Hong Kong Taxis Finally Take E-Payments

Seems like every payment option is covered in this cab

Hong Kong taxi drivers have finally been pulled kicking and screaming into the hi-tech age, now that they must offer at least two electronic payment options to customers.

While the Transport Department rule was supposed to be in effect April 1, in reality not all 47,000 cabbies were on board... yet.

There were reports some drivers had yet to even install e-payments in their taxis, while others were able to take Octopus, credit cards, or Alipay or WeChat pay via QR codes.

The maximum fine for not installing at least two e-payment systems is HK$5,000 (US$637). 

It is anticipated that most taxi drivers will not have the credit card option, as the machine costs HK$1,000 and credit card companies will take a percentage of the fare.

While it's high time taxi drivers give alternative ways for customers to pay other than cash, there is the issue of adding gas to the tank and renting the taxi. 

"I just received a payment by credit card. It worked fine, you just tap it, like tapping a card, and it's done," said taxi driver Chiu Sing-ki, in his sixties. 

"But when we refuel, we have to pay cash. When I hand in the rented car at the end of my shift to the owner, I also have to pay cash. So where does my cash come from if we are receiving these e-payments all the time?"

He has a point. Did the Transport Department think about that???

Freeland the Target of Online Attacks Allegedly from China

Freeland was target of online attacks apparently from China

It appears China does not like Liberal leadership candidate Chrystia Freeland, following the monitoring of several posts on WeChat seen by over 3 million people.

The Security and Intelligence Threats to Elections Task Force (SITE) said an information operation directed at Freeland was traced to WeChat's "most popular news account", apparently an anonymous blog that experts have linked to the People's Republic of China.

SITE, which is made up of senior Canadian intelligence and security officials, said in a statement Friday that over 30 WeChat news accounts took part in the campaign from January 29 to February 3.

She is in the running to replace Trudeau

"The campaign received very high levels of engagement and views, with WeChat news articles disparaging Ms. Freeland netting over 140,000 interactions," it said.

The task force estimates between 2 million to 3 million users globally saw the posts, without elaborating on what the "derogatory" content was.

In reaction to the news, Freeland, who was formerly the finance and deputy minister in the Trudeau administration until December, was undeterred.

"I will not be intimidated by Chinese foreign interference," she wrote in a social media post. "Having spent years confronting authoritarian regimes, I know firsthand the importance of defending our freedoms."

Interestingly this development comes on the heels of the public inquiry into foreign election interference that recently wrapped up, calling misinformation and disinformation an "existential threat."

Hogue warned of "existential threat" in report

"Misinformation and disinformation have the ability to distort our discourse, change our views and shape our society," Commissioner Marie-Josee Hogue wrote in her final report.

"In my view it is no exaggeration to say that at this juncture, information manipulation (whether foreign or not) poses the single biggest risk to our democracy."

How will Beijing react? Either defiant denial or gaslighting?

Din Tai Fung Closes 14 Restaurants in China

The Taiwanese chain is closing 14 restaurants in China

When I was in Beijing, I was thrilled to see a Din Tai Fung open at a mall called Shin Kong Place, and ate there several times after work. 

So I was surprised to hear the Taiwanese restaurant chain known for its xiaolongbao is closing 14 stores in China, but perhaps it is indicative of the country's weak economy and how the Chinese are looking for cheaper places to eat.

The signature xiaolongbao at Din Tai Fung

On Monday the company's subsidiary, Beijing Hengtai Feng Catering Company announced it will close all of its 14 restaurants in northern China, including one in Xiamen. The brand's parent company in Taipei confirmed its 18 remaining restaurants across eastern China, run by a Shanghai-based partner, will continue operations.

"We deeply apologise for the inconvenience and disappointment this decision may cause our many loyal Din Tai Fung customers," the subsidiary said in a statement on WeChat. The move will affect some 800 employees.

When China finally lifted Covid-19 restrictions, Chinese residents headed out of the country on "revenge travel", and much like Hong Kong, local restaurants lost a lot of business. And now as the property market crisis trickles down, people are more cautious with spending, and that has adversely affected restaurants.

"The current situation in China is that while there is still traffic, the consumption power is weak, including in the restaurant service industry," said Darson Chiu, a Taiwan-based economist and director general of the Confederation of Asia-Pacific Chambers of Commerce and Industry.

At the entrance cooks make dumplings by hand

"A high-end brand like Din Tai Fung may not be able to meet the consumers' needs as they downgrade their consumption in China's current economic environment.

Indeed. Cheng Zhiwu, a professor of finance at the University of Hong Kong, found that some restaurants in Nanjing offered food for a table of 10 guests for 400 yuan (US$56), or 40 yuan per head, down from the previous price of 700 yuan.

Another factor in Din Tai Fung's closures may be because a lot of expats left China, and they made about 20 to 30 percent of the restaurant chain's business. 

It was just so interesting to see a Taiwanese brand become so successful in China despite all the political sabre rattling across the South China Sea. But alas, the slowing economy has forced Din Tai Fung to retreat...

Gene-Editing Biophysicist Gets HK Visa

He back in 2018 explaining how he gene-edited in vitro

We temporarily interrupt our report on San Diego to bring the news that the Chinese biophysicist who performed gene editing in vitro on twins in 2018 has recently been granted a visa to live and work in Hong Kong under the "Top Talent Pass Scheme".

This scheme is Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu's attempt to lure talent back to the city in a bid to stem the ongoing exodus of people from academics to lawyers, financiers, teachers and students.

However, allowing the controversial He Jiankui -- who was convicted under Chinese law and spent three years in jail for this illegal medical practice -- into Hong Kong not only rings alarm bells to the highest level ethically, but also speaks to how desperate the city is to accumulate "talent".

He was jailed for three years for illegal practice

He posted on WeChat on Saturday that he had been granted a Hong Kong visa on February 11 under the "Top Talent Pass Scheme" that was launched on December 28 last year.

In addition he wrote he was "optimistic about [the future of] Hong Kong", and that he was excited to continue his research there, but did not elaborate with whom.

Why is the Hong Kong government allowing a well-known person who was convicted and completed his sentence in April to be approved for this visa? 

Meanwhile people in the medical research field are shocked that He is coming to the city.

A veteran medical researcher with a Hong Kong university said on condition of anonymity that he found the news of He coming was "pretty surprising".

"He obviously has a criminal record in the mainland... I can't imagine anyone in universities would collaborate with him," the researcher said.

Five years later with much less hair

Ah, but now with practically all the universities in Hong Kong now run by chancellors with mainland Chinese backgrounds who are more pliant, surely it wouldn't be hard for the government to gently twist an arm or two to give He a position?

This is what Hong Kong has become -- a haven for sanctioned Russian oligarchs [Alexei Mordashov] and convicted Chinese biophysicists... sounds like just the right mix of people the city needs to get back on its feet.

Snitch on Lone Wolves and Radicals

Lam warns of "lone wolves and radicals" in the community

Is it a coincidence? Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor said in a weekly address to the media today that there are "lone wolves and radicals" in Hong Kong, and it just so happens that the police have announced they will be launching a counter-terrorism hotline on June 8 for the public to report on terrorism or violence-related crimes.

Lam made the remark after a reporter asked her how she felt about some people's decision to commemorate the June 4 massacre near Victoria Park.

Hotline set up to report terrorism activities 

"It's not about my personal views. Two years after the implementation of the national security law, the overall political situation in Hong Kong is stable," she said.

"But the police commissioner, the secretary for security and myself have often reminded the public that there are many hidden problems. There are lone wolves and radicals who went underground.

"Radicals are very likely to use large-scale events or sensitive days to incite others to come out and do damaging things," Lam said.

And so she is asking for the public's assistance in ferreting out these "lone wolves and radicals", by reporting them to this Counter-terrorism Reporting Hotline, which replaces the Anti-violence Hotline that was set up during the 2019 protests.

"Apart from violent acts, the public may also report suspected terrorism-related activities around them, in particular extremist plots, via this upgraded hotline," the police said in a statement.

Leung Wai-ki encourages public to report tips

"Reporting such acts without delay will prevent and combat extremist activities more effectively. The public will also be able to protect themselves, their relatives and friends."

Ah, so basically another snitch line set up to report on others via SMS or WeChat and create a climate of fear and insecurity.

Senior Superintendent of the force's Inter-departmental Counter Terrorism Unit Leung Wai-ki says even though stability has returned after the implementation of the national security law, some local extremists have taken their activities underground, which is why the force is relying on the public for information.

He says they are planning to pay rewards to those who provide reliable and crucial intelligence.

This hotline sounds like it could easily be abused on the basis of national security... but the main thing is creating an atmosphere of wariness and mistrust.

With Lee coming in, security will be paramount

Good thing we have incoming Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu to the rescue!