4E News Reaction – Hong Kong: Our Community (Deadline: Oct 19 08)

4E, this is the article for this week. React to it in 80 words.

Wednesday October 15 2008   South China Morning Post   Concept for Star Street helps to boost community spirit   Chris Heywood, senior portfolio manager at Swire Properties, tells how the ‘Starstreet’ concept serves the needs of tenants, the nearby community and businesses   How important is the Starstreet Precinct to Swire tenants and what has been the reaction to such developments? The Starstreet Precinct and Three Pacific Place are a natural extension of Pacific Place. Instead of just creating a superstructure of office space, we believe Pacific Place office tenants should be entitled to an enhanced environment which defines their working style. The creation of a holistic Starstreet Precinct would create values to office, retail and residents in the area.   With this corporate vision of ‘Building Communities’, Swire Properties has contributed to enhancement work for the neighbourhood. These include re-landscaping work to improve the streetscape and traffic flow, shop-front enhancement, provision of plazas and greenery to inject a stylish outlook; and above all, the construction of the Three Pacific Place Link to enable safe, efficient and weather-proof direct access to Admiralty MTR station.   For the community, Swire has contributed to fostering collaboration among retail tenants – from defining the brand and designing collaterals, to organising suitable community-wide joint-promotion which aims to provide F&B, cultural and festive experience to the community. We have also been in regular dialogue with the Hong Kong Tourism Board to promote the area as a destination for visitors.   Thanks to a group of creative designers and free-thinking restaurateurs who have filled the area with character cafes, restaurants, galleries and home design labels, Starstreet Precinct has been able to retain some of its original cosy and quaint ambience with an injection of refreshing off-beat lifestyle overtones to differentiate from other dining precincts around town.   Has the range of enhanced services at Pacific Place been well received by tenants? Are there any additional services such as privileges for tenants at local F&B outlets, concierge-type services and orientation? As part of our reputable management service we support our tenants in various ways. Promotion support is offered to new arrivals at Pacific Place via in-mall and electronic announcements to VIP members. Efficient updates of shopping guides and F&B guides are part of the daily service. Our customer service team has constant two-way communication with tenants to foster mutual trust and harmonious relationships. And impressive large-scale fashion and festive promotions are conducted regularly with strong publicity support. Our customer service counter staff are conversant in English, Cantonese and Putonghua, and possess all the necessary knowledge to show visitors the brands they want. They also act as friendly ambassadors to those who want to explore shopping in Pacific Place, enjoy promotional privileges on offer, and explore tourist destinations given Pacific Place’s central location and reputation overseas.   With the global markets crisis dominating the news, how is Swire’s residential leasing sector geared for any fallout? The sustained global financial turmoil has dampened sentiment of Hong Kong’s economy recently. However, we have not seen any immediate and significant effect yet. A steady arrival of expatriates to Hong Kong is always a long-term stimulus to the residential market. Due to limited supply of luxury serviced apartments, we expect demand for Pacific Place Apartments will remain strong. There will still be strong demand for five-star, centrally located serviced apartments through the highs and lows of economic cycles. There may be more demand towards smaller, one-bedroom apartments during the economic downturn. Pacific Place Apartments are well-tuned to cater for a relatively challenging time.

 

6A News Reaction – Breast is Best (Deadline: Oct 19 08)

 6A, this is the article for this week. Please write your reaction in 100 words.

Oct 13 2008

 

South China Morning Post

Hospitals accused of breast milk code breach

Maternity wards ‘give mums free formula’

 

Hazel Parry

Hong Kong’s hospitals have been accused of violating a World Health Organisation code aimed at promoting breastfeeding, by accepting free supplies of formula milk that they hand out to mothers in maternity wards.

All of the city’s hospitals with maternity units – both public and private – accept free supplies of baby milk formula, according to sources, which are given to them by major brands including Nestle, Abbott and Wyeth.

This goes against the international code on marketing of breast milk substitutes that was written by Unicef and adopted in 1981 by the World Health Assembly – the decision-making body of the WHO.

Now, local groups promoting breastfeeding are calling on the hospitals to stop the practice, which they say represents a conflict of interest and helps foster an atmosphere where formula milk is seen as acceptable or even better than breast milk for a baby’s health and development.

Patricia Ip Lai-sheung, vice-chairwoman of the Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative Hong Kong Association, said the practice took place in both public and private hospitals.

“There is a conflict of interest when you are an organisation promoting breastfeeding but you receive free formula. You are telling the public that you approve of the use of the formula and especially certain types,” Dr Ip said.

Maggie Holmes, of La Leche League Hong Kong, a group helping women breastfeed, said donating supplies to hospitals was “not done out of altruism, because chances are the mother will stick with the same brand when they leave hospital”.

According to the International Baby Food Action Network the group that monitors the code, the manufacturer aims to build brand loyalty by hooking new customers in hospital, with each mother expected to spend at least HK$3,500 on their product.

The World Health Organisation recommends exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life, followed by the addition of complementary food and continued breastfeeding for two years and beyond.

The international code was introduced to promote breast milk and prevent harmful marketing, which can sway a mother’s decision away from breastfeeding. As of 2005, more than 70 countries had made all or most of the resolutions law.

Hong Kong is not among these.

The code states that manufacturers should not supply hospitals or medical centres with free or cut-price supplies, and governments should ensure this does not take place in any part of their health care system.

A number of major brands contacted admitted supplying hospitals, but said it was done in compliance with Hong Kong guidelines.

The Department of Health said its policy was to encourage and support breastfeeding as an employer and with major promotion activities at its maternal and child health centres.

However, it said compliance of the code was “entirely voluntary” in Hong Kong and that it relied on the industry to regulate itself.

The Hospital Authority and private hospitals also claimed to be aware of the code and to support it by actively promoting breastfeeding despite accepting free samples.

The authority said it had to care for mothers who wanted to make their own, informed choices, including mothers medically unfit for breastfeeding.