HK’s Lam cautions of ‘economic tsunami’
Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor announced on Friday that the government will step up a series of measures to support society as the city braces for a possible “economic tsunami”.
To speed up the move, the Executive Council — the de facto cabinet of Hong Kong’s chief executive, originally scheduled to be resumed on Aug 27 — will resume instead on Tuesday, the chief executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region announced.
The city is feeling the pinch from more than two months of anti-extradition bill protests along with the escalating China-United States trade dispute, and the resulting possible economic crisis could be a situation worse than the 2003 SARS epidemic or the 2008 global financial meltdown.
A whole package of stimulus measures will be introduced to support employment and lend a helping hand to the city’s affected companies in an upcoming policy-related address in October, Lam said.
“Hong Kong cannot be messed up. This is the consensus I have reached with 33 representatives from the business community at the meeting,” she said.
Flanked by nine ministers and business leaders at a news conference after concluding a meeting with the representatives on Friday, Lam said the government’s overarching goal is to put an end to violent clashes, restore social order and fearlessly safeguard the city’s rule of law.
Tourism is among the first sectors to suffer. Hong Kong’s major civil aviation labor unions voiced strong objection to mass sit-ins at Hong Kong International Airport as it turns the city’s transport hub into a political chip against the government.
The Staff & Workers Union of Hong Kong Civil Airlines issued a statement as hundreds of protesters started the sit-in against the now-suspended extradition bill on Friday afternoon.
The union was speaking on behalf of seven affiliated unions of different occupations, including ground staff, catering, logistics and cargo services.
“The HKIA is the economic lifeline of the city. Occupying the airport will only damage the city’s economy and the livelihood of airport staff, as it has been recently been proved that these protests will end up in violent clashes,” according to the statement.
The union appealed to fellow members and Hong Kong citizens not to take part in the rally or any campaign intended to undermine the airport’s operations for political purposes.
On July 26, thousands of blackclad protesters occupied the airport’s arrival hall to stage a similar sit-in protest, which disrupted air travel.
The sit-in protest in the airport arrival hall is scheduled to continue over the weekend. The city’s airport authority said it strengthened its safety checks and only departing passengers with valid travel documents will be allowed to enter the terminal.
Over the weekend, planned antigovernment marches in four districts of Hong Kong have been prohibited by the police for security reasons, according to police spokespersons at a news conference.
Ng Lok-chun, senior superintendent of the Hong Kong Island Regional Headquarters, the local police force, said the decision was made upon consideration of public safety and order, and protection of other people’s rights and freedoms.
A series of recent protests escalated into violent clashes with physical attacks, blocking of streets, damaging of public utilities and the setting of fires, and many participants, journalists and police officers were injured.
On Friday, representatives of different sectors in Hong Kong appealed to the public to reject violence and support the Hong Kong police in safeguarding the rule of law.
A cross-sector alliance set up against the recent violent protests — Safeguard Hong Kong — hoped that Hong Kong people will join a scheduled citywide pro-police campaign on Saturday. Activities include sending “thank you notes” to the police and expressing gratitude to the force online.