Right balance needed in protecting countryside

Preservation of heritage and green open space figured prominently in the chief executive's policy address, with moves to encourage heritage protection by private property owners, and "to step up our ecological conservation efforts" by declaring our 24th country park on Lantau Island. In practice, however, there remains much to be done to achieve a balance between conservation and development.

The Town Planning Board is to consider appealing after the High Court overruled its decision to include land zoned agricultural surrounding University of Science and Technology staff quarters at Clear Water Bay in a conservation area. The court found the board had made material factual errors in its reasons for dismissing objections over three sites by the owner, who wanted to develop them. Mr Justice Andrew Cheung Kui-nung said the sites did not resemble the description by the board in its reasons. For example, they were not particularly wooded. As we report today, some board members and planners want to appeal against the ruling. Planning Department sources say the sites were woodlands before they were zoned as protected areas in 2002 to preserve the local rural character. The sites had since been altered by tree-felling and earth filling, and the owner had twice been warned about damage to the land.

The Hong Kong Institute of Planners is rightly concerned that allowing development would set a precedent whereby private land owners have diminished the conservation value of protected sites so much they are arguably no longer worth preserving.

The city has already paid a high price for uncontrolled development on rural land in the New Territories, with once-fertile farmlands converted into container storage areas and scrapyards. Upscale development like that planned at Clear Water Bay does not make damage to protected natural environment any more acceptable. Many parts of the territory face similar problems. The government would greatly enhance its stepped-up ecological conservation efforts if it gave priority to introducing measures to ensure respect for protected zonings, including incentives to landowners and effective enforcement.

UK pupils 'least globally aware'

UK children aged 11 to 16 have the lowest international awareness among their age group in 10 countries, a British Council survey says.

Ipsos Mori asked 4,170 with internet access about such things as language learning and international affairs.

Link to the article.

Malaysia police break up protest

Malaysian police have used tear gas and water cannon to disperse thousands of protesters who were marching in Kuala Lumpur to demand electoral reform.

The event was organised by a group called Bersih which is made up of opposition parties and dozens of non-governmental organisations.

Link to the article.

New focus

Dear 6AB1 fellow students,

I would like to introduce more world news to you. Starting from today, selected political and social news from all over the world will be posted on this site. You may find it difficult to comprehend the news as you may not even be interested in knowing these happenings at all. As you are all in F.6 now, I think it is the right time to broaden your horizons. I hope you all can try your best.

The first round of presentations is about to be finished. For the new round, I want you all to choose a piece of news from my website and present it to the whole class. Here are some additional requirements.

1. DO NOT simply give a summary of the news story. (You will be asked to present again in the following lesson.)
2. You need to show us that you understand the issue involved by telling your classmates your opinion.
3. Be prepared to answer my additional questions.
4. Your presentation should last more than 2 minutes.

I know it would give you some pressure. However, I do believe in one thing. Pressure motivates you to do better.

Regards,

Mr. Fu

Cantonese must be preserved: academic

An academic has defended Cantonese as a medium of instruction after a government advisory body this week backed a HK$200 million scheme to help schools use Putonghua to teach Chinese language.

The Standing Committee on Language Education and Research (Scolar) gave the go-ahead for the scheme to be implemented in 160 schools as part of a so-called "three-year tracking study".

But Pamela Leung Pui-wan, associate professor in the department of Chinese at the Hong Kong Institute of Education, said the proposal should not signal a move away from using Cantonese.

"It is a national trend to adopt Putonghua as the medium of instruction, but we can't let children miss out on the opportunity to be educated in their own dialect," Dr Leung said.

"Spoken Putonghua is similar to written Chinese and a closer medium for learning modern Chinese language, but it doesn't mean Cantonese is inferior."

"If students miss out on learning via Cantonese, it will be a real shame. Cantonese should be accurately preserved as it is a way of tracking human civilisation in the southern China region."

Although Dr Leung acknowledged the benefits of learning modern Chinese language in Putonghua, she said Cantonese made the study of ancient poetry more accurate because its pronunciation was similar to language used during the Tang and Qin dynasties.

Scolar chairman Michael Tien Pak-san said the purpose of the tracking study was to produce evidence to support using Putonghua to teach Chinese language and to raise the standards of Chinese language as part of a long-term strategy spelled out in a reform proposal published by the Curriculum Development Council.

The scheme would accept 30 primary schools and 10 secondary schools every year, with each school subsidised to hire a supplementary teacher.

Mainland consultants would also be brought in to offer advice.

Cheung Man-kwong, the lawmaker representing the education sector, said if Putonghua was not taught properly it could cause learning problems.

"This would outweigh the benefits of learning Chinese using Putonghua," he said.

Mr Cheung said he suspected there were patriotic and political rather than educational motives behind the move.

Mr Tien denied this. "We have never discussed patriotism and it will not involve political factors," he said.

Tam Yiu-chung, chairman of the pro-Beijing Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong, welcomed the scheme.

"I think this is a very good policy but it requires the correct implementation, such as teacher training and an appropriate time for the policy to mature," he said.

"The key problem for students and teachers is that there aren't many opportunities for them to actually speak the language."

Tin Shui Wai school overcomes hurdles

Xianggang Putonghua Yanxishe Primary School of Science and Creativity has been using Putonghua as a medium of instruction for all subjects except English since it opened in 2001. Principal Tong Pui-chi said her school, which uses Putonghua to teach Primary One to Six pupils subjects ranging from music to maths, struggled for the first year.

"The first year was the toughest for us because most kids didn’t understand much Putonghua,"€ Ms Tong said.

After that the Tin Shui Wai school introduced summer holiday Putonghua bridging courses, teaching pupils the basic language, common sentences and simple Pinyin (phonetics for Putonghua).

"Primary One is a transitional period for the pupils. We teach them how to use a dictionary to find out accurate pronunciation. Most are adapting well,"€ she said.

Using Putonghua as an instruction medium had proven effective in improving pupils'€™ writing ability, she said. "€œAlthough they can understand perfectly, a few shy students don'€™t like to speak in Putonghua,"€ Ms Tong said. But she added the problem could be overcome by using the right teaching methods.

Crowds flock to greet Batman

Batman is supposed to fight crime, but this week in Hong Kong he seemed stuck battling disgruntled residents and environmentalists.

But all the complaints stopped yesterday as the stars of The Dark Knight emerged from their luxury suites at the Four Seasons hotel - a little jetlagged but smiling - first to declare their love for Hong Kong and then to film on the city's streets.

More than 500 fans, tourists and curious onlookers armed with cameras jammed Lyndhurst Terrace and the Mid-Levels escalator in Central to watch the action unfold throughout the afternoon.

Director Christopher Nolan and stars Christian Bale (Batman) and Oscar-winner Morgan Freeman (Lucius Fox) arrived on Thursday night, but the production team had weathered a tough week without them.

First came noise complaints from Central and Western residents about low-flying aircraft and helicopters used to film certain scenes. Then there were claims that a scene where Batman falls into the harbour had to be cut due to pollution.

And finally there were complaints from environmentalists after producers urged commercial buildings along the harbourfront to keep their lights on all night to better illuminate the city. Only a few more than 20 per cent of those asked agreed to do so.

Nolan said he had the idea to take Batman out of Gotham City and bring him to Hong Kong to capitalise on the spectacular skyline. "Hong Kong is really an extraordinary place to take this character out of his ordinary environment," he said. Freeman said he had enjoyed the view from his hotel room on the 46th floor.

Bale said he was looking forward to "climbing your highest buildings and jumping off them". He did not jump, but standing in his bat suit at the edge of Hong Kong's tallest building, Two IFC, he certainly made for spectacular viewing for those with telescopes and binoculars.

On the escalator, dozens of police struggled to keep control as fans tried to get close to the stars. During the shoot, Bale looked cool in a tie-less suit and sunglasses and waved to fans during breaks in filming. Freeman walked close to Bale and the two exchanged words.

Before action was called, assistant director Gary Mak Wing-lun used hand signals to remind the crowd to keep silent. Shooting finished at 5.30pm. Mak said the day's filming had been "very, very smooth. The onlookers have been very co-operative, although some camera flashes hindered the shooting".

The crowd included Kitty, who had come all the way from New York and dressed for the occasion in a black shirt, skirt and a Batman mask.

"I've been a superfan of Batman for 15 years," she said. "I am very excited and I can tell my friends 'I was there for the movie'."

Lyndhurst Terrace newspaper vendor Cheng Kwong-sum said 20 per cent of his newspapers were unsold but it was a "worthy sacrifice to have such a big movie shoot here".

Johnny Hanson, who owns the shop American Nutrition, had Bale stop and buy some products. "It kills business, but it's good for the neighbourhood in the long term. Last time people came to buy things because they saw us in the movies."

Harry Potter most re-read book in Britain: survey

LONDON (Reuters Life!) - Nearly 80 percent of Britons have re-read a book, with the Harry Potter series the most likely to be picked up again, a survey revealed on Friday.

Some of the books that are re-read for pleasure are classics such as Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice" and Charlotte Bronte's "Jane Eyre".

Others in the top 10 include JRR Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings" and "The Hobbit" as well as Dan Brown's "The Da Vinci Code".

Batman shooting fails to thrill fans

The plane was there, as were two helicopters. But anxious fans along the harborfront failed to catch a glimpse of the caped crusader or even the Batman logo.

The plane was there, as were two helicopters. But anxious fans along the harborfront failed to catch a glimpse of the caped crusader or even the Batman logo. The helicopters and a C-130 Hercules plane glided low over Victoria Harbour yesterday past skyscrapers in Central, giving workers in the multi- storied commercial buildings a rare glimpse of the filming of Batman: The Dark Knight. But fans gathered along the harborfront were unimpressed. The plane had taken off from Chep Lap Kok at 5pm and was joined by two helicopters but, as one mother said, it was far from inspiring. "My son expected to see the Batman logo. This was no different from any other aircraft," she said. She added she had wasted two hours hoping to get a taste of the Hollywood magic and had promised to show her son the Batman plane. Instead, what they saw was nothing out of the ordinary. But other fans, such as former lawmaker Tik Chi-yuen, who had with him a toy Batman car and two planes, were in high spirits during the shooting of the film. The use of low-flying aircraft had created some concern about possible noise nuisance. The latest furor has shifted to environmental concerns. In a letter sent to tenants and management companies in 60 buildings, October Pictures, the Hong Kong company handling the production, said director Christopher Nolan loved Hong Kong's glittering skyline and wanted to show it off in his film. October Pictures manager Chu Chen-on asked the building managers to ask residents to switch on all lights and signboards during the shooting period. But Gabrielle Ho, a project manager at conservation group Green Sense, said film-making was being put ahead of environmental protection. "We believe producers are able to create the same effects through post-production work, but instead they are asking us to turn on so many lights, wasting so much energy," Ho said. Television and Entertainment Licensing Authority Commissioner Maisie Cheng Mei-sze said despite the many logistical challenges involved in making a Hollywood blockbuster, the effort is well worth it for Hong Kong. "Hong Kong has a world-famous skyline set against green hills and a beautiful harbor, all of which combine to make a magnificent canvas for any movie maker," she said.

Google phone

Google pushes into mobile phones

Google has unveiled software it hopes will power a variety of future mobile phones and boost the web on the move.

Link to the article.

Ocean Park ready to take on the world

Saudi Arabia and Shanghai want copy of HK attraction

Saudi Arabia and several mainland cities including Shanghai have expressed interest in building their own version of Ocean Park, according to a source close to the theme park.

The moves reflect keen international interest in the 30-year-old park, which has enjoyed growing attendance figures.

The park, home to Hong Kong's pandas, is undergoing an ambitious HK$5.5 billion facelift that is expected to further raise its profile.

A source said some private enterprises in Saudi Arabia and mainland cities such as Shanghai had expressed interest in building their own version of the park.

Saudi Arabia's consul-general in Hong Kong, Alaudeen Alaskary, confirmed the oil-rich country was studying the idea. "The talks are still at an initial stage," he said. "But Ocean Park is one of the most successful parks in the world. It is both amusing and educational."

Park chairman Allan Zeman might visit Saudi Arabia in January.

Mr Alaskary said such an undertaking would be financed by the private sector in both Saudi Arabia and Hong Kong and there was no need to speak to the government.

The country could also be interested in acquiring a stake in the Hong Kong park if it was open to outside investors, he said.

Investment-hungry Saudi Arabia, like Shanghai, is eager to upgrade its tourism infrastructure, spending billions of dollars to attract and develop first-class hotels and brand-name theme parks.

Both destinations are no stranger to theme parks and are home to local offerings - the Al-Shallal Theme Park in Jeddah and Jin Jiang Amusement Park in Shanghai - but want to capitalise on a successful brand name.

The Walt Disney Company, which has a theme park in Hong Kong, is eyeing Shanghai as the site of its first park on the mainland, as is Universal Studios.

According to the source, the likely financing structure of sister Ocean Parks outside Hong Kong would mirror the successful business model of Tokyo Disneyland.

Built and owned by Japan's Oriental Land, the Disney park pays a percentage of annual ticket sales and food and merchandise sales to Disney as a royalty fee to use its brand name and expertise.

"There is no need to use taxpayer money because we already have a proven business model in Tokyo Disneyland," the source said.

But Polytechnic University associate tourism professor John Ap said a potential stumbling block was the Ocean Park Corporation Ordinance, which restricts its sources of revenue to within the park.

Ocean Park has unsuccessfully lobbied the government for years to amend the law to allow it greater flexibility to seek outside sources of income, insisting its non-profit status would not be jeopardised.

Instead of relying mainly on admission fees, the park wants to be allowed to take on projects for paid services.

Ocean Park was founded in 1977 with Hong Kong Jockey Club funds.