting difficulties in Europe, North America and India. While the Chinese economy […]
The COVID-19 pandemic forced organizers to hold this year's World Economic Forum's Davos Agenda via video link. Traveling to the beautiful Swiss ski resort for the event, as I did in the last two years, was an eye-opener. But it was also a hassle because I could only afford a hotel more than an hour's […]
(SHI YU / CHINA DAILY) The alarming increase in new clusters of COVID-19 infections has prompted renewed calls for strengthening anti-pandemic measures such as wearing of face masks, maintaining social distancing and avoiding big gatherings. The central and local governments have already asked people to stay where they work during the Spring Festival holiday in […]
In just three months since we released our last forecast in October, recorded COVID-19 deaths have doubled to over 2 million, as new waves have lifted infections past previous peaks in many countries. In these same three months, multiple vaccines have seen unexpectedly strong success and some countries have started ambitious vaccination drives. Much now […]
The new Biden administration should be reminded that China is not an aggressor, and any sanctions imposed against US officials were made in retaliation to sanctions the US had imposed on Chinese-mainland and Hong Kong officials. Actions taken by China during the past four years of the Trump administration were all in retaliation to actions […]
The way the Hong Kong Bar Association has been dealing with the Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region over the years could best be described as utilitarian if not hypocritical. That is, they took the Basic Law seriously only when they believed it was in their favor. Recent remarks made by the […]
The “Union for New Civil Servants” (Union), which was established in the wake of the anti-extradition movement in 2019, recently disbanded itself. With an anti-government agenda, the Union organized various campaigns to undermine the SAR government, support violence perpetrated by rioters and indiscriminately attack the SAR government. Those actions clearly breached the civil service code […]
What took a decade to achieve unraveled within a matter of months. It seems like another age, but the start of 2020 had marked a decade of decline in the unemployment rate of the world’s advanced economies. When the COVID-19 pandemic struck, the unemployment rate in OECD countries increased by an unprecedented 3.6 percentage points […]
(SHI YU / CHINA DAILY) Last November, the world cheered the news that three gene-based COVID-19 vaccines－one developed by German biotech company BioNTech in collaboration with Pfizer, another by US-based biotech firm Moderna, and a third by the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca－had proved effective in clinical trials. But a month before that, researchers revealed […]
Many local governments have appealed to people to stay where they work during the upcoming Spring Festival holiday to reduce the risk of infection in the wake of sporadic outbreaks of the novel coronavirus in some parts of the country. Some local authorities have even unveiled plans to give people subsidies to persuade them to […]
President Xi Jinping's appeal to a divided world to return to sanity and join hands to contain the COVID-19 pandemic and meet other global challenges is also a call to the new US administration to end the ugly era of stigmatization and accusations－created by former US president Donald Trump and former secretary of state Mike […]
Hong Kong’s GDP is feeling the pinch as COVID-19 rages on, falling by 6.1 percent year-on-year. Under an exceptionally severe fourth wave of outbreaks, the unemployment rate hit a 16-year high in the fourth quarter. The rising unemployment rate is also related to the SAR government’s decision not to continue the “Employment Support Scheme” (Scheme) […]
Geoffrey Ma Tao-li officially retired as chief justice of the Court of Final Appeal (CFA) on January 11, 2021. He held a press conference on the morning of January 5 to conclude his 10-year term of office. In his opening speech, Ma brought up the subject of judicial reform, which has been a hot topic […]
The new chairman of the Hong Kong Bar Association, Paul Harris, claimed immediately after being elected that the earlier arrest of 55 individuals by the Hong Kong police on charges of subversion under the special administrative region's National Security Law is "deliberate intimidation of the democratic movement". It seems that he is claiming that they […]