CE candidates hold first debate on air

Excerpted from SCMP, Jan 30, 2012.

The first face-to-face debate between chief executive candidates was held on Monday morning, but only two of the three contenders showed up for the radio broadcast discussion.

Henry Tang Ying-yen was not present, leaving Leung Chun-ying and Albert Ho Chun-yan to challenge each other’s policies on population policy, on a Commercial Radio programme.

Leung called for stricter measures to stop mainland women giving birth in Hong Kong.

But he rejected Ho’s call for a Basic Law amendment to prevent children born in Hong Kong of mainland parents from gaining the right of abode. Such a move was unprecedented and would not solve the problem in the immediate future, Leung said.

Vocabulary

1. abode 住所, 住處
2. amendment 修正; 改善
3. Basic Law 政策法
4. broadcast 廣播; 廣播節目
5. candidate 候選人
6. challenge 挑戰; 質疑; 指責
7. chief executive
8. contender 爭奪者; 競爭者
9. debate 辯論, 爭論
10. face-to-face 面對面地
11. measure 尺寸; 措施; 手段; 基準, 尺度
12. population policy 人口政策
13. unprecedented 無先例的, 空前的

Discussion

1. Name the three chief executive candidates.
2. Who was absent from the debate?
3. Which word in the essay means "having no previous example"?

《元日》 王安石

爆竹聲中一歲除，春風送暖入屠蘇。千門萬戶曈曈日，總把新桃換舊符。

誦讀(粵語)

注釋

1. 元日：一年的第一天，即農曆正月初一。
2. 一歲除：一年過去了。
3. 屠蘇：酒名。中國古代風俗，每年除夕家家用屠蘇草泡酒，吊在井裏，元旦日取出來，全家按次序由幼小以至尊長喝屠蘇酒。
4. 曈曈：太陽初昇，由暗而漸漸明亮的樣子。 曈：粵[童]，[tuŋ4]；漢 [tóng]。

【想一想】

1. 詩人把 ________________________________，生動地描繪出來。
2. 香港的春節有甚麼傳統的習俗及活動？你最喜歡哪一項？ 
3. 你對保留傳統習俗有甚麼意見？

Maths Exercise 2

現在我想煮雞蛋，打算煮 15 分鐘，我有一個 7 分鐘的沙漏，還有一個 11 分鐘的沙漏，請問我應該如何用這兩個沙漏計時。

Maths Exercise 1

1. When 327 ÷ 27, the quotient is ______ and the remainder is ______.


Answer: Quotient     =  (   12   )  ;    Remainder =   (   3   )

2. Change    into a percentage.


Answer : (   52   )%


3.Change 136% into a fraction and reduce it to its simplest form.


Answer : (   1 9/25   )

買櫝還珠 [韓非子]

楚人有賣其珠於鄭者，為木蘭之櫃，薰以桂椒，綴以珠玉，飾以玫瑰，輯以羽翠，鄭人買其櫝而還其珠。此可謂善賣櫝矣，未可謂善鬻珠也。

注釋

1. 櫝：[讀]，[duk9]；[dú]。匣子。 
2. 為：製造。 
3. 木蘭之櫃：用木蘭這種香木造的小匣。櫃：當為「櫝」字。 
4. 薰：同「燻」，指香料的氣味接觸物體，使之沾上香氣。 
5. 桂椒：肉桂和花椒這兩種香料。 
6. 綴：點綴。 
7. 玫瑰：紅色的玉石。 
8. 輯：點綴、裝飾。 
9. 羽翠：當為「翡翠」。翡翠，綠色的玉石。 
10. 鬻：[育]，[juk9]；[yù]。賣。 

Dolce & Gabbana's apology too late

Dolce & Gabbana's apology too late

Jan 19, 2012 SCMP

After weeks of protests over its photo ban against Hongkongers, Dolce & Gabbana finally broke its silence early yesterday morning - as most of the city slept - to say it was "truly sorry".

But the delayed apology was not enough to appease some angry internet users, who suggested another photo shoot protest be staged on Sunday. The Italian fashion house issued a statement around 3am yesterday apologising for alleged criminal intimidation of a photographer outside its Harbour City store.

"We understand that the events which unfolded in front of the Dolce & Gabbana boutique on Canton Road have offended the citizens of Hong Kong," it said. "For this we are truly sorry and we apologise."

Internet users rejected the apology, however. "Although the company apologised, it did so for having offended Hong Kong residents. It did not admit that it was wrong ... to ban photos from being taken," said the creator of a Facebook page promoting another protest this Sunday. The company has offered no guarantee that it will allow photographs to be taken outside the store in future, and did not identify the security guard responsible for the discriminatory comments, the Facebook page said.

Vocabulary

1. alleged 被說成的

2. apology 道歉

3. ban 禁止

4. boutique 女裝商店

5. broke its silence 打破沈默

6. criminal 犯法的; 刑事

7. discriminatory 歧視性的

8. intimidation 恐嚇

9. offend 觸怒

10. security guard 警衛

11. statement 聲明

Local mothers in protest over beds shortage

Local mothers in protest over beds shortage
Monday, January 16, 2012 The Standard

Despite the rain, about 400 mothers-to-be, young couples and parents wheeling their infants in prams yesterday marched from Victoria Park to the Government Headquarters in Tamar to protest against the shortage of maternity beds.

With blue ribbons tied around their left wrists to signify unity and carrying banners proclaiming "Reclaim the rights of Hong Kong moms and children," "Defend order and culture of our home city," and "Stop the abuse of local public resources," the protesters, supported by 74,000 on Facebook, said it is time to say "no" to mainland parents giving birth in Hong Kong."

In response, Hospital Authority chief executive Leung Pak-yin said the authority will consider admitting fewer expectant women from the mainland during the Year of the Dragon.

Leung said some public hospitals have already stopped accepting advance bookings by mainlanders.

The spokeswoman for the protest group, Yeung Ka-lee, said local mothers are upset at the government's incompetence in formulating a long-term population policy.

Vocabulary
1. Chief executive
2. Government Headquarters in Tamar
3. Hospital Authority
4. Local public resources
5. Mainlanders
6. Population policy
7. Protestor
8. Victoria Park