| This
is the biweekly bulletin of the Rotary Club of Kingspark Hong Kong Club Website: http://www.rotary3450.org/kingspark-hongkong | ||||
 | Kingspark News Rotary
Club of Kingspark | | ||
| Chief
Editor : Francis Wann Club Webmaster : John Wan | ||||
Editorial
(No Business Like Show Business) - By Francis Wann | ||||
District Website | RI Website | RI President | TRF | News Room | Global History Fellowship | ||||
|
No Business Like Show Business While the community is still licking its wounds over the well-publicised saga of "Teacup in a Storm" on Commercial Radio and its implications on freedom of speech, the Government has been at pains to reiterate Hong Kong's core values which, as they put it, were established with the collaborative efforts of the Government and the community over the years, and provided the basis for promoting Hong Kong's future development. As the media station is seriously considering a change of its basic principles and future political correctness, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) in the UK has just published its first ever full scale report on the future of the company business in general, and the future of broadcasting in particular. Entitled "Building Public Value", the document compares itself to other public services, and outlines how the BBC creates "public value" which benefits everyone, individually and collectively in five key areas - Democratic value, Cultural and Creative value, Educational value, Social and community value, and Global value. At the heart of "Building Public Value" is a vision of a BBC that maintains the ideals of its founders who believed that broadcasting could make the world a better place. And as we move into a century and literally a digital world, public expectations might have also changed. The report sets out to discuss how the corporation is run, how it should be regulated, financed, and monitored while still committed to the highest ideals in terms of excellence, integrity, impartiality and cretivity. And whatever its future, the BBC is, and has always been independent of the Government. There's clearly no business like show business when we consider its powerful influence and the danger of abuse. The past few days have seen representatives of various press organizations rallying over the case of an ICAC raid and, naturally, the subject of freedom of speech was again high on the agenda. The raid was legal, so we were told, but the official reponse seemed so familiar that it could have applied to almost all circumstances... "The action taken by the Independent Commission Against Corruption has been based on an application to the courts of Hong Kong. So this action and this application are very much part and parcel of Hong Kong's legal system and rule of law. Provided that all parties concerned continue to act within the parameters of the law, Hong Kong's legal system and judicial independence will continue to be respected and preserved. So far as Hong Kong's international image is concerned, this remains a free and open society. The media profession in Hong Kong is very dedicated to promoting and preserving Hong Kong's freedom of speech. On the part of the Hong Kong Government, we remain totally committed to upholding Hong Kong's value as an open and free society. Whatever public issues there are for us to discuss in the open, we will always rise to the challenge and we will continue to work with the Hong Kong media to ensure that the public get to know a full picture of what we all care about, whatever the issue which is on the agenda for public debate..." (Stephen Lam, Secretary for Constitutional Affairs, 30th July 2004) Watching grass grow could be more interesting. And as registration for legco candidates closes this Wednesday, we would brace ourselves for another episode of political drama when electioneering begins. | ||||
President's
Column Fight Illiteracy It was a busy but meaningful month because I have attended several District and Club functions including the 10th Installation of our Rotaract Club, the Inauguration of Hong Kong International Model United Nations Association, the Joint Presidents' Meeting and our Kingspark Camp. I would like to take this opportunity to recognize DG Alex Mak, CP John Wan, PP Edward Lau, Rotarian Patrick Wong, Rotarian Elsa Law and Rotarian Joseph Chan who attended the 10th Installation of our Rotaract Club. I would also like to thank DG Alex Mak, PP Raymond Sin, PE Dominic Ko, Rotarian Michael Au, Rotarian Francis Wann and Rotarian Elsa Law for their attendance in the Inauguration of HKIMUN Association. Last but not least, I would like to express my gratitude to DG Alex Mak, PP Edward Lau, PP Ted Ho, PE Dominic Ko, PP Marco Chan, PP Tom Hui, PP Raymond Sin, PP Anwer Islam, IPP Peter Lo, Rotarians Patrick Wong, Elsa Law, Michael Eyles, Spark Lam, Raymond Lam, Joyce Mak and Calvin Fung who have made our Kingspark Camp a fruitful gathering. I am looking forward to seeing more members in future events. July is the Literacy Month on the Rotary calendar. Coincidentally, literacy is also one of the presidential emphases this year. As mentioned by AG Meggy Tseung in our Kingspark Camp, we should be glad that we are all well-educated and are able to apply the ideals of service in our personal, business and community lives. Recognising its importance, the Board has planned to co-organize a community service project with our Rotaractors to provide training to secondary school and college students on public speaking. As our signature project, our primary objective this year is to establish the infrastructure for future development. To make the joint project successful, I am appealing to all members to recommend suitably qualified speakers and trainers for the project which involves four to five workshops. Meanwhile, our club is ready for another signature project - the Vocational Services Seminar - which aims at broadening the exposure of F.4 to F. 7 students on various professions. I am appealing to your support as speaker yourself or by making arrangements to invite guest speakers. Let's celebrate Rotary together and let illiteracy be a thing of the past. | ||||
By Elsa Law The installation of the Rotaract Club of Kinspark on 17th July 2004 signifies a past that Kingsparicans are proud of: a past of the last 10 years producing a number of young leaders who help the community to grow. The event was held at a rather trendy, youngish wine bar named Juukyu in Causeway Bay. Although it was only the day before the typhoon came and there was heavy downpour, some 60 people including eight of our members turned up for the occasion. Yes, you have got it right! Our DG Alex Mak, PDG Anthony Hung, CP John Wan, President Thomas Chan, Edward Lau, Patrick Wong, Joseph Chan and my humble self were there. We were flanked by youngsters whose youthfulness and playfulness drew the kids out of us (we are all only 25+). The meeting was full of laughter and joy although the ceremony was not anything casual. DRR Eddie Yau and all past presidents except one were there. When it came to speeches, it was an unusual reversal of roles between our CP John and RCP Jimmy. John is known for his details in giving speeches; he was given 45 minutes but ended up using only 20 minutes whilst our RCP Jimmy promised a 3 minutes speech but ended up with something close to 45 minutes. Perhaps John should be happy to find his successor. After our Rotaractor President, Viginia Sheung, was officially installed and her ex-com introduced, we realized that there was only one male member in the team (in fact, there are three male members in the ex com, I was told). No wonder our President Thomas unashamedly admitted that he enjoyed their meetings. Folks, you are welcome too. As their parent club, it was truly a proud moment to witness the growth of our Rotaractors throughout the last 10 years. When some of us left, the fun and activities were in full swing. Pity we had to miss them. Still we were onto something memorable and inspirational - the inauguration of an Association. Together with DG Alex, PDG Anthony and President Thomas, we rushed to City University to celebrate the inauguration of the Hong Kong International Model of United Nations Association (MUNA). There must have been some 60 young people attending this event. Again, we found other members of our club present, among them were IPP Peter Lo, PP Raymond Sin, Francis Wann, Dominic Ko and Michael Au. DG Alex gave a moving speech. It was a truly proud moment for him for he initiated the idea in Kingspark and his wish was to extend MUNA "to the four corners of Hong Kong." Now his dream is a reality. Well done, DG Alex! We are proud of you. Our PP Raymond Sin played a major part in this also as he was the one who took on DG Alex's dream and helped making it a reality and working with the initial MUNA members to grow and expand and now forming an Association for MUNA. My hat off to you PP Raymond. When President Ivy Yeung gave her speech amid tears of joy, it became clear that it was with much hard work that the Association was formed. She recalled that her initial work was exhausting as her work involved setting up the MUNA within local schools with international elements. In fact, for the last two years MUNA has already entertained 400 delegates from all over the world. What is more, Ivy and her committee members were able to enroll 200 more members within the short space of 2 years. What tremendous success! Bravo, Ivy! On we go, there is more to be achieved. | ||||
By PP Edward Lau
We played lots of games: games to get us in the right mood, games to illustrate two of the major emphases of this Rotary year, and then more games which require lots of team work. AG Meggy used an "expression and communication" game to illustrate literacy and our Rotaract President Virginia used a "ten questions" game to illustrate water management. The games were all fun, informative and tremendously enjoyable and everybody had a great time. Following the games, Rotarians settled down to an hour of preliminary discussion for the Club Assembly to be held on 5th August while family members and Rotaractors went off to such activities as archery, fishing, and cycling. Topics raised included meeting venue, attendance, members¡¦ participation, retention of new members, and Kingspark News. We had a very lively and constructive discussion and it showed that members are concerned about Kingspark and want to make our Club better and stronger. On behalf of President Thomas, I would like to urge all members to come to our Club Assembly on 5th August to participate in the discussion and to voice your opinion. Evening activities included dinner at the restaurant next to the hotel and drinks afterwards graciously hosted by President Thomas. DG Alex came all the way to join us for dinner. After a relaxing breakfast the next morning, many Rotarians and their families congregated at the swimming pool while others played table tennis, foosball, or workout at the gym. Everybody was exhausted and hungry by 1pm but had to sit still until the regular meeting (which was moved from the 29th July evening meeting) was over before they can go and attack the buffet table. After a sumptuous buffet lunch, we boarded a chartered bus home but stopped en route at Tai Mo Shan Country Park to visit the Rotary Centennial Project commissioned by the Rotary Club of New Territories. We had a great weekend of both family and Rotary activities, and credit must go to our Community Service Director Elsa for her untiring efforts in organizing such a wonderful event. Thank you, Elsa. | ||||
|
Membership and Extension
To start with, we must remind ourselves that membership growth and extension is not the monopoly of the leadership or an exclusive group of individuals. Rather, it is the responsibility of everybody, everybody who calls himself or herself a Rotarian. If this simple home truth sinks in every Rotarian around the world and if every one of them rises to fulfill his or her responsibility, Rotary would double its membership overnight and would once more be the world market leader for service organizations which it started off to be one a century ago. Delegates from every district on the 2001 Council on Legislation had set a target for Rotary to reach a membership of 1.5 million by 2005. Their wish was reaffirmed by their successors on the 2004 Council which concluded six weeks ago. Successive RI Presidents have repeatedly forged new plans and initiatives to motivate Rotarians worldwide to bring in new members and form new clubs. These are translated into district objectives, but our worldwide membership figure is still hovering around the 1.2 million threshold reached nearly a decade ago. What has been happening? Have we gone astrayed somewhere? Rotary has actually been doing well over the past century. It has inspired countless young people and instilled in them the service ideals. It has set high and meaningful goals to benefit the world and the human race and has brought service to the people who need our service most, as exemplified by our PolioPlus initiatives and the hosts of educational and humanitarian projects that are too many to mention. But do we want to reduce ourselves to a bunch of aging individuals content with resting on our laurels? That is perhaps the single most pertinent question that every Rotarian, evry club and every district in the world should address. Back to our humble club of which I had the privilege to being its charter president. By definition, I have helped to achieve membership growth and extension in the district a decade ago by forming a new club with your assistance and support. But just as RI is unwilling to rest on past glory, we should always seek to break new grounds and reach new frontiers. Yes, we started well; we started with a big bang and had done well, but we can always do better. The attendance statistics for the last two months in the last Rotary year which indicated that 8 to 12 members might not have attended one meeting in that period speak volume. They are a timely reminder, a warning, that something is wrong, fundamentally wrong. The club leadership needs to take quick and effective measures to right the wrong. No doubt, this would involve difficult decisions. Numbers are good, good to look at and good to show off, but the bottom line is and will always be whether we have met the needs of the community we profess to serve and how. Granted that there are objective means to measure service standards, it would not take a referendum or a club assembly to assist the club leadership in these difficult decisions. | ||||
Views in any article in Kingspark News reflect those of the authors. They are not necessarily the views of the Rotary Club of Kingspark or of District 3450. You are welcome to write to Chief Editor Francis Wann or Club Webmaster John Wan on any topic, particularly in response to articles published in Kingspark News. We would publish all contributions as long as the authors identify themselves, the contents are not offensive or abusive, and would not offend common decency or common sense. You need not be a Rotarian to write to us and you have a choice to withhold your name in the published version. Where the contents make reference to statements or policies of individuals or organizations, we would try to obtain a response fro the latter for publication in the same issue if possible. | ||||
Chief
Editor : Francis Wann The Board of Directors President
: Thomas Chan | ||||
| Return to Contents | ||||
| Send
a message to Chief Editor Francis Wann 2004 Issues, Back Issues, Home | ||||