RTHK：Video News RTHK.HK

The Secretary for Education Christine Choi on Saturday said authorities will offer assistance to students and staff affected by the closure of Christian Zheng Sheng College, including helping them find new schools or jobs.

The school, which helps teenagers fight drug addiction, has announced that it will cease operating in July.

Back in January, police arrested four directors of the charity which runs the college, on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud. Three others, including the institution’s head, Alman Chan, were put on the wanted list.

The government has issued a statement on Friday, saying it wasn't notified about the closure. It blamed those wanted by the police for the school's financial problems, saying they were trying to avoid responsibility.

Speaking on a radio programme, Choi said about 10 students and eight teachers would be affected.

“We're working with different departments, and the associated school to help the students. If some students want to keep studying, we'll help them find the right programmes. And since students are at different ages, some might want to start working. We'll talk to them about that too. For the teachers, we'll help them with their pay. We'll work with other departments to make sure everything is taken care of,” she said.

She noted the HK$1.8 million that had been earlier allocated to the school through the About Beat Drugs Fund would also be used to help cover the school's daily expenses.

Separately, the education minister also said that the bureau is starting discussions with the parties involved in the recent dispute over the appointment of interim vice-presidents at the University of Hong Kong.

HKU president Zhang Xiang has accused the university council of bypassing him over the decision. Some former council members of the university also issued a letter to the Chief Executive John Lee, saying they have lost faith in the council's chairperson Priscilla Wong.

Choi stressed that it's common for a large organisation like a university to have different opinions, saying it's important for everyone involved to share their thoughts openly. She said she’s confident that a decision will be made soon.

Chief Executive John Lee on Saturday said safeguarding national security is fundamental for a strong and stable Hong Kong.

Speaking at a national security legal forum in Wan Chai, Lee said national security loopholes were addressed after Basic Law Article 23 legislation took effect in March.

"From the anti-national education movement in 2012, Occupy Central in 2014, the Mong Kok unrest in 2016, to the 2019 social unrest and the Hong Kong version of a 'colour revolution', they used large-scale riots to create unrest," he said.

"Thanks to the central government, decisive action was taken to implement the National Security Law in Hong Kong. It addressed the legal vacuum surrounding national security, it improved the electoral system, and implemented the principle of patriots governing Hong Kong. The city has finally returned to normality."

The Secretary for Justice Paul Lam said some countries had attempted to ruin Hong Kong's unique role in the nation's development.

"History tells us that we cannot afford to disregard national security risks. Indeed, security and development have a symbiotic relationship: one cannot exist without the other, and one will benefit the other. This is sheer logic and common sense," Lam said.

"Our national security law based on the principles of the rule of law provides high-standard security to guarantee and safeguard the better and sustainable development of Hong Kong in the long run."

The one-day forum is taking place at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.

The director of Beijing's liaison office on Saturday said the National Security Law has helped Hong Kong to curb disorder.

Speaking at a national security legal forum in Wan Chai, Zheng Yanxiong said a dual legislation and dual enforcement mechanism between the SAR and the mainland was established after the National Security Law was implemented in Hong Kong.

"It demonstrates the SAR's constitutional duty. It shows that Hong Kong's mechanisms for safeguarding national security and enforcement have improved, while addressing previous shortcomings - and ensuring that the 'One Country, Two Systems' principle is on the right track," he said.

Zheng added that 45 out of 47 defendants were convicted in a subversion case after they were involved in an unofficial legislative primary election.

"Different sectors generally affirmed the ruling, believed that it disseminated correct messages on the rule of law, showed the determination and confidence of the society in safeguarding national security."

Nong Rong, deputy director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, said the National Security Law had been effective in improving governance and creating prosperity.

"Over the past four years, Hong Kong has made a significant transformation from chaos to governance, returning to the track of development. In March, Hong Kong completed legislation for Article 23 of the Basic Law, further solidifying the legal shield for safeguarding national security," he said.

"The Hong Kong National Security Law explicitly identifies its purpose as maintaining the prosperity and stability of the Hong Kong SAR, highlighting this original aspiration to protect development."

Meanwhile, the head of the Office for Safeguarding National Security of the central government Dong Jingwei said the central government has full trust in the SAR government, authorising it to have the responsibility for safeguarding national security.

He said the central government would deal with any problems that the SAR government finds difficult to handle.

The Secretary for Civil Services Ingrid Yeung on Saturday said the new set of rules that government workers must follow wouldn’t restrict them from having a personal political life.

The updated Civil Service Code set out 12 core values public servants must follow, including being professional and staying neutral when it comes to politics. It also asked them to not publicly criticise government policy.

Speaking to reporters, Yeung said civil servants can still take part in social activities or public campaigns during their private time, but they need to be careful about being perceived to represent a government standpoint.

“We have set out very clearly in the code that civil servants can also have their political life. They can join social activities, except where we have strict rules about not being able to join. But the principle is when they join social activities, they have to ensure that their participation in these social activities will not cause a conflict of interest with their jobs,” she said.

“And also their joining would not allow people or attract people to believe that they are representing the government's position, the activities they join have government backing or allow people to think that they are actually representing a larger group of civil servants’ views.”

She also noted higher rank civil servants, or those taking leadership roles, should be even more cautious.

“It's difficult to draw a solid line below which [rank] you can be very care-free about what you speak and about which you have to be really very cautious. As you move up, I think civil servants will have to really take care,” she said.

Separately, Yeung was also asked whether the proposed 3 percent pay rise for all civil servants this year, a move that faced strong opposition from unions, would affect morale. The level of increase is significantly lower than the rises of up to 5.47 percent suggested by a pay trend survey.

“I believe that civil servants will be able to understand that there are constraints on what the government can do this year especially given our very tight financial situation and also I think as we progress with our various initiatives to improve livelihood and to improve the economy, there will be recognition of the public on what civil servants have done and this is also something that will be able to boost morale,” she said.

Yeung said that the final decision would be made by the Executive Council, but noted that the room for adjustment is limited.

With the Olympic Games less than two months away, dedicated Hong Kong-trained specialists are working tirelessly to ensure the country's elite athletes stay injury-free and perform at their very best in Paris.

For trainer Ivy Lui, a career highlight came when Liu Yang, one of the Chinese gymnasts she worked with, secured the gold medal on rings at last year’s World Championships in Antwerp.

“I felt like my dreams from graduation have come true,” she said. “I knew I wanted to help an athlete achieve an honour at the international stage.”

The gymnast also won gold in rings at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, so he'll be defending his title in Paris.

Lui's journey as a sports therapist began eight years ago when she graduated from the Technological and Higher Education Institute of Hong Kong, a member institution of the Vocational Training Council.

After spending time with the Hong Kong Rugby Union, she began working with the gymnastics team in Guangzhou before joining the national gymnastics team.

Her days involve giving massages to the gymnasts, to help them relax after training sessions, and treating any injuries.

But her work goes beyond physical therapy.

“To ensure comprehensive preparation, we also recreate a live atmosphere and simulate actual playing time during our gym training sessions in China before going overseas,” she said.

Another dedicated professional Davii Wang, a rugby technician, holds a master's degree in sports science and physical education from the Chinese University.

Wang was already working with the national rugby team before he went on to pursue an advanced degree in Hong Kong, so he would have a deeper understanding of the field.

“The one-year study made my work more systematic,” he explained.

“For example, we use force platforms to test athletes, which can indicate whether there’s discrepancy in their leg strength.

“If there is a big discrepancy, we will strengthen the weaker leg to prevent injuries.”

One of Wang's key tasks is to make sure China's men and women rugby teams stay in top form, as they try to book a ticket to Paris through a qualification tournament later this month.

Polytechnic University on Friday said equipment it developed has enabled China’s Chang’e-6 space mission to sample soil from the far side of the moon – the first such feat in history.

Professor Yung Kai-leung, director of the university's Research Centre for Deep Space Explorations, said their sampling system, unlike those used by other countries, is fully automated, which means it can prevent contamination and is more efficient.

The device consists of two shovel and claw-shaped samplers, two monitoring cameras, as well as a packaging system, Yung said.

The automated process involves the cameras selecting an area to sample, before the samplers collect the soil and put it into a container.

The academic said it took his team at the university six years to design and manufacture the sampling system, as it is no easy task operating on the far side of the moon.

“We still experience communication problems. So we had to modify the method of regolith acquisition so that we can speed up the acquisition, sealing and packing. We had to upgrade our design,” he said.

Yung said he believes that more than 1.75 kg of lunar soil was collected during an operation on Monday, and the material will be of scientific significance.

“The lunar regolith, especially those on the far side, are subject to a rigorous environment of space radiation, meteorites and things like that. So they contain a lot of useful elements that we may not be able to find on Earth.”

He said the samples may also help scientists better understand the formation of the moon.

The Chang’e 6-spacecraft is expected to return to Earth on June 25.