Taiwan stiffens resistance to china after hong kong crackdown

SINGAPORE: Singapore has cautioned wealth managers against aggressively marketing their services or making other efforts to woo clients to the city state by capitalising on rival Hong Kong's political turmoil , people with knowledge of the matter said. Officials from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) made the request last month to wealth managers, including DBS and a unit of Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp (OCBC), the people said, declining to be identified given the sensitivity of the matter. READ: Wealth managers head to Singapore as China concerns dim Hong Kong's lure The central bank told bankers it wanted to ensure wealth managers in Singapore were sensitive to the situation in Hong Kong and did not design campaigns specifically targeting business from Hong Kong, the people said. The move comes as Hong Kong has been thrown into turmoil by a proposed extradition bill - declared dead this week by its chief executive Carrie Lam - that for the first time would … [Read more...] about Singapore cautions wealth managers on aggressively courting Hong Kong business

HONG KONG: Hong Kong's government is defending the city's ban on same-sex unions at a landmark court challenge days after neighbouring Taiwan legalised gay marriage in an unprecedented first for Asia. Despite growing public support for gay marriage in the international financial hub, campaigners have made little headway against staunch opposition from the city's successive pro-Beijing governments and religious conservatives. A Hong Kong woman, known only as MK, is suing the government for denying her right to enter into a civil partnership with her female partner, arguing the ban is unconstitutional. The case is currently being heard by the Court of First Instance. READ: China signals won't follow Taiwan in allowing same-sex marriage Defending the current ban, government lawyer Stewart Wong told the court Wednesday (May 29) that marriage would be "diluted and diminished" and "no longer special" if that right was granted to same-sex couples. "Not all differences in … [Read more...] about Hong Kong government defends gay marriage ban in court

HONG KONG: The world's biggest gambling hub of Macau will ban entry from Wednesday (Mar 25) for visitors from mainland China, neighbouring Hong Kong and Taiwan who have travelled overseas in the previous 14 days, as it battles a coronavirus pandemic. Macau has 25 infections and visitors from the Greater China region make up more than 90 per cent of its tourists. Last week it had banned foreign visitors and foreign non-resident workers, while exempting those from the mainland, Hong Kong and Taiwan. People who have not travelled abroad in the past two weeks also face 14 days of quarantine, Ho Iat Seng, the leader of the former Portuguese colony, said on Tuesday. "The government assures all Macau citizens it will do a good job in epidemic prevention at any cost," Ho added. READ: Macau casino takings plunge record 88% after virus closures Although Macau's casinos have reopened after a two-week suspension in February, revenues have plummeted by almost 90 per cent, hit by visit … [Read more...] about COVID-19: Macau announces new restrictions on Hong Kong, China visitors

HONG KONG: Hong Kong has evacuated more than 100 people from a residential building in the New Territories district of Tsing Yi, after four residents in two different apartments tested positive for the coronavirus, authorities said early on Tuesday (Feb 11). Locals were forced to leave in the early hours as health officials in masks and white overalls scrambled to work out whether the virus had spread through the 35-storey complex that houses some 3,000 people. Officials said Tuesday's relocation of residents in Tsing Yi district was a precautionary measure after three members of the same family contracted the virus. The family lived 10 floors directly below another man who had already been diagnosed as a carrier. AUTHORITIES UNCLEAR ON ROUTE OF TRANSMISSION "We are not sure what was the exact route of transmission," Wong Ka-hing, from the Centre for Health Protection, told reporters. "It could still be through the usual method of droplets or contact." … [Read more...] about Hong Kong evacuates residential building after virus cluster find

HONG KONG — China’s plan to dramatically reform Hong Kong’s electoral system, expected to be unveiled in a parliamentary session in Beijing starting this week, will upend the territory’s political scene, according to more than a dozen politicians from across the spectrum. The proposed reform will put further pressure on pro-democracy activists, who are already the subject of a crackdown on dissent, and has ruffled the feathers of some pro-Beijing loyalists, some of whom may find themselves swept aside by a new and ambitious crop of loyalists, the people said. “It will be an earthquake shaking up local political interests,” said one person briefed on the impending changes. The measures will be introduced at the annual meeting of the National People’s Congress, China’s rubber-stamp parliament, which starts on Friday, according to media reports. The plan was signaled last week by senior Chinese official Xia Baolong, who said Beijing would introduce systemic changes to only allow … [Read more...] about China’s electoral reform ‘earthquake’ set to upend Hong Kong politics