It is the government’s responsibility to find a way out of unrest that has rocked Hong Kong, embattled Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam (林鄭月娥) said yesterday as she began her first public dialogue event, an effort to assuage protesters ahead of the anniversary of Chinese Communist Party rule in China on Tuesday next week.
“In the past three-plus months, no matter what stance you take, everyone is very heartbroken, upset or even angry. The entire unrest is caused by the government’s work in amending the extradition law,” Lam said at the town hall-style session, referring to a controversial bill that first triggered protests. “The government is shouldering the biggest responsibility for finding a way out.”
Lam acknowledged that many in the territory were worried about unrest over the coming weekend, which is to mark the fifth anniversary of 2014’s Occupy demonstrations — Hong Kong’s previous pro-democracy movement.
Photo: AFP
As she spoke, hundreds of protesters gathered outside the venue after earlier calls for people to form a human chain, chanting: “Five demands, not one less.”
Lam earlier this week urged demonstrators not to disrupt the forum.
She was joined by four influential ministers: Hong Kong Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Patrick Nip (聶德權), Hong Kong Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Edward Yau (邱騰華), Hong Kong Secretary for Home Affairs Lau Kong-wah (劉江華) and Hong Kong Secretary for Food and Health Sophia Chan (陳肇始).
Photo: EPA-EFE
Members of the public attending the two-hour session at the Queen Elizabeth Stadium in the Wanchai neighborhood were to be chosen to speak by a random lottery, the government had said earlier.
The event was moderated by Kenneth Ng, a political assistant to Nip and former news anchor for local station Television Broadcasts, who said in opening remarks that about 130 people were registered to enter the venue and that officials would give an “integrated” response every six questions.
Lam has seemed prepared for the public anger that would likely be directed at her during the forum.
“No doubt, I will receive some harsh criticism. But I also hope to receive constructive suggestions to help this government meet the public’s expectations for a more inclusive and fairer Hong Kong,” she wrote in a Wednesday opinion piece in the New York Times.
“I hear many people asked whether these dialogues are just a political show,” Lam said as the forum began. “These opinions I totally understand. The past days have led to a big drop of trust over the SAR [Hong Kong Special Administrative Region] government and myself. People also doubt whether there’s environment for dialogue. No matter how difficult it is, my colleagues and I all think this direct dialogue should commence now.”
TYPHOON: The storm’s path indicates a high possibility of Krathon making landfall in Pingtung County, depending on when the storm turns north, the CWA said Typhoon Krathon is strengthening and is more likely to make landfall in Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said in a forecast released yesterday afternoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the CWA’s updated sea warning for Krathon showed that the storm was about 430km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point. It was moving in west-northwest at 9kph, with maximum sustained winds of 119kph and gusts of up to 155kph, CWA data showed. Krathon is expected to move further west before turning north tomorrow, CWA forecaster Wu Wan-hua (伍婉華) said. The CWA’s latest forecast and other countries’ projections of the storm’s path indicate a higher
SLOW-MOVING STORM: The typhoon has started moving north, but at a very slow pace, adding uncertainty to the extent of its impact on the nation Work and classes have been canceled across the nation today because of Typhoon Krathon, with residents in the south advised to brace for winds that could reach force 17 on the Beaufort scale as the Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecast that the storm would make landfall there. Force 17 wind with speeds of 56.1 to 61.2 meters per second, the highest number on the Beaufort scale, rarely occur and could cause serious damage. Krathon could be the second typhoon to land in southwestern Taiwan, following typhoon Elsie in 1996, CWA records showed. As of 8pm yesterday, the typhoon’s center was 180km
TYPHOON DAY: Taitung, Pingtung, Tainan, Chiayi, Hualien and Kaohsiung canceled work and classes today. The storm is to start moving north this afternoon The outer rim of Typhoon Krathon made landfall in Taitung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春半島) at about noon yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, adding that the eye of the storm was expected to hit land tomorrow. The CWA at 2:30pm yesterday issued a land alert for Krathon after issuing a sea alert on Sunday. It also expanded the scope of the sea alert to include waters north of Taiwan Strait, in addition to its south, from the Bashi Channel to the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島). As of 6pm yesterday, the typhoon’s center was 160km south of
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) is set to issue sea and land warnings for Tropical Storm Krathon as projections showed that the tropical storm could strengthen into a typhoon as it approaches Taiwan proper, the CWA said yesterday. The sea warning is scheduled to take effect this morning and the land warning this evening, it said. The storm formed yesterday morning and in the evening reached a point 620 nautical miles (1,148km) southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost point, moving west-southwest at 4 kph as it strengthened, the CWA said. Its radius measured between 220km and 250km, it added. Krathon is projected
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