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新民黨 公布 派出29人參選 2023年區議會一般選舉
新民黨 公布 派出29人參選 2023年區議會一般選舉
日期︰2023 年 10 月 20 日
2023年區議會一般選舉將於12月10日(星期日)舉行,新民黨今天(20日)上午舉行記者會,正式公布參選2023年區議會一般選舉,分別派出17人參選區議會地方選區選舉,12人出選地區委員會界別選舉,合共29人參選(參選人名單見附件)。
新民黨今早於灣仔舉行記者會,新民黨主席葉劉淑儀女士、常務副主席黎棟國先生、副主席容海恩女士、副主席潘國山先生、執行委員陳家珮女士、中央委員李梓敬先生、中央委員何敬康先生、執行委員曾向群先生,及執行委員周國泉先生,向傳媒與公眾分享是次新民黨的參選理念,及對29位參選人表示全力支持。
本屆區議會 將體現完善地區治理
記者會於上午10時30分開始,先由主席葉劉淑儀女士致辭:「多謝各位今天出席新民黨的記者會,今年12月10日的區議會選舉是一場非常重要的選舉,是香港完善選舉制度之後的『第三步曲』,是完善地區治理作用的選舉。2019年的區議會選舉是一場不正常的選舉,充滿暴力,有人打著民主旗號參選,但無真正為民做事,甚至有當選議員,現在涉嫌觸犯刑事罪行,情況令人擔心。」
新民黨參選人三大優勢
「我們新民黨培養的團隊有幾個特點,第一,相對年輕;學歷較高;也會全心全意為地區服務,真正愛國愛港。我呼籲已登記的選民,在12月10日出來投神聖一票,讓區議會選出真正為市民服務、才德兼備、品格好、有能力的年輕人為各位服務!」
葉太又向各位綜合分析新民黨29位參選人的特色:「今次新民黨參加直選有17人;參加地區委員會界別選舉有12人,共有29人。其中男士有24位,比例佔83%;女士佔近20%。另有一位少數族裔,是土生土長的印裔參選人。參選人之中,最年輕為24歲,最年長為47歲,平均年齡37歲。而30歲以下的參選人佔14%;40歲以下比例佔72%。學歷方面,大學畢業的參選人佔86%;碩士或以上學歷人士佔38%。我們也有一位現任區議員爭取連任。他們各位都是非常優秀,且多年在地區服務,因此我很高興向各位市民介紹,他們各人都是愛國愛港、年輕、有良好學歷、全心全意為地區工作的候選人。」
呼籲12月10日積極投票
常務副主席黎棟國先生表示:「未來我們將迎接非常重要的時刻,在選舉期間,我寄語各位候選人盡心盡力,向各區選民宣揚在區內如何為居民服務,通過各位的政綱、努力與誠意,打動每位市民的心,我誠意邀請各位選民在12月10日當天行使神聖的責任,向心儀的候選人投出一票,相信眾志成城,通過努力,不但可在區議會選舉選出愛國愛港、熱切為居民服務的區議員,更可藉是次選舉,向香港以外的所有人實在表現出在完善選舉制度之後,我們的地區行政將煥然一新,邁步向前,為香港的社區建設,為街坊的福祉盡最大的努力,令我們有更美好的社會與充滿關愛的社區!」
副主席潘國山先生表示:「新民黨多年來一直在社區,堅守地區服務,在葉太一聲令下,接觸每位市民聆聽各位的訴求與選擇,我們會一直堅持做好社區工作。新民黨除了立法會議會工作,地區工作也從不鬆懈,請大家支持新民黨!」
在新民黨各領導致辭及勉勵後,29位分別參選區議會地方選區選舉,與地區委員會界別選舉的新民黨成員逐一向傳媒亮相,並作簡單自我介紹,呼籲選民支持。
17人參選區議會地方選區選舉
29位參選人之中,有17人參選區議會地方選區選舉,他們分別是:參選東區康灣選區的林梓鴻先生;參選東區太北選區的雷有得先生;參選東區柴灣選區的周卓然先生;參選灣仔選區的黃守東先生;參選西區選區的吳家超先生;參選中區選區的郭杰駿先生、參選南區西北的崔添偉先生;南區東南的江卓姿女士;爭取連任、參選屯門北選區的蘇嘉雯女士;已做區議員16年、爭取「重返議會」、參選沙田東選區的姚嘉俊先生;參選沙田北選區的羅伊琳女士;參選沙田南選區的林宇星先生;參選大埔北選區的劉文杰先生;參選北區紅花嶺選區的孔永業先生;參選將軍澳北選區的陳志豪先生;參選西貢及坑口選區的甘佳璋先生;與新民黨唯一的九龍區參選人、參選油尖旺南選區的白俊達先生(Jimmy Singh Baljinder)。
12人參選地區委員會界別選舉
至於12位出選地區委員會界別選舉的參選人,分別為:出選東區區議會的劉聖雪女士;出選南區區議會的黃雨程女士;出選離島區議會的曾昭浴先生;出選屯門區議會的甘文鋒先生,與鄺珉樀先生;出選沙田區議會的張柏源先生、夏劍琨先生、梁昊佳先生、梁家瑋先生;出選西貢區議會的陳健浚先生,與譚竹君女士;與出選大埔區議會的陳建君女士。
各參選人介紹自己的代表選區與發表參選宣言後,在記者會尾昇部分進行大合照,呼籲選民積極去投票,支持新民黨各參選人,也齊聲祝願,是次區議會選舉新民黨旗開得勝!
記者會後,多位參選人旋即展開競選工程,在今天先後在多區提交報名表。今天下午,報名參選的新民黨參選人為:甘文鋒先生、鄺珉樀先生、蘇嘉雯女士、林梓鴻先生、周卓然先生、雷有得先生、劉聖雪女士、吳家超先生、郭杰駿先生、曾昭浴先生、崔添偉先生,與江卓姿女士。
新民黨參選2023年區議會一般選舉的參選名單下載
選舉廣告 2023年區議會一般選舉
新民黨秘書處 香港灣仔軒尼詩道139號
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Like it or not, Chinese ‘boys’ love’ fiction is popular in the West
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The op-ed, “How to tell China’s story” (July 14), misses an important genre which has gained growing popularity in the West and is far more telling of life in contemporary China than decades-old titles like Life and Death in Shanghai or Wild Swans.
I am referring to the internet fiction genre of danmei. Danmeiis a term which originated in Japan. This new genre has given rise to many phenomenally successful internet novels that have been turned into wildly popular Chinese television drama series and spawned English translations. An outstanding example is Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation: Mo Dao Zu Shi, which was turned into a Chinese drama series, The Untamed, in 2019, translated into English and made available on Amazon. The Untamed catapulted two young actors, Xiao Zhan and Wang Yibo, to superstardom in China. Another highly successful publication is The Husky and His White Cat Shizun, the English version of which was on The New York Times’ bestselling list. The English version has such a wide following in the West that paperback editions are available.
Danmei novels celebrate “boys’ love” which is frowned on by the authorities. Immortality, a big-budget Chinese drama series produced by Tencent and based on The Husky, has been put on hold. But the genre continues to have a cult following in China and overseas, inspiring fan art, fan fiction and merchandise.
A lot of boys’ love internet novels were written by women for women. Why are they so popular with women in China? Their popularity reflects the frustration of contemporary Chinese women caught between the traditional, pragmatic, family-first concept of marriage and their yearnings for romance and true love as glorified in danmei fiction. Such fiction has become their channel for fantasy and escapism. Surprisingly the novels have also struck a chord with Western audiences.
While drama series based on such fiction have been banned, animated versions of some popular titles continue to be produced. The resilience of this genre, decried by the authorities as a lowbrow deviation from the officially sponsored “main melody” productions, reflects a subtle, ongoing tussle between the authorities and creative artists. Most of the time the authorities win, but the bans have not stopped private enterprise and creative genius from finding room for this genre to flourish. Call it the “one eye open, one eye shut” attitude of the authorities?
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盛事貴精不貴多 / Quality is more important than quantity for mega-events
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特區政府自去年開始推動盛事經濟,希望透過舉辦及支持國際級大型盛事(mega events),吸引高增值旅客訪港,加強本港旅遊業的競爭力,提振經濟。
根據政府提供的盛事年表,香港在2024 年全年將舉辦多達數百項大型盛事,數量之龐大,不禁讓人臆想,這些活動真的能稱得上是「盛事」嗎?
現時,對國際級大型盛事較主流的定義源自蘇黎世大學在2015 年一篇論文中提出的標準。作者認為一項盛事活動的訪客人數(visitor attractiveness)、轉播收益(mediated reach)、活動成本(cost)及對城市基建規劃的影響(urban transformation)都要達到一定規模才能定義為國際級大型盛事。
按照上述定義,如Taylor Swift 及其他國際級巨星舉辦的巡迴演唱會,或像 LIV Golf 巡迴賽和國家七人欖球賽等大型體育賽事都屬於國際級大型盛事。但規模如此龐大的活動,涉及海量的前期籌備工作,對場地亦有一定要求,每年能舉辦一至兩場已是不易。
反觀盛事年表所羅列的活動,不少活動或規模太小,或目標客群太窄,有些只是行業展覽,難以吸引境外旅客訪港,實在不能稱之為盛事。更令人嘆息的是,特區政府為不少「盛事」提供了資助,但這些活動本身的吸金能力相當有限,非但不能振興消費市道,反而導致公帑打了水漂。
以今年2 月舉辦的「Chubby Hearts Hong Kong」為例,政府慷慨地資助主辦方780 萬港元,但對活動的討論始終只停留在本地的媒體間,並未引起境外媒體關注,遑論吸引旅客訪港。
雖然政府推動盛事經濟的政策初衷良好,但這些所謂盛事屢次甩碌出醜,加上現時財政緊絀,政府應重新檢視成效。長遠而言,我認為政府應放棄「廣撒網、多斂魚」的思維,集中資助有真正吸金能力的盛事,避免再次「倒錢落海」。
Quality is more important than quantity for mega-eventsSince last year, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government has been promoting the mega-events economy, hoping to attract high-yielding visitors to Hong Kong through hosting and supporting international mega-events, strengthen the competitiveness of the local tourism industry, and boost the economy.
According to the event calendar provided by the government, Hong Kong will host over hundreds of major events throughout 2024. The massive scale prompts wonder - can these activities truly be called "mega-events"?
Currently, the more mainstream definition of international mega-events comes from criteria proposed in a 2015 paper by University of Zurich. It argued that the visitor attractiveness, mediated reach, cost and impact on urban planning of an event need to reach a certain scale to be defined as an international mega-event.
According to these definitions, concerts by Taylor Swift and other international megastars, or large-scale sporting events like the LIV Golf Tour and National Seven-a-Side Rugby would constitute international mega-events. However, events of such scale involve tremendous preparation work and have certain venue requirements - it would already be difficult to host one to two annually.
In contrast, many events listed in the calendar have either too small a scale, narrow target audience or are simply trade exhibitions, failing to attract foreign visitors to Hong Kong and not qualifying as mega-events. More regrettably, the SAR government has subsidized numerous "mega-events" but their ability to generate revenue is limited, instead of stimulating consumption they divert public funds.
Taking "Chubby Hearts Hong Kong" in February as an example, the government generously funded the organizer $7.8 million HKD but discussion around the event was confined locally, without catching foreign media attention much less attracting tourists.
While the mega-events economic policy intent is sound, these so-called events have repeatedly underdelivered. With fiscal austerity, the government should re-evaluate effectiveness. In the long run, relying less on a scattergun approach and concentrating resources on events with genuine revenue-generating ability could prevent further waste of public money.
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英國制度缺點的完美體現 / The Perfect Embodiment of the Flaws in the British System
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前文提到,工黨議員韋雅蘭(Angela Rayner)憑高中輟學學歷成為新一任英國副首相,引來外界的關注。回顧歷史,英國歷屆政府只有8 位首相未獲得大學學位,而韋雅蘭更是唯一一位學歷為高中輟學的副首相。
有支持者認為,韋雅蘭能透過選舉一躍成為英國政府的二把手,既體現了民主制度中「主權在民」(popular sovereignty)的核心理念,亦證明了即使階級制度森嚴如英國,基層人民仍可憑藉自己的才能實現向上流動,反映出英式民主制度的優越性。但我認為韋雅蘭的任命非但未能體現英國政制的優點,反而進一步揭示了其制度的缺陷。
英國選舉採用單議席單票制,每個選區只有一個議席並以多數制決定勝負。在多黨競爭的情况下,很容易出現候選人在未獲得多數票的情况下當選。加上英國是按註冊選民數量,而非實際人口數量去劃分選區,導致選舉結果更容易向兩大黨傾斜。在這種扭曲選制下誕生的議員是否真的具有民意授權,是個值得商榷的問題。其次,英國內閣大臣的任命除考慮議員自身能力外,亦取決於其在政黨內的站隊,投機成分相當大。
韋雅蘭之所以能在2015 年首次進入下議院後,在翌年就迅速獲任命為影子內閣大臣,主要得益於她在2016 年工黨內訌時堅定站隊時任黨魁郝爾彬。實際上,英國政界都對韋雅蘭的晉升速度之快感到驚奇。當她在2023 年9 月影子內閣重組時獲委任為影子副首相一事,就引起了外界的激烈討論。
不過,副首相本身僅是一個非常設職務,任命與否全憑首相意願。由於沒有法定權力,副首相的實質權力及職能往往會視乎擔任者而有所差異,其主要職務更多時候是代替首相前往下議院接受議員質詢,屬於無所任大臣(minister without portfolio)的一種。我相信韋雅蘭是由於缺乏足夠的專業知識去處理其他部門的工作,才獲委任為副首相。
當一國的副首相是由一位才幹未受考驗,又無足夠民意授權的議會新兵擔任,又如何能顯示出英國的制度優勢?
The Perfect Embodiment of the Flaws in the British System
As mentioned earlier, Labour Party member Angela Rayner became the new UK Deputy Prime Minister with only a secondary education background, drawing public attention. Looking back in history, only 8 out of the UK's prime ministers did not have a university degree, while Rayner is the only deputy prime minister with an educational background of dropping out of high school.
Some supporters believe that Rayner's ability to rise through elections to become the UK government's second-in-command embodies the core idea of "popular sovereignty" in a democratic system, and proves that even in a strictly class-based system like the UK, grassroots people can still achieve upward mobility through their own abilities, reflecting the superiority of the British democratic system. However, I believe Rayner's appointment does not demonstrate the advantages of the UK political system, but further reveals its flaws.
The UK uses the single-seat single-vote constituency system for elections, with each constituency having only one seat decided by plurality voting. In a multi-party competition environment, candidates can easily win without obtaining a majority of votes. Coupled with the UK delineating constituencies based on registered voter numbers rather than actual population, the election results are more likely to tilt towards the two major parties. Whether MPs elected under such a distorted electoral system truly have a mandate from the people is debatable.
Furthermore, the appointment of UK cabinet ministers depends not only on the individual's capabilities but also on their positioning within the political party, with a high degree of opportunism.
The main reason Rayner was able to be appointed as a shadow cabinet minister in 2016, just a year after first entering the House of Commons in 2015, was because of her staunch support of then Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn during the Labour infighting in 2016. Actually, the speed of Rayner's rise surprised many in UK politics.
When she was appointed as Shadow Deputy Prime Minister in September 2023 during a reshuffle of the Shadow Cabinet, it sparked intense public discussion.
However, the role of Deputy Prime Minister itself is a non-permanent position determined by the Prime Minister's discretion. Due to its lack of statutory powers, the actual authority and functions of the Deputy Prime Minister can vary depending on the individual, with the main duties often being to replace the Prime Minister in responding to questions from MPs in the House of Commons - equivalent to a minister without portfolio. I believe Rayner was appointed as Deputy Prime Minister because she lacked sufficient professional knowledge to handle work in other departments.
How can the appointment of a deputy prime minister of a country who is an inexperienced new MP without sufficient democratic mandate demonstrate the advantages of the UK system?
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