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LCQ6: URA to modify redevelopment projects 2.
Booklet fails to clear cloudy law 3.
Wheeler 4.
Some parents will not let their children play with
guns for good reason.
1. LCQ6: URA to modify redevelopment projects
End/Wednesday,
November 6, 2002 Following
is a question by the Hon Leung Yiu-chung and a reply by the Secretary for Housing,
Planning and Lands, Mr Michael Suen, in the Legislative Council today (November
6):
Question:
It has been reported that the Urban Renewal Authority
("URA") plans to modify some of its redevelopment projects as revitalization
or rehabilitation projects, so as to relieve its financial pressure. In this connection,
will the Government inform this Council whether:
(a) it knows if any
of the 25 redevelopment projects announced in 1998 will be modified as revitalization
or rehabilitation projects; if so, of the details;
(b) it knows if URA
will consult the public before deciding which option of development, i.e. redevelopment,
revitalization or rehabilitation, should be adopted for a particular project;
if so, of the consultation procedures; if not, the reasons for that; and
(c) as the cooperation agreement between URA and the Hong Kong Housing Society
provides the latter with autonomy over development projects, the authorities concerned
have assessed if such autonomy will affect the original mode of development of
the 25 redevelopment projects, as well as the residents affected by such projects;
if so, of the assessment results?
Reply:
Madam President,
The urban renewal policy seeks to address the problem of urban decay
through a comprehensive and holistic approach. According to the Urban Renewal
Authority Ordinance, the purposes of the Urban Renewal Authority (URA) include
demolishing and redeveloping dilapidated buildings, promoting the rehabilitation
of old buildings as well as preserving buildings of historical, cultural or architectural
interest.
The Government's objective is that the urban renewal programme
should be self-financing in the long run. However, financial consideration is
not the only factor in determining the mode of implementation. The URA has to
consider a host of other factors, including the condition of the buildings, the
living environment of the residents and whether the buildings have preservation
value.
My reply to the three-part question is as follows.
(a) The
URA will decide on the mode of implementation for the 25 projects announced by
the Land Development Corporation (LDC) in early 1998 in accordance with the law
and having regard to the different circumstances of each project.
According
to the first Corporate Plan of the URA, projects to be launched in the relevant
five-year period include all the 25 uncompleted projects of the LDC. We are aware
of the proposed mode of implementation for these projects. However, as the Corporate
Plan is a rolling plan which has to be updated annually and as sensitive information
is involved, the URA will only announce the details of these projects, including
their mode of implementation, at the commencement of the projects.
Since
its establishment, the URA has announced and commenced five redevelopment projects
under this arrangement. We believe that in determining the mode of implementation
for the remaining 20 projects, in addition to the factors mentioned above, the
URA will fully consider the expectation of the residents for redevelopment in
these project areas.
(b) The Urban Renewal Authority Ordinance and the
Urban Renewal Strategy have been made after extensive public consultation and
deliberation. They contain sufficient provisions for regulating and guiding the
operation of the URA. Regarding the overall planning of different districts and
the need for urban renewal, the URA will consult the respective district advisory
committees. When deciding on the mode of implementation for each project, the
URA will take into account the relevant factors mentioned above. As sensitive
information is involved, the URA will not conduct prior public consultation solely
on the mode of implementation for individual projects.
(c) The URA and
the Hong Kong Housing Society (HKHS) are discussing the details of their strategic
co-operation agreement. The underlying principle of this strategic partnership
is that the HKHS will act as the URA's agent in implementing a number of urban
renewal projects in accordance with the existing statutory framework and the Urban
Renewal Strategy. The factors to be considered in determining the mode of implementation
for these projects should be the same as those for projects directly implemented
by the URA.
2. Booklet fails to clear cloudy law
The Department of Justice
has issued a document attempting to clarify the reasons why some prosecutions
go ahead and other do not. Comparing two cases leaves the issue murkier than ever.
To be fair, the Fetish Fashion case did not bring the law into total disrepute.
It just made a laughing stock of it.
FROM THE
BAR by JANE MOIR, SCMP 7 November 2002 Thanks
this week go to the Department of Justice for providing a rare opportunity to
compare the fate of former Sing Tao Holdings boss Sally Aw Sian to that of Brenda
Scofield, bondage guru. One
used to run a newspaper and was named in a circulation fraud. The other hosts
fetish parties, complete with ropes, whips and hot wax.
Which is the most heinous crime? Giving your staff the green light to illicitly
inflate circulation figures, or humouring middle-aged sado-masochists in Mid-Levels?
Of course we know the answer in the eyes of the law. Ms Scofield, her husband
and the shop's manager ended up in the dock for keeping a disorderly house. Ms
Aw on the other hand, was not prosecuted back in 1998 on the grounds that it was
not in the "public interest" to do so.
It can only be assumed then that it is in the "public interest" to vigorously
chase after anyone who supposedly flouts a law that dates back to, oh, 1700.
Clarification on Hong Kong's woolly prosecution policy is however at hand. The
Department of Justice has released a booklet, The Statement of Prosecution Policy
and Practice, to diffuse any confusion. The
usual criteria are in there - sufficient evidence, a reasonable prospect of securing
a conviction, etc. Then comes the public interest criteria. The interests of the
victim are key. In the Sally Aw Sian case, it would have been advertisers, consumers,
employees, shareholders, creditors . . . in the Fetish Fashion case? Perhaps the
fragile eyes of the undercover police.
The likely penalty is another factor. Here, prosecutors must decide if the public
interest would be better served by a prosecution or some other form of disposal
- i.e. a caution.
Some kind of warning could easily have been given in the Fetish Fashion case,
if it made the undercover police feel better. Dressing up for the occasion of
course would be optional.
Another criteria is that of "counter-productiveness of prosecution".
This is where for example, a prosecution would bring the law into disrepute. "The
law may be obsolete or obscure, and a warning to the suspect might be all that
is required."
To be fair, the Fetish Fashion case did not bring the
law into total disrepute. It just made a laughing stock of it.
More damage was undoubtedly caused by the non-prosecution of Ms Aw, or at the
very least, only presenting the "public interest" argument as rationale.
Let's see, we
had a political furore, vows to cast a vote of no confidence against Secretary
for Justice Elsie Leung Oi-sie, criticisms from legal stalwarts, not to mention
months if not years of rule-of-law soul searching.
A prosecution against the head of a well-established newspaper group, whose published
titles include one of only two English-language dailies in Hong Kong, said Ms
Leung, would have sent a damaging signal to the international community. It could
have been seen as a curb on the media, widely feared following Hong Kong's return
to Chinese sovereignty, she indicated.
Oddly, not many people bought into this at the time.
Possibly not helping matters was that shortly after, Ms Aw sold her entire stake
in Sing Tao Holdings to pay off HK$270 million in debts. She had been facing bankruptcy.
Back to the
booklet. Other factors can be taken into account in a prosecution, it points out.
For example, where the suspect was in a position of authority or trust, which
has been abused. Or where the offence was premeditated.
"I just wanted
to raise the circulation figures," Ms Aw told the ICAC during a videotaped
interview in 1997. "This was a commercial decision, that is to get more advertisers."
She denied however
any knowledge that the plot involved fraud and deception. She said she had left
details to her staff.
More criteria: "Where the offence, although not serious in itself, is widespread
in the area in which it occurred."
It seems safe to say Fetish Fashion probably have a monopoly on the bondage market
in Hong Kong. On the other hand, fraud - or being party to it - is the bread and
butter of prosecutors these days.
At least common sense prevailed in the Fetish Fashion case and the three defendants
were acquitted. It did however cost taxpayers millions of dollars, not to mention
hours of police time down the drain.
There were also charges of aiding and abetting an objectionable performance at
the Cochrane Street store, levied against Laurence Scofield. These were dismissed.
Sadly the case
is an acute reminder of Hong Kong's bizarre prudishness. But on the prosecutions
side, at least now we have this helpful checklist from the Department of Justice
to offer some clarity.
The idea of hot wax on human flesh seems refreshingly straightforward in comparison.
moir@scmp.com
3. Wheeler
SCMP,
7 November 2002 [Cartoon]
4. Some parents will not let their children play with guns for good reason.
Picture by Dickson
Lee, SCMP 7 November 2002 
A Big shot at
tourism promotion. Executive councilor Cheng Yiu-tong fires a shot from the anti-aircraft
gun on the former aircraft carrier Minsk, now a Shenzhen tourist attraction. Mr
Cheng has offered his support for a proposal to jointly promote and develop cross-border
tourism.
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