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1. One in six helpers leaves children alone, survey finds

2. Tse remains free after magistrate refuses to budge

3. Property agent jailed for computer hacking

4. Historic Kom Tong Hall saved from demolition

5. Sino Land emerges as most aggressive developer with $10b committed to deals

1. One in six helpers leaves children alone, survey finds
KLAUDIA LEE, SCMP 19 November 2002

One in six foreign domestic helpers admits leaving children in their care unattended while they go shopping or do other chores, sometimes for an hour or more, according to a new survey.

The study by Against Child Abuse found that 16.4 per cent of 797 maids admitted leaving children unattended. Fifty-three per cent of those who did so said they left children unattended at least once a week, while 68 per cent said they did so to go shopping, or to care for other children or family members.

Twenty-six said they left children unattended for more than an hour at a time, while 105 left them unattended for less than an hour. The ages of the children involved were not specified.

Social worker Carmen Liu Ka-man yesterday warned that although one hour seemed to be a short period, accidents could easily happen within that time.

"According to coroners' reports, 163 children died of accidents which occurred while they were left unattended from 1989 to 2001," Ms Liu said.

The survey, conducted at the end of last year, also showed that 76 of the helpers questioned used corporal punishment on the children to deal with poor child behaviour. Ms Liu urged the government to provide more child-care training for domestic helpers.

Group director Priscilla Lui Tsang Sun-kai said the group had also seen an increase in abuse in instances where unemployed parents could not afford helpers or places in child-care centres.

“They may easily lose their temper when caring for their kids," Ms Lui said.
klaudia.lee@scmp.com

2. Tse remains free after magistrate refuses to budge
SOPHIA CHU, SCMP 21 November 2002

The magistrate in Nicholas Tse Ting-fung's trial for perverting the course of justice yesterday refused to change the community service sentence he originally imposed on the Canto-pop star, keeping Tse out of prison.

Justice Department lawyers are now considering whether to challenge the latest ruling and go to the Appeal Court.

The 22-year-old singer was convicted of conspiring to pervert the course of justice last month after switching drivers following a crash in his Ferrari in March. The Justice Department called for a review of the sentence, which was the subject of the latest hearing.

Western Court magistrate Allan Wyeth yesterday dismissed criticism of his original sentence - 240 hours of community service - saying it had nothing to do with Tse's social status and popularity.

He said that the prosecution was wrong to assert that Tse had avoided jail by abusing his position as a celebrity. "The fact that he was a celebrity is not to be used to enhance his punishment in order to get a message to the community," Mr Wyeth said.

"His status cannot be used for or against him."

Mr Wyeth stressed that community service was not a "soft" option but was equivalent to a jail term. Tse's sentence was for the maximum amount of community service that can be imposed.

He also said he considered Tse "a young offender in the general sense", rejecting the prosecution's submission that he ought to be treated as an adult.

Tse, flanked by his parents, remained calm as the decision was given. His mother, Deborah Li, put her arm around him and patted his shoulder.

At the same hearing yesterday, the magistrate also refused to increase the six-month jail term given to Tse's co-accused, traffic policeman Lau Chi-wai.

Mr Wyeth said though Lau did not initiate the scheme, he agreed and co-operated with stand-in driver Shing Kwok-ting. Nevertheless, Mr Wyeth said he accepted that no corruption and gain were involved the incident.

The review of the pair's sentences was prompted by Secretary for Justice Elsie Leung Oi-sie on the grounds they were "manifestly inadequate" and "wrong in principle".

Tse had been convicted of conspiring to pervert the course of justice with a former driver for Tse's record company, the Emperor Entertainment Group. They falsely represented that the driver, Shing, 34, was at the wheel of Tse's black Ferrari 360 Modena when it crashed in Cotton Tree Drive on March 23.

Senior Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions Bernard Ryan had submitted that Tse's crime almost inevitably attracted a jail term. Outside court, Mr Ryan said he would study the reasons for the decision and would discuss the possibility of an appeal with Grenville Cross, the Director of Public Prosecutions.

A Judiciary spokeswoman said the Department of Justice had three weeks in which to appeal.

Eric Cheung Tat-ming, Assistant Professor of Hong Kong University's law faculty, was not surprised by the decision.

"The rationale behind a sentence review by the trial magistrate himself is to right a wrong in a simple and cost-saving way. But in this case, the magistrate . . . must have considered all crucial factors . . . It would have been more inappropriate for him to change the sentences due to media pressure."

3. Property agent jailed for computer hacking
SOPHIA CHU, SCMP 20 November 2002

A property agent who hacked into her former supervisor's computer account and deleted her e-mails was jailed for three months yesterday.

Eastern Court heard that Kety Kung Hang-ming, 31, had access to the e-mail password of her then boss at Worthern Pacific, Imelda Cheng, who had gone on maternity leave in July 2000. Kung resigned from the company on October 10 last year and joined a competitor.

Ms Cheng became suspicious when she failed to receive e-mails for two weeks in February this year. An internal probe found that her account had been accessed several times since January 6 and some incoming messages had been deleted.

Ms Cheng filed a complaint with the Commercial Crime Bureau on February 15. On April 25, she informed police of another hacking into her e-mail account, with the deletion of 10 messages.

Kung was arrested at her home on the same day. She admitted hacking into Ms Cheng's e-mail account out of "curiosity" about her former company's activities.
She pleaded guilty to 20 counts of access to a computer with dishonest intent and 10 of criminal damage.

Defence lawyer Shaun Kelly had asked for a community service order, saying the accused had made no financial gain.

"No evidence had been put to the court of any actual loss," he said, adding that his client was suffering from liver disease and depression.

But Magistrate Ian Candy said this was inappropriate given the seriousness of the offence.

Outside court, Senior Police Inspector Anthony Fung said the authorities were very concerned about computer hacking in the commercial sector.

"It is hard to estimate the actual loss, but it could profoundly affect a company's trading and business strategies," he said.

4. Historic Kom Tong Hall saved from demolition
ALEX LO, SCMP 20 November 2002

Historic Kom Tong Hall was saved from demolition yesterday when its owner, the Mormon Church, put on hold plans to pull the building down in what it called a show of "good faith".

The breakthrough came after the government said it would compensate the Church for preserving the 88-year-old, grade-two listed building in Mid-Levels.

In a statement last night, the Church said: "As a result of our meetings with the Antiquities and Monuments Office, the Church has decided to demonstrate its good faith by putting on hold any further work towards demolition of Kom Tong Hall.

"We are placing our confidence in the government to present a proposal within a reasonable time that will be satisfactory to the government while providing fair value to the Church."

The Church said its offer stood while it awaited final details of an offer from the government. The two sides are believed to have reached a tacit agreement on compensation already.

The Church has been under intense public and government pressure since the South China Morning Post last month highlighted opposition to the demolition plans. Residents and members of the Central and Western District Council organised protests and a signature campaign against the Castle Road building's demolition as it stood surrounded by bamboo scaffolding, ready to be torn down.

Assistant Director of Leisure and Cultural Services (heritage and museums) Tony Ma Kai-loong said: "Both sides share a common goal to preserve Kom Tong Hall . . . It is now a matter of working out a detailed offer."

Mr Ma would not say what offer the government was making the Church, but both sides said they expected a "satisfactory" outcome.

The Post earlier this month published an appeal by Andrew Tse, great-grandson of the building's founder, Ho Kom Tong, to save the house. Mr Tse is the grandson of Elizabeth Ho Pak-lin, Ho's eldest daughter.

Yesterday he welcomed the news. "This is very positive - it's what we have been fighting for," Mr Tse said.

A Central and Western District Council member, Stephen Chan Chit-kwai, said he believed the government was ready to offer a range of compensation, including a land exchange and subsidies.

The Mormon Church bought the 9,000 sq ft house from a family surnamed Cheng in 1960, who had previously bought it from the family of Ho Kom Tong, the younger brother of Eurasian tycoon Sir Robert Ho Tung.

The red-brick house with granite pillars is believed to be Hong Kong's first house to be built with a steel frame.

The road to salvation

July: The Mormon Church applies for a demolition permit from the Buildings Department.

July 30: The department alerts government heritage officials of the demolition plan.

Early August: The government initiates negotiations with the Church to preserve Kom Tong Hall.

October 27: Mid-Levels residents and the Central and Western District Council find out about the demolition plan, organise a signature campaign and protest outside the building.

October 30: Government officials pledge to save the building.

November 19: The Church announces that it is putting the demolition plan on hold as it awaits a government offer.

5. Sino Land emerges as most aggressive developer with $10b committed to deals
KENNETH KO, SCMP 20 November 2002

Sino Land has emerged as the most aggressive developer in replenishing land banks this year, having committed to six projects involving a total investment of more than HK$10 billion.

The six residential projects will yield a gross floor area of about 5.8 million square feet.

Sino Land made its latest acquisition on Monday, when the company won the Kowloon-Canton Railway Corp's HK$4 billion Ho Tung Lau joint venture development in Sha Tin.

Chairman Robert Ng Chee Siong last week declared confidence in the market, saying there was long-term demand for housing as an estimated 30,000 marriages per annum were expected in the next 10 years.

BNP Paribas Peregrine regional property head Adrian Ngan Wai-hung said Sino Land had increased its land banks substantially by using cash returns from last year's property sales.

The group was a likely winner now that the government had suspended land sales for the next 14 months, but investment returns would depend on good management of sales and, to some extent, economic performance, Mr Ngan said.

With increased capital commitment, however, the group was exposed to higher risk, he said.

Sino Land has been active in both public auctions and tenders this year. At a February auction, it bought a Tuen Mun lot for HK$264 million, while at an April auction, the company purchased a West Kowloon site for HK$1.64 billion and joined hands with Chinese Estates and Manhattan Realty to take a Kowloon Tong site for HK$570 million.

The group teamed up with Kerry Properties to win the Mass Transit Railway Corp's HK$3.5 billion Hang Hau Station residential development in Tseung Kwan O in June. The following month saw Sino Land secure the rights to the Urban Renewal Authority's HK$4 billion Tsuen Wan redevelopment project.

Cheung Kong (Holdings) was another active buyer, having secured a 2.6 million sq ft residential development at Tiu Keng Leng MTR Station in Tseung Kwan O.

A consortium formed by New World Development, Chow Tai Fook Enterprises and Singapore businessman Wee Cho Yaw own the rights to the Tseung Kwan O MTR Station's HK$2 billion project.