Hong Kong
Crackdown by Hong Kong customs nets illegal cigarettes worth HK$57 million
Customs officers made this year’s largest seizure of contraband in the city on Tuesday, with an estimated value of HK$7.3 million
Contraband cigarettes worth more than HK$57 million have been confiscated by Hong Kong Customs in 12 cases of tobacco smuggling from the mainland so far this year, a customs official said on Wednesday.
Details were revealed by assistant superintendent Lau Yuk-lung ,who heads the Customs division investigating illicit cigarettes, after customs officers made this year’s largest seizure of contraband in the city on Tuesday.
The HK$7.3 million haul was discovered when officers intercepted a Hong Kong-bound container truck at Man Kam To Immigration Control Point. The import document claimed it carried more than 800 cartons of assorted goods such as metalware and clothes.
“When the container was opened for inspection, illicit cigarettes were found stashed in 160 cartons,” the assistant superintendent said.
He said initial investigations showed the consignment was intended for local consumption.
The Hong Kong driver, 28, was arrested and the truck was impounded. The driver was released on bail pending further investigations.
Lau believed the seized cigarettes were intended to supplement the illegal market after customs officers seized HK$3.8 million worth of illegal cigarettes from another cross-border truck at Lok Ma Chau border checkpoint on July 20.
“We are still investigating whether there is the same cigarette-smuggling syndicate behind the two cases,” he said.
The two cases were among 12 cross-border tobacco smuggling incidents uncovered by the Customs and Excise Department so far this year. Eleven people were nabbed in connection with the 12 cases.
Lau stressed that there was no evidence to indicate that there was an increasing trend of illegal trade of untaxed cigarettes in Hong Kong. “The situation is under control,” he added.
Meanwhile, customs officers mounted a city-wide operation against illegal cigarettes over the past two weeks.
During the operation, 47 suspected tobacco traffickers and buyers, aged from 14 to 82, had been rounded up with the seizure of HK$150,000 worth of contraband cigarettes recovered. Officers also uncovered eight warehouses used to store 450,000 illicit cigarettes worth HK$1.2 million across the city, and arrested seven people.
Under the Dutiable Commodities Ordinance, the maximum penalty for selling, buying or dealing with illicit cigarettes is a two years’ imprisonment and a HK$1 million fine.
Lau said they would continue to carry out stringent enforcement against illegal cigarette smugglers.
Members of the pubic are urged to call Custom’s 24-hour hotline on 2545 6182 to report suspected illicit cigarette activities.
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Source URL: http://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/2001877/hong-kong-customs-crackdown-nets-illegal-cigarettes-worth?edition=international
Medical sector heavyweights go head-to-head for functional constituency place
Former president for the Public Doctors’ Association Dr Pierre Chan Pui-yin, is facing private psychiatry specialist Dr John Wong Yee-him
Competition is expected to be fierce among candidates vying for functional constituency seats in the upcoming Legislative Council elections [1] on September 4. With 12 candidates in 10 functional constituencies being returned unopposed, 43 candidates will run for seats in 18 trade-based constituencies – four more contested functional constituencies than the 2012 Legco polls. Here, we look at the medical sector.
Two doctors actively involved in a recent battle against a government bill to reform the Medical Council are locked in a two-horse race for the medical sector seat in Legislative Council vacated by Dr Leung Ka-lau.
A young rising star in the medical sector, former president for the Public Doctors’ Association Dr Pierre Chan Pui-yin, is facing private psychiatry specialist Dr John Wong Yee-him.
Two other heavyweights who were eyeing the position, University of Hong Kong microbiologist professor Ho Pak-leung, and Medical Association president Dr Gabriel Choi Kin, decided not to run for the position in the last minute.
Chan, 38, a public gastroenterology specialist, gained fame last October when he led the biggest protest in the medical sector in eight years at public hospitals to fight for an extra 3 per cent rise for some senior doctors.
The battle against the authorities was a short one as the hospital chiefs soon bowed to the pressure and agreed to their demands. He stepped down as the president of the association in January.
An insider believed major supporters of Chan would be the public doctors, especially the younger ones.
Chan has been associated with younger groups of doctors in the sector who, unlike elder doctors who were in general more indifferent towards politics, adopted a more active and pro-democracy stance.
On the day he submitted his application on July 26, Chan said he objected to Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying being re-elected, and supported the accounting of the truth of the June 4 crackdown.
He would not rule out adopting filibuster tactics in the Legco again, but stressed such radical moves could be avoided if the government had enhanced its communication with all stakeholders.
The other hopeful, Wong, is more likely to draw votes from private doctors.
Wong, who gained his nomination from two vice presidents of the Medical Association, the city’s largest doctors’ group, said he aimed to assist the association in reforming the medical watchdog once he was elected.
The two are eyeing the seat left vacant by Leung, who has been occupying the position since 2008, before being re-elected again in 2012.
Ho, a former president for the association for public doctors and a highly respected scholar in the university, would have been Chan’s major rival if he decided to challenge him. But Ho announced he was backing off on Friday due to family reasons.
Dr Choi also decided to opt out because of multiple concerns.
“In the end I got cold-feet and decided not to go for it,” said Choi, 67, a well-respected private nephrologist. “Someone reminded me that entering the Legco might be a conflict of interest for my role as the president of the Medical Association.
“Also, I am a super-patient myself with all kinds of diseases and ailments one could ever imagine for an elderly [person]. I do not think I can shoulder the workload in the Legco without the likelihood of dying.”
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Source URL: http://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2000381/medical-sector-heavyweights-go-head-head-functional
Change in the air as Hong Kong health bureau bids to ban e-cigarettes and improve organ donation
In an exclusive interview with the Post, Undersecretary for Food and Health Professor Sophia Chan Siu-chee reveals the bureau’s goals in the final nine months of the current administration
Improved organ donation, regulation of e-cigarettes and more assistance for breastfeeding mothers are top priorities in the next nine months, the health bureau’s No 2 has revealed.
In an exclusive interview with the South China Morning Post, Undersecretary for Food and Health Professor Sophia Chan Siu-chee said they were all on the agenda in the final months of the current administration.
Chan was speaking in the aftermath of a setback for the ¬bureau, following the failure to ¬reform the doctors’ watchdog, the Medical Council. The reform bid collapsed after a prolonged ¬filibuster by medical sector lawmaker Dr Leung Ka-lau ran to the end of the final session of the Legislative Council.
“I was very disappointed … but looking ahead, there is a lot more to be done,” she said.
The campaign to promote ¬organ donation aims to double the number of registered donors in Hong Kong to 400,000 in the next two years.
The current rate of organ ¬donation in the city is among the lowest in the world, with only 5.8 donors for every million people in 2015 – suggesting at most a total of 42 donors, according to a recent Legislative Council study.
As of June 30, some 2,500 people were still in queues for vital organs. Chan said the donation rate was far from satisfactory and vowed that the government would improve education and awareness of the situation.
A committee to promote ¬organ donation, which Chan heads, was established in mid April and she said the government was planning a renewed push on the issue next month.
One suggestion was for the city to adopt an opt-out scheme, which would make all Hongkongers potential donors unless they gave specific instructions to the contrary.
But Chan, stressing the government was open to the idea, said a survey would be launched to gauge public opinion on the scheme, with a report to be made available by the end of the year.
The bureau is also determined to tighten regulations on e-cigarettes and is currently in talks with various government departments to look into banning their import and sale in Hong Kong.
Chan said a bill would be submitted on the matter in the next legislative term.
Reports had revealed children as young as six were among the users of e-cigarettes, a practice known as vaping, and she said that notices had been sent to schools warning them about the trend.
“This is very worrying as there are researchers suggesting that ¬e-cigarettes contain harmful ¬substances,” Chan said.
“And it seems the product is targeting young people.”
Meanwhile, with World Breastfeeding Week starting ¬today, local hospitals and clinics have been bidding to be recognised as baby friendly health ¬facilities – part of a breastfeeding initiative promoted by Unicef.
Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Yau Ma Tei is set to be the first hospital in the city to be officially awarded baby friendly status, while the Department of Health has also piloted breastfeeding friendly practices in three clinics.
In May, a Unicef survey ¬revealed that Hong Kong was ¬lagging when it came to providing family-friendly facilities.
Some 40 per cent of mothers in the city said they had an unpleasant experience while breastfeeding in a public place.
Other plans included a review on medical manpower and a ¬proposal to reform the health ¬insurance scheme, Chan said.
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Source URL: http://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/1997444/change-air-hong-kong-health-bureau-bids-ban-e?_=1470014862601
Hong Kong women and men enjoy world’s longest life expectancy due to low smoking rates, health experts claim
Second place held by Japanese women and Icelandic and Swiss men
Hong Kong’s women and men enjoy the longest life expectancy in the world, according to data released by Japan’s health and welfare ministry on Wednesday.
The average lifespan for women in Hong Kong is 87.32 years, and local men on average can expect to live to 81.24.
Japanese women took second place at 87.05, while Icelandic and Swiss men shared the second position in the men’s category at 81 years.
The overall life expectancy gap between women and men fell by 0.07 year last year, compared with the previous year’s figures.
Since 1985, Japanese womenhad the world’s longest average life expectancy. But this changed in 2011 when Hong Kong women overtook them after the catastrophic earthquake and tsunami in north-eastern Japan [2] in March that same year.
Japanese women then regained the top spot in 2012 and managed to retain it for three consecutive years until last year.
A Japanese health ministry spokesman said longer lifespans resulted from improved medical treatment and technology in beating diseases like cancer.
Meanwhile, local health experts expressed little surprise over the findings for Hong Kong.
University of Hong Kong public health professor Lam Tai-Hing said the city’s low smoking rates were the main reason for its life expectancy results. “Smoking in Hong Kong compared with 30 years ago has been reduced by half,” he said, adding that recent data showed 19 per cent of local men smoked and only 3 per cent of local women smoked.
Lam noted that, when compared with Japan’s number of smokers – 30 per cent of men and 10 per cent of women – Hong Kong would continue to eclipse Japan in life expectancy rates in future. Michael Ni Yuxuan, a clinical assistant professor of public health at HKU, agreed with Lam. “Hong Kong has extremely low tobacco rates compared with the UK, US and Japan,” he said.
Ni highlighted low infant and maternal mortality rates as another major factor. Department of Health figures showed infant mortality rates in the city dropped from 9.7 per 1,000 live births in 1981 to 1.3 per 1,000 last year.
But Lam cautioned that differences between Hong Kong and Japan had to be taken into consideration. “Hong Kong is a city. Japan is a whole country,” he said, explaining that Japanese living in rural areas may have worse nutrition than Hongkongers as well as less accessibility to health care and education – factors in life expectancy. “In general, people in the city have longer lives, and people in Hong Kong have good access to education, clean water and electricity,” he added.
Source URL: http://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/1995947/hong-kong-women-andmen-enjoy-worlds-longest-life?edition=hong-kong
Hong Kong Customs detects suspected case of smuggling illicit cigarettes at Lok Ma Chau Control Point
http://7thspace.com/headlines/529221/hong_kong_customs_detects_suspected_case_of_smuggling_illicit_cigarettes_at_lok_ma_chau_control_point.html
Hong Kong (HKSAR) – Hong Kong Customs detected a suspected case of smuggling illicit cigarettes at Lok Ma Chau Control Point on July 20. About 1.4 million sticks of suspected illicit cigarettes were seized and a man was arrested.
Customs officers intercepted an incoming lorry declared to contain electrical cords and chemical materials at Lok Ma Chau Control Point on July 20. After thorough inspection, Customs officers found about 1.4 million sticks of suspected illicit cigarettes mix-loaded with other goods in 14 carton boxes. The market value of the cigarettes was about $3.8 million with a duty potential of about $2.6 million.
The 53-year-old male driver was arrested and the lorry used for conveying the suspected illicit cigarettes was detained. The case is still under investigation.
A Customs spokesman said today (July 23), “Customs will continue to carry out stringent enforcement actions against the smuggling of illicit cigarettes at boundary control points.”
Under the Import and Export Ordinance, smuggling is a serious offence. The maximum penalty is a fine of $2 million and imprisonment for seven years.
LCQ20: Regulation of e-cigarettes
http://7thspace.com/headlines/528171/lcq20_regulation_of_e_cigarettes.html
Hong Kong (HKSAR) – Following is a question by the Dr Hon Priscilla Leung and a written reply by the Secretary for Food and Health, Dr Ko Wing-man, in the Legislative Council today (June 15):
Question:
In 2014, the World Health Organization issued a report proposing to bring electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) under regulation. Since then, a number of countries have enacted legislation to regulate e-cigarettes. Earlier on, the media captured photographs of a girl smoking a fruit-flavoured e-cigarette in a public place, causing some members of the community to worry about the increasing popularity of smoking e-cigarettes among young people and children in Hong Kong. They are of the view that there is an urgent need to regulate the manufacture, import, sale, distribution and publicity of e-cigarettes (including e-cigarettes not containing nicotine).In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)as the Food and Health Bureau (FHB) submitted a paper to the Panel on Health Services of this Council in as early as May last year indicating that the Government would study the enactment of legislation to regulate e-cigarettes, and the officials from the Bureau have reiterated such intention to the media in recent months, and quite a number of members of the community have also requested for expeditious enactment of legislation, of the timetable and details of such legislative work, and whether the authorities will undertake to introduce the relevant bill to this Council within this year;
(2)given that quite a number of e-cigarettes and e-cigarette liquid are currently sold on the Internet, how the Government has planned to regulate the online sale of e-cigarettes;
(3)whether it has studied how overseas legislation and relevant initiatives which regulate e-cigarette products not containing nicotine; if it has, of the details, as well as the provisions and initiatives which are of reference value to Hong Kong; and
(4)as it was discovered in a survey commissioned by FHB and conducted by the University of Hong Kong in the past two years that 2.6% of primary school students and 9% of secondary school students indicated that they had smoked e-cigarettes before, whether the authorities have launched publicity exercises targeting both secondary and primary school students on the perils of smoking e-cigarettes; if they have, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Reply:
President,
My reply to the questions raised by the Dr Hon Priscilla Leung is as follows:
(1)According to the Pharmacy and Poisons Ordinance (Cap. 138), e-cigarettes containing nicotine are considered pharmaceutical products.They have to comply with the relevant requirements on safety, quality and efficacy, and must be registered with the Pharmacy and Poisons Board of Hong Kong before they can be put up for sale or distribution in Hong Kong.Under the same ordinance, nicotine is categorised as Part 1 poison which can only be legally possessed or sold by licensed medicine dealers, including “licensed wholesale dealers” and “authorised sellers of poisons”. Illegal possession or sale of Part 1 poisons or unregistered pharmaceutical products is an offence.Any person convicted of the offence is liable to a maximum fine of $100,000 and imprisonment up to two years.
In addition, under section 3 of the Smoking (Public Health) Ordinance (Cap. 371), no person is allowed to smoke or carry a lighted cigarette, cigar or pipe in a no-smoking area, and “smoke” is defined as “inhaling and expelling the smoke of tobacco or other substance .”As such, smoking of e-cigarettes or similar products in a statutory no-smoking area is an offence.
We are discussing the legislative arrangements with relevant departments. It is expected that the amendment bill, which aims to completely prohibit the import, manufacture, sale, distribution and advertising of e-cigarettes, will be introduced for the scrutiny of the Legislative Council in 2016-17.
(2)The legislative proposal to regulate e-cigarettes being considered by the Government will apply to all sale activities of e-cigarettes, whether they are conducted physically or online.The Department of Health (DH) has put in place an established mechanism to monitor the drugs supplied on the market (including the Internet).The DH will carry out investigations upon receiving information about suspected illegal possession or sale of unregistered pharmaceutical products or Part 1 poisons, and take joint actions with the Police or make test purchases where necessary. Legal actions will be taken if any irregularities are detected.
(3)We note that other jurisdictions such as Singapore, the United States, the United Kingdom and a few other countries have planned / adopted measures to either regulate or completely prohibit the import, distribution and sale of e-cigarettes. We will study in details the regulatory approaches adopted by different jurisdictions and formulate a suitable tobacco control policy in the light of the actual situation in Hong Kong.
(4)The Tobacco Control Office (TCO) of the DH has, by producing and broadcasting more new TV and radio Announcements in the Public Interest, stepped up publicity to increase public awareness of the potential harm in using e-cigarettes.The TCO has also produced information leaflets and posters, and uploaded the relevant information to its website for reference of the public and healthcare personnel.To discourage the use of e-cigarettes among young people, the TCO has also strengthened education on the potential harm of e-cigarettes.By sending letters, promotional leaflets and posters to all primary and secondary schools in the territory, the TCO has advised schools to remind their students not to use e-cigarettes.In collaboration with various non-governmental organisations, the TCO also promotes smoke-free lifestyle and disseminates the message of abstaining from e-cigarettes in kindergartens as well as primary and secondary schools.The Government will continue its health education work to prevent the general public and students from starting to use e-cigarettes.
DH raids retail shop for suspected illegal sale of nicotine-containing liquid for electronic cigarettes
http://7thspace.com/headlines/528532/dh_raids_retail_shop_for_suspected_illegal_sale_of_nicotine_containing_liquid_for_electronic_cigarettes.html
Hong Kong (HKSAR) – The Department of Health (DH) today (June 29) raided a retail shop in Mong Kok in a joint operation with the Police for suspected illegal sale of a nicotine-containing liquid called Liqua Original Smoke Juice Cuban Cigar Tobacco intended for use with electronic nicotine delivery systems, commonly known as electronic cigarettes.
A sample of the above product was purchased previously from the above shop by the DH for laboratory analysis. Test results from the Government Laboratory revealed that the sample contained nicotine, a Part 1 poison.
A woman aged 34 was arrested by the Police for suspected illegal sale and possession of a Part 1 poison and unregistered pharmaceutical products in the operation.
The DH’s investigation is continuing.
“Under the Pharmacy and Poisons Ordinance (Cap 138), nicotine-containing electronic cigarette products are classified as pharmaceutical products requiring registration with the Pharmacy and Poisons Board of Hong Kong before they can be sold in Hong Kong. Unregistered pharmaceutical products are not evaluated by the Board and their safety, quality and efficacy cannot be guaranteed,” a spokesman for the DH said.
In addition, Part 1 poisons can only be sold at pharmacies under the supervision of a registered pharmacist.
Illegal sale and possession of unregistered pharmaceutical products and Part 1 poisons are criminal offences. The maximum penalty for each offence is a fine of $100,000 and two years’ imprisonment.
Members of the public who have purchased the above product should stop using it immediately and consult healthcare professionals for advice if they are in doubt or feeling unwell after use. They may submit it to the DH’s Drug Office in Room 1856, Wu Chung House, 213 Queen’s Road East, Wan Chai, during office hours for disposal.
Smokers are advised to quit smoking and may call the DH’s Integrated Smoking Cessation Hotline (1833 183).
Information on smoking cessation can also be obtained from the DH’s Tobacco Control Office website (www.tco.gov.hk).
Harsh words for HK regulators on e-cigs
http://harbourtimes.com/2016/06/23/hong-kong-may-be-left-behind-in-e-cigarette-debate/
An Asian smokers’ rights advocacy group has condemned Undersecretary for Food and Health Sophia Chan Siu-chee (陳肇始) for putting smokers’ long-term welfare at risk by turning a deaf ear to e-cigarette advocates and users, who oppose the Hong Kong government’s intention to push for a local ban on the devices.
“Half of some 650,000 smokers are condemned to death by Sophia Chan for [her] refusing to talk to any of us and she should get out of the office for not doing her job,” said factasia cofounder John Boley on the sidelines of the third annual Global Forum on Nicotine (GFN), held in Warsaw on 17-18 June.
Heneage Mitchell, Boley’s partner in factasia, had no good words about Chan and the Hong Kong government’s attitude either.
“Chan was tasked by the government to look into the whole issue and bring in different views, but what she did was to shut the door … and warned media representatives not to come to our briefing event in last December,” he recalled. “Vaping is a very large part of the nicotine alternative. Consumers have chosen it, so why on earth should you stand on the way?”
According to a survey conducted by factasia in the region December 2015, about 26% of smokers in Hong Kong were already using e-cigarettes regularly or occasionally, with 66% stating that they would switch to e-cigarettes if they were “legal”, “met quality and safety standards”, and were “conveniently available”.
Repeat study proposed
The group’s statements are emblematic of the concerns of many local e-cigarette activists, who believe that Chan’s bureau, as well as the statutory Council on Smoking and Health (COSH), are cherry-picking evidence to support their case.
In February 2016, Baptist University announced the results of a COSH-commissioned study on e-cigarettes. That study found high levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE) in the devices – one is a petroleum byproduct and the other is a flame retardant. At the time, Baptist University Assistant Professor of Biology Dr Chung Shan-shan (鍾姍姍) was widely quoted (or misquoted) as saying that the level of PaHs was “at least 1 million times more than roadside air in Hong Kong”.
In response, European doctor and scientist Professor Riccardo Polosa has a repeat of Dr Chung’s study. He said that a laboratory experiment would be conducted simultaneously in Hong Kong and Italy by the end of the summer. “We hope that by conducting a repeat study we can clarify some of the findings on e-cigarettes, which may not be accurate, and Dr Chung’s response was very positive,” Polosa stated.
Chung was invited by factasia to attend the conference, but she turned it down citing personal reasons.
A packed conference
About 350 participants from 55 countries joined the Warsaw conference to discuss the latest scientific and regulatory developments in the e-cigarette industry.
“Deeming” regulations by the US Food and Drug Administration and strengthened product and advertising restrictions in the European Union were particularly hot topics. To various degrees, advocates argued that these new rules would drive smaller e-cigarette companies out of business and force vapers back to their deadly habit.
In contrast, the United Kingdom was praised by many. Professor Gerry Stimson, Director of UK-based advocacy group Knowledge-Action-Change and chair of the GFN programme committee, provided a four-point summary of that country’s favourable environment: A general acceptance for tobacco harm reduction in the UK’s public health and medicine field on top of demand and supply control; good risk communications and consensus-building by the official Public Health England; positive responses from evidence-led tobacco researchers and civil society organisations; and active lobbying in Parliament by e-cigarette consumers.
“We have 2.9 million e-cigarette users in the UK, 8 million smokers. Of the 2.9 million, a million have stopped smoking. This is a huge public health success at no cost to the government.” Stimson asserted.
However, the United Kingdom has recently endorsed strict European standards despite an attempt in Parliament to undo them.
“It’s not as bad it could have been. Nevertheless it’s a strange bit of regulation and it’s a lesson for countries not to burden themselves with legislations when you can do things in less burdening ways, such as an advertising code of practice and a standard regulatory framework just as you can for phones or washing machines and so on,” Stimson elaborated. “So my advice to governments is to avoid jumping to legislation when all the concerns about e-cigarettes can be dealt with as you would deal with other consumer products.”