Government to ‘play its own judge': Hong Kong harbour fighter weighs legal challenge
An advocacy group that has fought to protect Hong Kong's Victoria Harbour for 30 years could take the government to court for passing a legal amendment to relax reclamation restrictions, calling it the last-ditch effort before the organisation closes.
Advertisement
Winston Chu Ka-sun, founder of the Society for Harbour Protection and a long-time fighter to protect the city's harbour from reclamation, said on Saturday that the society has begun winding up procedures before a 'new turn of events' from legal advisers that might push the group to remain in operation for the time being.
'However, in this new turn of events, we are advised by senior counsel that there may be a remedy through the law courts. The law courts may be able to declare that this law offends the common law,' Chu said.
The 85-year-old barrister, who began campaigning to protect the harbour in 1995, expressed his disappointment with a legal amendment on Wednesday that would allow the government to carry out small-scale and temporary reclamation works.
The legal amendment could also pave the way for large-scale reclamation under a new mechanism.
Advertisement
The new mechanism would allow the chief executive and his advisers to decide if large-scale reclamation projects at the Victoria Harbour could go ahead, replacing current rules for all reclamation at the harbour to be forbidden unless proven to have an 'overriding public need' supported by 'cogent and convincing materials' in court.
Small-scale reclamation projects, of 0.8 hectares (1.98 acres) or less, would have to be approved by the financial secretary, following consultation with the Harbourfront Commission, a government-appointed advisory body, and district councillors.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
South China Morning Post
an hour ago
- South China Morning Post
Japan spots Chinese navy's show of force in west Pacific amid maritime row
China 's Liaoning aircraft carrier has for the first time ventured into the easternmost edge of Japan 's exclusive economic zone, in what is seen as a show of force aimed at Tokyo, Washington and the broader region. The Liaoning – Beijing's first aircraft carrier – and at least three accompanying warships were spotted on Saturday around 300km southwest of Minamitori, a remote Japanese island in the western Pacific, which serves as a bulwark for Tokyo to assert its maritime claims. The group, which includes two guided-missile destroyers and a fast combat support ship, appeared to be conducting air operations, with fighter jets and helicopters landing on and taking off from the carrier on Sunday, national broadcaster NHK reported. Analysts believe the fleet may have been accompanied by a Chinese submarine. The manoeuvres mark the first known operation by a Chinese carrier group in a zone long considered a vital part of Japan's defence boundaries and a key buffer between China and US military outposts, such as those in Guam and Hawaii. Analysts suggest the fleet is showing its capabilities and reach in a new area targeted at Beijing's rivals. 'Just a few years ago, China would not have put a naval group into the Pacific, so it is now showing that it is willing and able to do just that,' said Masayuki Masuda, director of Chinese studies at the National Institute of Defence Studies in Tokyo.
South China Morning Post
an hour ago
- South China Morning Post
Why Hong Kong is not ‘over' but must adapt to a changing world order
In his latest Bloomberg interview , former Morgan Stanley Asia chairman Stephen Roach said the escalating US-China conflict is providing Hong Kong with 'more of an opportunity than a threat, as I had originally envisioned'. Advertisement That was seen as a revision of his controversial remark in February 2024 that ' Hong Kong is over '. Such pessimism was not the first of its kind: recall Fortune magazine's cover story headlined 'The Death of Hong Kong' in June 1995, only to confess that they were wrong in a June 2007 article, 'Oops! Hong Kong is hardly dead'. Roach argued previously that Hong Kong's demise reflected the confluence of three factors: domestic politics, the China factor, and global developments. He saw China's post-2019 clampdown as removing any remaining semblance of local political autonomy . Hong Kong was also caught in the US-China crossfire and the spillover of mainland economic slowdown stemming from debt, deflation and demography. Now, recognising the local stock market rebound , Roach has emphasised Hong Kong's unique position as China's most important window to international finance such that it is 'experiencing maybe a revival because of its Chinese characteristics, not in spite of it'. But that feature of the city has not changed over time. Only the context might change. The question is whether the city is suffering a temporary setback or walking down a gloomy path . China is indeed the deciding factor. Like other pessimists, Roach held bleak assumptions about China's economic future and a linear interpretation of international politics. His latest statement has not clarified his real position. Advertisement
RTHK
2 hours ago
- RTHK
China-US trade talks to stretch into second day
China-US trade talks to stretch into second day Attending the talks are from right - Vice Minister of Commerce Li Chenggang, Commerce Minister Wang Wentao, Vice Premier He Lifeng, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer. Photo: Reuters Chinese and United States officials are set to meet on Tuesday for a second day of trade talks in London, seeking to shore up a tariff truce. The gathering of key officials from the world's two biggest economies began on Monday in the historic Lancaster House, run by the UK Foreign Office, following an earlier round of talks in Geneva last month. Vice Premier He Lifeng was again heading the team in London, which included Commerce Minister Wang Wentao and China International Trade Representative Li Chenggang. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer are leading the US delegation. The talks wrapped up Monday evening and were expected to restart on Tuesday, according to China's state broadcaster CCTV. Beijing and Washington are trying to revive a temporary truce struck in Geneva that had briefly lowered trade tensions and calmed markets. The Geneva pact to cool tensions temporarily brought new US tariffs on Chinese goods from 145 percent to 30 percent, and Chinese countermeasures from 125 percent to 10 percent. (Agencies)
