Kong's Experience Research Articles

From Crisis to Insight: Navigating Public Health Challenges in an Aging Society-Lessons from Hong Kong's COVID-19 Experience.

This article critically examines the experience of Hong Kong (HK) with the COVID-19 pandemic and highlights the urgent need for effective public health responses in an aging society. As one of the world's fastest aging societies, Hong Kong's vulnerability to the consequences of pandemics is particularly pronounced due to low birth rates and high life expectancies. The city has experienced multiple waves of the COVID-19 virus, with the fifth wave causing some of the highest mortality rates in the world. However, through continuous learning and adaptation, HK's public health response has evolved to combat the crisis effectively. The discussion aims to highlight the importance of drawing from both positive and negative lessons from past epidemics and the critical role of public health systems in ensuring the well-being of older adults and the wider community. It emphasizes the need for sustained efforts to maintain and strengthen public health systems to tackle the ongoing and future public health challenges in an aging society.

Linking Healthcare and Social Service Databases to Study the Epidemiology of Child Maltreatment and Associated Health Problems: Hong Kong's Experience

To examine the incidence and trend of child maltreatment and its associated health problems in Hong Kong by linking healthcare and social service databases. Data on 4816 children under the age of 18 years registered with the Child Protection Registry and matching health records in public hospitals in Hong Kong from 2003 to 2010 were extracted. Associations were examined between different types of child maltreatment and child's medical diagnosis according to the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 10th Revision codes including suicidal attempt (X60-X84), nonchild maltreatment related injuries (S00-S99; T00-T98, excluding T74 and T76 that are maltreatment related injuries), mental health problems (F00-F99), and congenital malformations/chromosomal abnormalities (Q00-Q99). Significant rising trends were found for child physical abuse, neglect, and sexual abuse during the period from 2003 to 2010. Psychological abuse remained stable. Risk of suicide attempt was higher among children suffering from sexual abuse, psychological abuse, and children experiencing multiple abuses; mental health diagnoses were more common in victims of psychological and multiple abuses. Congenital malformations and chromosomal abnormalities were more commonly found among neglected children. In contrast to the decreasing trend observed in the West during the study period, there has been an escalating trend in child maltreatment in Hong Kong and child maltreatment is strongly associated with major health problems. This is one of the first studies to demonstrate the power of linking healthcare and social service databases, which allows for both a better understanding of the impact of child maltreatment and as a guide future policy and service planning.

Propaganda as Leftist Culture:

Abstract This article aims to discuss Hong Kong's leftist culture during the Cultural Revolution. By reviewing the history of leftist culture in Hong Kong and analyzing Hong Kong's leftist publications before and during the Cultural Revolution, this article argues that during Hong Kong's involvement in the Cultural Revolution, the leftist culture in Hong Kong was degraded to propaganda and lost its status as major ideology. On the other hand, the colonial government was determined to improve the economic and education level after 1967 social unrest, and modern Hong Kong's identity emerged as a combination of commercial and consumer culture and traditional Chinese cultural heritage. Hong Kong's Maoist experience was a failure but it had a positive influence on social development.

Hong Kong's Currency Crisis: A Test of the 1990s ‘Washington Consensus’ View

AbstractIn the aftermath of the financial crisis that rocked Southeast Asia in 1997–98, prominent scholars argued that the advice dispensed by the International Monetary Fund and supported by the policy community in Washington had exacerbated rather than stabilized the crisis. In this paper, we look back at that debate by using Hong Kong's experience during the Asian financial crisis to test the then‐consensus view on monetary tightening against the revisionist view of its critics. Hong Kong provides an interesting test of the two approaches because monetary policy was tightened and the pre‐crisis exchange rate survived the speculative attack intact, in contrast to other studies that have examined the effects of tighter monetary policy during attacks that led to changes in exchange‐rate management. Using a model of exchange‐market pressure and VAR estimation, we find that our results are generally supportive of the revisionist hypothesis.

Anatomy of the ordinary: new perspectives in Hong Kong independent cinema

Hong Kong cinema is generally considered to be in the midst of a crisis brought about by the growing weight of the Chinese market and a loss of cultural identity due to the territory's growing assimilation into the mainland. However, in recent years a group of independent directors, mostly born in the 1970s and 1980s, have sought to redefine the issue of Hong Kong identity while side-stepping both knee-jerk opposition to China and colonial nostalgia. This article proposes a broad survey of independent films made in the past few years in Hong Kong. Highlighting several recurrent themes – working-class lives, cross-border connections, critical reflections on both colonial history and the new connections with China – it suggests that these films lay out an aesthetics of the ordinary to define Hong Kong's distinctiveness. Resisting the spectacular aesthetics of genre films and the hyperbole of the ‘Hong Kong success story’, they probe Hong Kong's everyday experience from the angle of the quotidian and the ordinary.

Strengths and weaknesses of Hong Kong's technology and innovation industry with reference to the extended open innovation model

Purpose – This study aims to provide an analysis of Hong Kong's strengths and weaknesses in developing its technology and innovation industry. Design/methodology/approach – It briefly discussed the “extended open innovation” model on the basis of Chesbrough's “open innovation” model to explicitly highlight the elements associated with different stages throughout the whole spectrum of innovation processes. Findings – The model is then illustrated with Hong Kong's unique experience to gain insights for various stakeholders on how open innovation could be used beyond research and development activities and how Hong Kong could benefit from this paradigm shift. Originality/value – The extended open innovation model can be used as a framework to address the development of the technology and innovation industry.

Civic engagement in the policy process in Hong Kong: Change and continuity

AbstractThe role of civic engagement is particularly noteworthy in quasi‐democratic regimes like Hong Kong because it can potentially confer some degree of legitimacy on politics and the policy process. This article examines older and more recent means of civic engagement in the policy process in Hong Kong. The concepts of civic engagement and public participation are addressed, leading into discussions of the established mechanisms for public participation, the pressure on the government's approach to civic engagement since 2003, and the politics of civic action on heritage preservation and urban planning. Hong Kong's experience indicates that in a quasi‐democratic polity the main channels for public participation in the policy process are often dominated by pro‐government business and professional elites, and more participatory mechanisms are only gradually introduced after civic action by civil society groups, as reflected in the recent politics over heritage and planning. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Loan-to-Value Ratio as a Macroprudential Tool - Hong Kong's Experience and Cross-Country Evidence

This study assesses the effectiveness and drawbacks of maximum loan-to-value (LTV) ratios as a macroprudential tool based on Hong Kong’s experience and econometric analyses of panel data from 13 economies. The tool is found to be effective in reducing systemic risk stemming from the boom-and-bust cycle of property markets. Although the tool could impose higher liquidity constraints on homebuyers, empirical evidence shows that mortgage insurance programmes (MIPs) that protect lenders from credit losses on the portion of loans over maximum LTV thresholds can mitigate this drawback without undermining the effectiveness of the tool. This finding indicates the important role of MIPs in enhancing the net benefits of LTV policy. Our estimations also show that the dampening effect of LTV policy on household leverage is more apparent than its effect on property market activities, suggesting that the policy effect may mainly manifest in impacts on household sector leverage.

ICT and Lifelong Learning: Hong Kong's Experience for Elderly Learners

Learning plays a key role in ageing societies as it can help to address many of the related challenges and opportunities. Opportunities to learn should be given to senior citizens through appropriate local lifelong learning programmes. There is a need to improve research and development on learning tools and approaches designed to meet the different needs of older people. ICT has an important role to play in developing learning opportunities for older people both as a topic in its own right and as a means of learning in the so called knowledge society. This paper reports on a Hong Kong case survey understanding the role of ICT in lifelong learning for elderly and its impact of learning activity. The survey results suggest numbers of areas should be taken into consideration for older people as both learners and mentors.

Who owns culture and heritage? Observations on Hong Kong's experience

The public value of history, culture and heritage interacts in complex ways with the private ownership of so many of the facilities which give substance to these matters. This article begins by reflecting on the processes involved in seeking to associate government, community and the market in preserving this value, and goes on to illustrate the serious difficulties encountered in several recent Hong Kong cases. One implication is that so-called public-private partnerships often involve just government-private interactions, with government failing in any meaningful way to represent 'the public'.

Convergence of total factor productivity among banks: Hong Kong's experience

Are the less productive banks catching up to the more productive ones and, if so, how quickly and by what means? The objective of this study is to answer these questions by looking for convergence in total factor productivity (TFP) among banks in Hong Kong. Past research has identified two major factors governing productivity in the banking sector–scale economies and X-efficiency. If the gains from scale economies decline with firm size and the only difference between banks lies in their initial size, the initially smaller banks should eventually catch up to the initially larger ones because the former tends to grow more rapidly. However, the findings from this study do not support this hypothesis of “absolute convergence.” Indeed, the findings show strong evidence for “conditional convergence,” which means that the steady-state TFP to which a bank is converging is conditional on the bank's own level of X-efficiency. Conditional convergence implies that initial differences in X-efficiency among banks can, between them, create permanent differences in TFP.

Access to in-building wiring as a barrier to local fixed network competition: The case of Hong Kong

Access to in-building wiring for buildings with multi-dwellings is crucial for local fixed network competition. Otherwise the first operator servicing consumers in a building will obtain a de facto monopoly since it is very doubtful that there will be more than one rolling out of in-building wiring because of costs, lack of space in cable trays and refusal of co-ownership property representatives to grant access to more than one operator. In this paper, Hong Kong's experience regarding access to in-building wiring of the local fixed network is used to illustrate the importance of regulatory action. Since sharing of in-building wiring is crucial for facilitating the roll-out of fibre-to-the home, this is an issue that is of continuing importance even in an NGA (next generation access) environment since it could constitute a formidable ‘last-link’ barrier to competitive entry for delivery of high-speed broadband if the first operator deploying fibre becomes the de facto monopoly. The layered model consisting of three types of interconnection, which is proposed in this paper, makes the regulation of access to in-building wiring to facilitate local fixed network competition explicit and flexible.

Enhancing legal preparedness for the prevention and control of infectious diseases: Experience from severe acute respiratory syndrome in Hong Kong

SummaryThe use of legislation as a health protection tool forms an important and distinct aspect in the arena of public health. A review of Hong Kong's infectious disease legislation was conducted with a view to updating the legal framework for the prevention of infectious diseases, in order to strengthen the capacity of law to support strategy in the control of infectious diseases. This article shares Hong Kong's experience in reforming its public health legislation to: (1) update terminology and re-organize provisions in accordance with modern public health disease control principles and control mechanisms for disease; (2) enhance responsiveness for better preparedness and flexibility in handling emergent infections; (3) ensure appropriate checks and balances to coercive powers; and (4) introduce emergency powers for the handling of public health emergencies.

The Theory, Constitution and Practice of Autonomy: The Case of Hong Kong

The experiment of one country, two systems has been practiced in Hong Kong for over ten years. One country, two systems in Hong Kong can be considered a case study of autonomy in comparative constitutional law and politics. It is hoped that the study of Hong Kong's experience in this regard may contribute to general theories of autonomy as well as to other possible models of autonomy in China in future, particularly with regard to the issue of Taiwan. In this paper, we will (in part I) first review some general theoretical considerations relevant to the study of autonomy as a constitutional and political arrangement. We will then (in part II) consider the case of Hong Kong, including the historical origins of Hong Kong's autonomy under the conceptual framework of one country, two systems, the constitutional design of such autonomy, its general practice since 1997, and the possible strengths and weaknesses of this model of autonomy. We will then (in part III) explore the question of governance and democracy in Hong Kong as a possible test of Hong Kong's autonomy under Chinese rule. The paper will (in part IV) conclude with some reflections regarding the one country, two systems model of autonomy as practiced in Hong Kong in the last ten years.

Political Reform in Hong Kong: the Principal Officials Accountability System. The first year (2002–2003)

The new Principal Officials Accountability System (POAS), a proto-ministerial system, was established at the start of the Second Term of Office of the Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR). This paper examines the setting-up of the POAS and reviews how it has functioned during its first year of life. Both the design and implementation of the POAS were characterized by undue haste. The establishing of the POAS intensified the debate on a range of matters as new ministers, senior civil servants and residents have come to terms with the detail of this novel arrangement. Discussions about political reform are set to intensify in the years to come. This article reviews the origins and deeper need for the POAS in Hong Kong before looking at the fundamentals of the new system. The nature of ‘accountability’ is then discussed prior to examining Hong Kong's experience with the POAS in action during its first year. The article also discusses the potential of the POAS to contribute to Hong Kong's overall political development.

Recourse against Arbitral Awards: How Far Can a Court Go? Supportive and Supervisory Role of Hong Kong Courts as Lessons to Mainland China Arbitration

Through a comprehensive comparison of various circumstances of recourse against arbitral awards in both Hong Kong and Mainland China, this article attempts to explore the underlying reasons for different approaches in the two jurisdictions, which traces origins back to the legal system, judicial culture and arbitration environ- ment. Since Hong Kong's experience in the court's supportive and supervisory role regarding arbitral awards is more advanced, it should be borrowed by the Mainland in any future potential reform. The article argues that the reform and modernization of national arbitration legislation, whether in Hong Kong or in Mainland China, demonstrates different translation phases of the UNCITRAL Model Law. Given the special relationship between the two jurisdictions, a perfect arbitration environment in China should be fostered by combined efforts of both sides.

Can China learn from Hong Kong's experience in fighting corruption?1

Widespread corruption in mainland China adversely affects the overall economy in general and international business in particular. Prior to the establishment of the Independent Commission against Corruption (ICAC) in 1974, corruption was also rampant in Hong Kong. The ICAC effectively cleaned corruption in Hong Kong within a short period of time. Hong Kong's success in this area has prompted the Chinese government to learn from Hong Kong's experience. This article reviews the factors that contributed to Hong Kong's success in fighting corruption and discusses whether China can learn from the Hong Kong experience. From this, we can conclude that, first, Hong Kong's experience demonstrates that a corruption‐prone culture can be changed in a relatively short period of time; second, in order for China to learn from Hong Kong's experience, there must be substantial changes in China's political and economic institutions.

The First Tung Chee-hwa Administration: The First Five Years of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Edited by Lau Siu-kai. [Hong Kong: The Chinese University Press, 2002. xxxiv+430 pp. ISBN 962-996-015-X.

Why has Hong Kong's experience as a Special Administrative Region proved so disappointing? Since 1997, the government has become more unpopular than at any time since regular opinion polls began two decades ago. The public has responded with disquiet to changes in long-established housing, educational, hospital and welfare programmes because the new policies are perceived as very often ill-conceived and poorly co-ordinated.

Trends in breast cancer incidence in Hong Kong between 1973 and 1999: an age-period-cohort analysis.

Hong Kong has the highest breast cancer incidence in Asia and studying secular changes in its rates may lead to hypotheses regarding disease aetiology and also predictions of future trends for China. We examined statistics from the Hong Kong Cancer Registry based on 26 566 cases of invasive breast cancer from 1973 to 1999. The trends in breast cancer incidence were studied using log-linear longitudinal models. We further analysed the independent effects of chronological age, time period and birth cohort on incidence trends using age-period-cohort modelling. The average annual per cent change of the age-standardised incidence was 3.6% during 1973–1999. Age-period-cohort modelling indicated the incidence development was predominantly a cohort effect, where the rise in relative risk was seemingly linear in successive birth cohorts, showing a 2–3-fold difference when comparing women born in the 1960's with those born around 1900. Our results suggest that direct and indirect consequences of westernisation may have been responsible for most of the observed increase in breast cancer incidence. As China moves towards a more westernised way of life, we can expect an emerging epidemic of breast cancer as Hong Kong's experience has demonstrated.British Journal of Cancer (2002) 87, 982–988. doi:10.1038/sj.bjc.6600583 www.bjcancer.com© 2002 Cancer Research UK

Distance education for teacher education: hong kong experience

Distance education for teacher education: hong kong experience