US-China trade truce leaves military-use rare earth issue unresolved, sources say
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South China Morning Post
3 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
How Hong Kong's hawker rules are pressuring a 92-year-old to maintain her stall
Chan Tak-ching, 92, spends her day at a stall set up next to a Hong Kong railway station, as her colleagues manage operations under a sweltering 33 degrees Celsius (91.4 Fahrenheit) heat. She is not concerned about the earnings of about HK$500 (US$63.70) to HK$600 a day. Chan's main concern is being present at the stall to comply with what some have called an 'outdated' hawking policy while providing her colleagues with the opportunity to earn a living amid the sluggish economy. 'I am over 90 and supposed to be retired; my family is against me working, but if I don't work, my partners can't. They all have a family to support,' she said. Under the government's decades-old regulations, itinerant licence holders such as Chan cannot pass on their permit to anyone. They are also banned from having helpers, meaning that they have to be present at the stall at all times and be the only ones handling the transactions and everything else.
South China Morning Post
9 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
What's in a Singaporean Chinese name? It's a long story
I'm a third-generation Singaporean Chinese born in the 1980s who grew up speaking Mandarin, English and Cantonese. My parents, proudly Chinese-educated, never gave me an English name. Among friends and family, I was always Zi Qian ('he who is modest'). But as every Singaporean schoolchild knows, a Chinese name is merely raw material for nickname creativity. For me, the memorable nicknames include Ya Qian ('Toothpick'), Zhi Qian ('Paper Thousand') and my personal favourite, Lao Qian ('Swindler'). The privilege of teasing me, of course, was reserved for those who could pronounce my name. Many Singaporeans couldn't, so my name often became Zi Qiang ('he who is powerful') or Zi Qian in a falling tone (thereby downgrading the meaning to 'he who owes'). And as Singapore got busier globalising (read Westernising), I noticed the pronunciation gap widening – including among ethnic Chinese who didn't speak Chinese. To them, Zi Qian just didn't roll off the tongue as easily as an English name. Sometime during my third year in law school, someone somehow decided that Zi Qian was a mouthful, and that was that. I became Chang to one group, Qian to another. By the time I entered the workforce, Zi Qian was mostly a historical footnote, and Chang had taken the lead – though on occasion, I would still be hailed from across Raffles Place in downtown Singapore by a primary school classmate with a cheerful 'Eh, Lao Qian!' ('Hey, swindler!') Not quite the personal branding I had in mind, but at least it provided my colleagues and I with a lunchtime conversation piece. But then I moved to the United States, where my name has turned into a 'Guess where I am from?' quiz.
South China Morning Post
11 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong's first Sikh policeman in decades says family legacy inspired him
Hong Kong's first Sikh policeman in decades plans to continue his family's legacy of service, following in the footsteps of his great-grandfather, who recruited officers of the faith during the colonial era. Palvinderjit Singh, 27, who was born in Hong Kong, was among new graduates who became constables and probationary inspectors on Saturday. 'As I grew up, I heard a lot of stories about my great-grandfather. He was responsible for recruiting the initial batch of Sikh police recruits, so I wanted to continue this legacy,' he said. Singh said he would be allowed to don a blue turban with the force's insignia in lieu of a police hat at work. He would also be allowed to wear a metal bangle, which is a symbol of his faith, and keep a beard. Sikh Indians were recruited to Hong Kong's police force from as early as the 1860s. They were allowed to retain their turban without the need to wear a police hat during their service. Hong Kong stopped recruiting Indian and Pakistani officers from abroad in 1961, according to the website of the Police Museum.
