Ikea toy wolf becomes Hong Kong protest symbol - BBC

Ikea toy wolf becomes Hong Kong protest symbol - BBC 10 December 2013

Ikea did not comment on any political message being read into the small stuffed animal

The troubles of Hong Kong's unloved leader

A stuffed toy wolf stocked by Swedish furniture giant Ikea has sold out in Hong Kong, after it became an unlikely symbol of protest.

Based on the Red Riding Hood fairytale wolf, the toy flew off the shelves as people queued up for it from morning.

An anti-government protester is said to have thrown the toy at Hong Kong's leader CY Leung over the weekend.

Its Chinese name sounds similar to a Cantonese profanity and critics have long nicknamed Mr Leung "the wolf".

A spokesman for Ikea Hong Kong told the BBC that customers arrived at Ikea stores to queue for for the toy at 07:00 local time and that by 11:10 the wolf had sold out.

Cunning

Ikea did not comment on any political message being read into the small stuffed animal, but it did say that none of Ikea's products in Hong Kong, including its soft toy range, had Chinese names.

The wolf in question is called Lufsig in Hong Kong as it is elsewhere in the world.

However Ikea's website for mainland China features the toy with a Chinese name, which sounds similar to a profanity in the Cantonese dialect.

CY Leung has long been labelled "the wolf" by his opponents because his name resembles the Chinese word for wolf and they accuse him of being cunning.

The toy even has its own Facebook page featuring spoof pictures of the wolf in various locations, including one with an image of the chief executive's face superimposed on top.

Mr Leung was appointed as Hong Kong's chief executive by a committee last year and has suffered from extremely poor popularity ratings.

Among his tasks will be introducing a blueprint for universal suffrage allowing Hong Kong residents to choose his successor in 2017.

His critics are sceptical of his ability to manage this process because of his ties with Beijing.

But others argue that Mr Leung deserves credit on other fronts, such as his promise to boost Hong Kong's housing stock, particularly for low-income residents.

Meanwhile Ikea says that new stock of Lufsig is expected in early January 2014.

While the delay in restocking shelves for the next few weeks may not come as bad news for Mr Leung, an education fund for Unicef and Save the Children receives $10HKD (£0.78) for every soft toy sold in Ikea.


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The troubles of Hong Kong's unloved leader 06 JULY 2013, CHINA

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-23193421

CY Leung: The troubles of Hong Kong's unloved leader By Juliana Liu BBC News, Hong Kong

CY Leung has been the target of potent political theatre

Graduation ceremonies tend to be predictable rites of passage for students the world over.

But in Hong Kong, students at the Academy for Performing Arts have turned an otherwise staid event into potent political theatre.

Dressed in black caps and purple gowns, about a quarter of the graduating students - who study music, dance, drama, film and television - took the opportunity last week to send a clear message of discontent to Leung Chun-ying, Hong Kong's top leader, who was on stage officiating.

One student showed him her middle finger.

Another got down on her knees asking him to resign.

Yet another graduate bent over to show Mr Leung his backside, though he did keep his trousers on.

A group of students then held up placards spelling out demands for universal suffrage, which has been promised but not granted to the seven million residents of this former British colony.

Suffrage key

Tam Lok Hang, 22, did not join the group protest, but he gave Mr Leung a thumbs-down sign to loud applause when he walked onstage.

CY Leung's popularity is at an all-time low

He told BBC News he had shouted: "689 step down! I want universal suffrage."

'689' has become a pejorative nickname for the chief executive, who is commonly known as CY.

It refers to the number of votes Mr Leung received last year from an elite committee of electors largely loyal to Beijing.

“
Start Quote

He needs to demonstrate he has the essential ingredients of a good leader”

Anson Chan, Former lawmaker and head of civil service

That he was elected by a small group, and not by eligible Hong Kong voters, has angered many residents, tens of thousands of whom took to the streets earlier this week on the 16th anniversary of the city's handover to China.

They marched for hours in the rain to protest against Mr Leung's government and the lack of direct voting rights here.

The most commonly heard refrain was: "CY step down!"

The size of the pro-democracy, anti-CY rally, which drew even more people than last year, was consistent with results from the most recent survey from the University of Hong Kong's Public Opinion Programme.

One year into Mr Leung's administration, the survey showed his popularity rating at an all-time low.

Anson Chan, a former head of the city's civil service, has been scathing in her criticism of the chief executive.

Dicallan Wong went on hunger strike to protest against perceived interference from Beijing

"He needs to demonstrate he has the essential ingredients of a good leader: political legitimacy, competence, clear evidence that he shares our core values and empathy with the community, especially those who are less well off. So far, he has not demonstrated he meets any of these criteria," she said.

In order for Mr Leung to redeem himself, the administration must introduce a blueprint that will allow all eligible voters to select their next chief executive in a free and fair process by 2017, according to Mrs Chan.

Hunger strikers

Earlier this week, the chief executive promised to start the public consultation process at "an appropriate juncture", but did not specify a time.

Mrs Chan, who heads a new group called Hong Kong 2020 that fights for democratic reforms, said she was concerned that time was running out and that residents would find their suffrage hopes dashed yet again.

She pointed out that public consultations which eventually paved the way for Legislative Council elections in 2012 actually started five years earlier in 2007.

What she and other pro-democracy activists do not want to see is a rushed, shoddy proposal for democratic reforms that would be rejected by the public.

When Hong Kong returned to Chinese rule in 1997, residents were promised a high degree of autonomy and, eventually, the right to directly elect their own chief executive and lawmakers.

Stopping the flow of so-called birth tourism is seen as CY Leung's biggest success

The opposition to Mr Leung has become so strong that a group of hunger strikers have set up tents in a corner of Chater Garden in the Central business district.

Calling themselves the Anti CY Alliance, nine people were striking in 50-hour shifts early this week, before handing over to a fresh group of volunteers.

The goal, they said, was to continue until the chief executive resigned.

Some of the strikers were affiliated with political groups, but one of them, Dicallan Wong, was a 51-year-old scuba diving enthusiast who works in the tobacco industry.

Mr Wong, who said he was generally apolitical, took four days off work to join the hunger strike because he was fed up with what he called Beijing's interference in Hong Kong affairs.

Continue reading the main story
“
Start Quote

CY Leung is just a Communist puppet. What we have to do is to oppose Communist tyranny”

Tam Lok Hang
Graduate

"I have a problem with the whole system," he said, as fellow strikers took their blood pressure with portable machines.

"CY is just a cog in the wheel. He doesn't represent the people. He doesn't consider our interests. I think he acts in the interest of the central government."

Mr Leung was in fact not the Chinese government's first choice to become chief executive.

The early frontrunner was Henry Tang, a previous financial secretary who was perceived to have the backing of former Chinese President Jiang Zemin.

But the revelation that Mr Tang's home sat atop an enormous illegal basement, dubbed an underground palace, derailed his campaign.

A Communist?

The annual July 1 rally saw tens of thousands take to the streets of Hong Kong
Running on a populist platform, Mr Leung won Beijing's backing.

During his year in power, the chief executive has been credited with stopping pregnant mainland women from easily crossing the border to give birth in Hong Kong.

Stopping the flow of so-called birth tourism is seen as his biggest success.

Mr Leung has also promised to boost the supply of property and increase the amount of housing available to low-income residents.

But no matter how successfully he delivers on bread and butter issues, critics like Mr Wong believe the chief executive has no legitimacy because of the way he was chosen.

And due to Mr Leung's long association with the Chinese government, helping officials there formulate land policy, there are persistent rumours that he is actually a Communist Party member.

He has consistently denied those reports, but his denials sound hollow to Mr Tam, the Hong Kong Academy of Performing Arts graduate.

"Actually I have no personal hatred of CY Leung," he said. "CY Leung is just a Communist puppet. What we have to do is to oppose Communist tyranny."




健吾﹕路姆西之亂 - 明報 2013年12月14日 星期六 

http://news.mingpao.com/20131214/faa1.htm

這是外國人對中國不認識的後果，宜家是抵死的。

這世代人人都鬧，要打入大陸市場。很多香港的社會賢達都說要香港人，尤其是所謂不能上位的八、九十後回國內發展。結果，這些叫人回去發展的社會賢達，十居八九焦頭爛額夾尾巴回來。無他的，中國很大，大多以長江為界。早幾年於《明報》這爿專欄也說過，港星在長江以北，早於十年前已沒有很大的發展空間和市場。皆因當內地改革開放，他們自己孕育出他們地道的歌手、演員，就嫌港星「不接地氣」（即不夠地道親和之類的感覺）。港星掛帥的賀歲片，走進大陸，聽說都是在廣東珠三角地區才有一定市場。

中國很大，這個看起來很大的餅，是不是可以由你們香港人去吃呢？香港是不是舉手嚷要做萬能插蘇，人家就會插你和讓你插，好等你成為什麼「超級連接器」呢？由路姆西之亂，就看穿外國人看中國，就只當作一個個體，一個國語的個體。直至這三個廣東諧音字，搞出了政治鬧劇，引發全球操廣東話的華人各自於各地宜家搶購散落全球的路姆西，成為國際傳媒的話柄，宜家才知道自己的譯名鬧出事。

究其原因，這些跨國企業，從沒有把中國分成各種語系：從南到北，從台灣到廣州到香港，這些外國人都以為中文就是普通話。學生說，英美法大學以至香港大學和中文大學教授留學生的中文課程，教的都是普通話和簡體字。日本的朋友都問我，為什麼香港的大學給留學生的中文課程，不是以廣東話為主。後來有機會跟中文大學的留學生聊天，發現不少外國留學生對香港的印象，都很符合一國兩制的原則：他們中文大學念書，是來了中國。他們的家人也覺得他們到了中國。既然來了中國，就要學普通話、簡體字。普通話和簡體字接通的，是14億人。以前日本人學廣東話，有些為了看成龍，有些為了唱張國榮、梅艷芳的歌。現在成龍都常說國語和英文，香港歌手都以發國語唱片為他們的事業目標了，留學生們還學廣東話？

鬧劇已成，可以怪誰？

這場鬧劇，由一個譯名而起，由一場政治風波結束。宜家（香港）的公關即使再妙筆生花，在12月2日於面書回應，指香港宜家只用英文名字，沒有用國內譯名。直至現在，路姆西已不存在，一月再現江湖的這隻狼玩偶，將會易名為「路福西」。愈改愈壞。本來只是一個名詞。易名後，就變成了一個憤怒的動詞。說到底，宜家怕的是什麼？不過是害怕香港的政治團體把這頭狼帶進所有遊行集會，令國際大品牌因一個壞譯名而無故成為香港這淌無聊的政治渾水的常客。

鬧劇已成，可以怪誰？只怪香港人真的太悶太悶。除了戲謔，我們已找不到更好的情緒發泄。沒有情緒發泄，香港人就不會參與政治。結果就連戴耀廷教授也得要在 YouTube 扮麻甩佬解釋佔中。這是一直以來香港人被各種意識形態建構機器所豢養的結果：唔好咁認真，最緊要好玩。遊行、示威、論政，都要夠娛樂性，要好笑。笑死人，方能集其民氣。

2013年，大家笑得蒼涼。我們剩下什麼，帶進2014？祝新年快樂，身體健康。



黃之鋒﹕破除中央框架 - 明報 2013年12月14日 星期六

http://news.mingpao.com/20131214/fab1.htm

自《全民提名聯署約章》把進取泛民連成一線，揭起提名權爭議的序幕，選民提名支持比率在李飛來港後不跌反升至66%，建制派漸見其民意反響，固然袁國強不敢聲言選民提名有違法律原則，但梁愛詩、譚惠珠之流則以打擊選民提名為綱，鋪天蓋地於媒體痛斥選民提名違反《基本法》，妥協泛民則在旁搖旗吶喊，聲言港人有權提名是過於理想，甚是不切實際。

親中人士威脅泛民「爭取提名權只會引致政改被否決，市民屆時連投票權也沒有」無疑讓我們跌入圈套，以為政改只能依中央路線走，最終引致民主旗幟下的戰友自我設限，為了符合《基本法》下的「偽框架」而保留提名委員會下的四大界別，實在讓人大跌眼鏡，在街頭向市民解說四大界別票值不均強姦民意，在會議廳內公布的三軌方案卻依舊是提名架構，如此舉旗不定和自相矛盾的做法，實在異常諷刺。

即使泛民花盡心思提出五花八門的方案，幻想方案務實以符合中央口味，在中央擁有全盤的框架主導權的前提下，根本只是一廂情願。從提名委員會需符合「廣泛代表性原則」，到提委會須屬唯一提名機構，以至四大界別不可廢除，李飛如頒布聖旨般提出「機構提名」和「集體意願」……相關條件和要求日益增加，中央總有千千萬萬個理由說明泛民方案如何不合官方框架。既然框架不斷被中央收窄，如果港人繼續依中央框架爭取政制改革，最終只會死胡同。

今天我們痛恨民主進程寸進尺退，但心底裏亦害怕成功，結果只懂跟中央思維走，依照官方節奏起動，政改運動從不是把方案賣個好價錢、單純討價還價的遊戲，請仍在政界活躍的前線和民促會前輩，拿出30年前焚燒《基本法》反對「查良鏞方案」的氣概，重拾破釜沉舟的覺悟致力破除中央框架。

.END