Jasper Tsang hints on eavesdropping on him; Liaison office head vows to “shut up” on political reform; Trust in IPCC falls. Photo Credit: Chris Lusher
Politics (Gov’t & LegCo)
Recommendations on adjustments to New Academic Structure in medium-term review.
– The Education Bureau released a medium-term review on the New Academic Structure
– It was proposed that the total lesson time for senior secondary (SS) curriculum would be adjusted from 2700 hours to 2400 hours with a plus/minus 200 hours band to give flexibility to schools
– Other adjustments included fine-tuning SS subjects and the examinations
CY Leung calls on younger generation to better understand Hong Kong’s war-time history.
– CY Leung attended (ch) an event hosted by Ta Kung Pao to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the victory of the Second Sino-Japanese War and called on younger generation better understanding the sufferings of Chinese and Hong Kong people during the war
– Meanwhile, it was reported (ch) that Leung will meet with members of the Democratic Party on July 3 or 7 after confirming a July 2 meeting with the Civic Party
Political (General)
Jasper Tsang hints on a possible ‘Overheard’ plot directed against him.
– It was reported (ch) that LegCo President Jasper Tsang had fallen victim of eavesdropping
– Tsang responded by saying that there was indeed a suspicious case back in 2012 when he expressed intention to run for the CE, in which an anti-eavesdropping sensor his assistant bought responded ‘positive’ in his LegCo member office but no device was found
– Tsang stressed that there was no proof to the speculation and hence he did not report to the Police
– Tsang, meanwhile, apologised (ch) to the pan-dems again for joining the discussion among the pro-est lawmakers during the political reform vote but reiterated that he did not compromise his impartiality as the president
Liaison Office director vows to “shut up” on political reform issues.
– Director of the Liaison Office Zhang Xiaoming said (ch) he had “spoken enough” on issues regarding the political reform and would “shut up” on it
– Zhang however stressed that lawmakers would have to bear the “historic responsibility” for voting down the reform package
Pan-dems raises concerns over political interference in HKU senior appointment, urge transparency.
– Pan-dem lawmakers urged the HKU Council to be more transparent and accountable as the council started discussion on the appointment of pro-vice-chancellor, of which its pro-democracy scholar Johannes Chan has been a controversial candidate
– Education lawmaker Ip Kin-yuen also wrote a letter asking HKU Council member Abraham Razack to provide clarification at a House Committee meeting on Friday
Hong Kong police watchdog’s image deteriorates in post-Occupy era.
– The HKU Public Opinion Programme found that the Independent Police Complaints Council (IPCC), the city’s police watchdog, has suffered deteriorated reputation after the Occupy Movement
– It was found that only 44% took the IPCC as an impartial body while those who held negative impression toward to the IPCC rose to a two-digit figure for the first time in 5 years
– Director of the poll institution Robert Chung Ting-yiu said the Occupy Movement was the major reason explaining the decline in trust in the council
HKGCC defends current electricity market structure.
– The Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce released a public statement defending the current electricity market system
– The HKGCC stressed that the Government should not “compromise the safety and reliability of electricity supply just for the sake of providing more choices”, and that “there is no conclusive evidence to suggest that market liberalization will help improve the environmental performance of our electricity supply”