More support for SARs' interests

Hong Kong's and Macao's interests will be taken into account in China's national development strategy, Zhao Qizheng, spokesman for the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), said in Beijing Wednesday.

At a press briefing about the fourth session of the 11th CPPCC that starts Thursday, Zhao said China's 12th Five-Year Plan will follow the principle of "One Country, Two Systems" and continue offering more support for these two special administrative regions.

10 scallops a week at most

Mollusks popularly eaten by Hong Kong people were found to contain high levels of cadmium, a kind of heavy metal, according to a test released Wednesday by the City University of Hong Kong.

Researchers at the university's Department of Biology and Chemistry bought eight kinds of seafood from markets in October, 2010. Test results showed all of them contained cadmium and the concentration was high in scallops and Babylon shells.

Richard Cheung, associate professor of the department, said cadmium is highly toxic and accumulation in human bodies may cause diseases such as kidney stones.

Consumption of scallops, for example, should be limited to 10 a week, he said.

Most sex victims know attackers

Over 80 percent of sexual violence victims know the perpetrators, according to a report released Wednesday by counseling organization RainLily.

RainLily has counseled more than 1,800 women who had experienced sexual violence. Among them, 68 percent were raped and 28 percent were sexually assaulted. More than 40 percent of the victims are young women aged between 19 and 29. The perpetrators are most often friends of the victims, followed by family members.

No change to card eligibility

The Social Welfare Department has no plans to lower the minimum age requirement for the Senior Citizen Card, which is 65.

The card provides a generally recognized proof of age for senior citizens to access concessions or priority services offered by government departments, public companies, and private and commercial establishments.

Secretary for Labour and Welfare Matthew Cheung said Wednesday the present eligibility age was set by the department with regard to the intentions and views of participating organizations. Although lowering the minimum age requirement for the card will increase the number of eligible applicants, it may affect the support of organizations which are participating or may participate in the Senior Citizen Card Scheme.

Govt considers paternity leaves

The government is doing a further research on paternity leaves, Secretary for Labour and Welfare Matthew Cheung said Wednesday.

The government will consider factors including the duration of paternity leave, eligibility criteria, mode for taking leave and the amount of remuneration during the employee's leave period, he said.

A previous survey conducted by the Labour Department indicates that organizations offering paternity leave were on the rise, with organizations offering paternity leaves increasing from 16 percent in 2006 to 21 percent in 2008.

China Daily

(HK Edition 03/03/2011 page1)