The Correspondent, August 1994

THD

GOreSPOIUIIENT The Official Publication of tbe Foreign CorcesĂžondents'Club

Getting the bigger picture: Photographer Eddie Adams Nasty Business: The daunting task of business

reporting

Gatcia's travels

THD GORRESPONIIDNT August, 1994

Lelaer:s to ttìe editor Side orders for the catering depaftment

ï}tE FORTIGN CORR¡SPONDENTS' CLUB

4

A rrressa-ge frorrr

ttre president

A preview of the FCC conference on press freedom

2 Lower Albert Road, Hong KonB Telephone: 521 75ll Fax:868 4O92

President

EBarside tranter

Carl Goldstein Simon Holberton Second Vice President Dorothy Ryan

-

Fitrt Vice President

Club managerJethro Lee-Mahoney on the price of crime

-

Cotrespondent Member Govemors Paul Bayfield, Marcus W. Bmuchli, Phiilipe Le Cotre, Diane Stormont, Hubert vm Es, Nury Vittachi, Hans Vriens, Mike Westlake

6

U S. foreign policy for China and Southeast Asia;

the lonely life of opposition in the Lion City.

Joumalist Membe r Govemoß Paul Mooney, Fmncis Moriarty Âssociate Member Govemoß Athene Choy, Kevin Egan, Ronald Ling, Keith Shakespeare

NIastJa business FCC member Ray Heath of tlj.e Soutb Cbina

Post

SetetarV: P^tl Mooney Professional

Entertaiment Comittee Conùenor: NvryYilÎ'achi

L2

Morning

the daunting task of reporting business in

7-6

uzodd a series

of personal insights by associate

member David Garcia.

A lion

not led by a donke¡r

Former BCC co¡respondent Mark Tully on why he left the Corporation

20

Social

affairs

Members at play

22

Getau.aJr's A jaunt to Tahiti

27

with Edward Peters

l\dedia rnalfer:s 'ülhere the press should tum in times of trouble.

Fax:868 4092

@ 1994 The Foreign Correspondents' Club ofHong Kong Opinions expressed by write6 in Tbe Cotresþondeut tre not necessarily those of The Foreign Correspondents' Club

tfre biq€ler pictul:e

Garcia's The first in

The Correspondent EDITORT¡,L OFFICE Simon Twiston Davies, Edito¡ 2 I¡wer Albert Road, Hong Kong

Get;ting

The photographs of Pulitzer-winner Eddie Adams.

I.a

Members: Malcvs W. Bmuchli, Ronald Ling F & B Comittee Conuenor: Phillipe Le Corre Members: Kev'n Egan, Athene Choy Wall Comittee Hubert van Es, Bob Davis Publications Comittee Conuenor: PãulBayfield Members: Fnncis Moriarty, Hubert Van Es, Nuri Vittachi, Terry Duckham, Simon Twiston Davies (Editor)

l5ll

oi

Hong Kong.

Comiltee

Conuenor: Hans Vriens Meffibers: Paxl Bayfield, Marcus W BÉuch.ti, Phì-lippe Le Cone, Fmncis Moriarty Finance Comittee Tre a s u re r : D or othy Ry aî Carl Goldstein, Simon Holberton, Keith Shakespeare Membership Comittee Conuenor: }IubeftVanßs Members: Kevn Egan, Keith Shakespeare Mike WestP¿ke

Telephone: 521

Lrrnct¡-lines

2a

ObitarafJiArthur Hacker says goodbye to Paul William Dougherty

TIre Cotresþonder¡ is published monthly by

The Foreign Conespondents' Club Hong Kong.

Mercedes -Benz ZUNG FU A Jardine Pacific Business (Distributor for Hong Kong and Macau), Bonaventure House, Leighton Road, Hong Kong. Tel: 895 7288

l22CantonRoad,Ts¡mshatsui,Kowloon.Tet:735 llgg.ZungFuCarparkBuilding,50PoLoiStreet,Hunghom.Tel:7646919 SOUTHERN STAR MOTOR CO. (Distr¡butor for South China), 40th Floor, Central Plaa, I I Harbour Road, Wanchai. Tel: 594 8888 EASTERN STAR AUTOMOBILE LIMITED (D¡str¡butor for East Chinaì, 1zth Floor, New World Tower ll, 1I Queen's Road, Cenlral. Tel: 52ó I051 NORTHERN STAR (IIANJIN) AUTOMOBILE LIMITED (Distributor for North China), 20th Floor, New World Tower ll, 18 Queen's Road, Central. Tel: 52ó 105 I MERCEDE$EENZ AG, BEUING LIAISON OFFICE 20th Floor CITIC 8uildin8, 19 Jian Guo Men Wai Dajie, Beijing. Tel: 5oo 3o5l

of

PRODIJCTION FST Line Design & Printing Fourth Floor, 158 Wellington Street, Centml, Hong Kong Tel: 521 7993 ßax: 521 8366 Publisher Ian Harling - Katie Mccregor Marketing Director DTP /A.rtist lfe, Lienn¿ Duong

-Joey

3a-

Book

rer-iev¡¡

From Malan to Mandela by Karl Wilson

32

FCC Faces The Dutch Minister for Couth and Cultu¡e

Cover photograph: "Untouchable" by Eddie Adams, courtesy of Kodak

Augusr 1994 TÃE coRRxsPoNItElfT

Radio waves

To the

Editor

Courtes). of RTHK the FCC hacl a- fe.wz prizevtinners in a recent NTesz York radio. colaapetition:

---=,

t

RTHK struggled to the top of the heap recently in the Big Apple when it picked up two prizes at the New

A síde order I

reading bave teallY enioYed

ing more for'W'on Ton Mein without the noodles.

Frompersonal experience - and many will bear me out I have an

ebration when he carried off the

noodles usually comprises about six 'W'on Ton dumplings plus noodles

ices Category for his Christmas quiz, Tbe Battle of tbe Tai Pans, w}ricn'

the price structure is understood. u, o n.. u r.u,

$: :ï;ï'i,'f.,i'ånll and we had every two 1'ears ;;; Are I.i.ti.n ut ¡erni's for somelftime' so it sa ;i;;;. Ionger oPerating? r'e' realll' are ,ittítt. n*t"se they as is the FCC' rää.i'*'.rt't for money are looking at ii"rft. ptitt levels we fancy' expecting not î.,ri., or.o"rse' catering' øourntet-stYle o trouble i*oul<.l trot have take n the I had not if to write at this length iopp.n.¿ 'ecc

to order vegetable cutlets at

within l0 minutes of reacling ,i.l ìä,rrto't.l,trl'tolumn When I asked for 'mashed potíltoes in place of chips ' I clìtlets come was tolcl that vegetable mashed wanted I and if chips with notltocs I mtlst order l'rom the side orcler section and pay extra l duly oaid extra as I accept that "policy is policy" ancl the staff cannot take mal'ters into their own hands. In passing' I nrt¡st comnrencl all FCC staff as they luve been l-relpful, cheerful and attentivc at all times.

Howcver, it does seem strange that catering management at the FCC had dccreed that a ctlstomer cannot repl:rce chips with mash at no cost rvlrile, at the same time the Club mana¡¡cr slrv fìt to criticise Bemi for inflexibilitl' and "¡rortiot.t control" and an "r¡nnamed establislrrneut" for charg-

Club member Martin Clarke of Radio Three gave the government broadcaster the most cause for cel-

- Ton with explanation for that. Won

while plain Won Ton dumplings comprise about eight to 10 durnplings which are made of shrimp filling and are more expensive than noodles.

The above is standard practice and

For rnany )'ears

York International Radio Competition and figured amongst the finalists in the clrrrent affairs category.

There is usnallyno need to go "off the

menu" as there are two prices for the same items. I know I'm female,

-

like to weight-watch and love to order lùØon Ton dumplings with no noodles.

Likewise, Bon Appetit!

Sharon Evans

In addition,

Susan Kaye's

77rz's

Rougb Magic starring club member BarryBakker took the bronzemedal in the Best Special Drama section.

Martin Evan-Jones pointed out that this involved beating an Amerjcan

production featuring Holll.wood veternJason Robarts.

RTHK feathers were further

l(rai) about wife beating in Hong Kong n-rbbed shoulders with the likes of the BBC andAustralia's ABC in the final of the Social Issues,/Current Af-

@

fairs category.

deligbted you baue enjoyed

Lulro support Berni Inns; I exþect tbey 6rre too. Of course you uill recognise

tba.t tbe comþany nc,¡tu is not tbe comþa.ny of 25 yeørs øgo, but r,ubat

is? Trust House baue becotne THF,

and. tulco knotus ubat became Kardomab Colfee Houses ?

of

As to tbe W'on Ton, (tbere uere no add.itions), my comþlaint uas tbótt I did. not ctþþroue of pøyment for tbe

remoual of an ítew.

One tbing is sure, tbe inciclent u,tlticb you mention - in tlce case of tbe FCC it tttould. baue been' an errot", in tlse case of Berni it Lucts þoliq),

Aþpetit!!

Claus.

Fi le (engineered by Kerry Kam-Kwok

tbe colutnn ancl euen more clelighted to learn that you øre one of those

Tres Bon

raised money for Operation Santa

preened when Jenny Parkes' Asiø

Jethro fesponds: |m

gold medal in the Community Seru-

¡@

Neu's¡t'ET

Alike for both seasoned professional and budding amateur photographer.

With a combination of superior Canon optics, innovative lens design, precision auto-focusing, advanced electronics and total flexibility, Canon EOS cameras put you a step ahead in your quest for perfect pictures.

Seminar NewsNET is holding three half-hour sessions on September 12

to explain what its new on-line information seryice is about and how to hook up to it.

Attendance is limited to 40 people per session and is on a first come, first served basis. Members

only, please. Those interested should sign up on the FCC Notice Board to reserve a place. The three

sessions will be hetd

at 72.OO-I2.JOpq, 6.45-715pm and

7.30-8.00pm Room.

in the Wyndham

@

Canon

Canon Hongkong Trading Co., Ltd. 10Æ., Mirror Tower, 61 Mody Road, Tsimshatsui East, Kowloon, Hong Kong.

Tel:139 0802

A presidentialmessage

The price

Club president Cad Goldstein reckons there has l>een rraore trappenirìg at tkre Ch-rb during ttre hot srtrrÌrnel: rrronths than rnan\z rnerrrl>ers l>elierze.

he summer doldrums. People

priate to Asian soil,

in the streets walk more slowly,

and others would journalists' first responsibility be to national cohesion and stability? Or is society best served by roþust comment and clashing convictions? And just how important is freedom of the

the easier to bear up under Hong Kong's moisture-laden air. Anybody who canhas taken off to Europe, North America, somewhere Down Under, anywhere that's more comfortable

Lee Kuan Yew maintain? Should as

than Hong Kong.

Under such conditions, life at the

press anyway? .We

Club shifts into lower gear.... Now hold on, actually quite a lot has been happening here in the last couple of months. (Some of which happened during my own absence on a month-

who will include opposition journalists, pro-government editors, and independents - can cast some light on these issues. There will also be plenty of room for audience input. Besides journalists, with their obvious inter-

long work/holiday.) Is it that most journalists are too dedicated to their jobs to leave? Or too poyerty striken?

At any rate, the professional life of the Club has carried ofi at a respectable pace during this part of my term of office. We had luncheon sessions with Gerald Segal of London's International Institute for Strategic Studies, speaking on the PLA, and American professional Michael Mandelbaum talk-

ing about Bill Clinton's Asia policy (lack thereof is more like it).

Then there was Chee SoonJuan of the Singapore Democratic Party. He took an energetic stab at convincing the audience that his party's name is not an oxymoron on the order of military intelligence). We also had a BBC

hope our invited guests

-

est in these matters, many associate members should, as press consum-

\ùlze're a-lso rrror.ing a,lread szittr plams f<>r a rrrajor tuzo-da;z conference on A.sian press issr-res to l>e treld in early Decernl>er-

ers, also have valuable insights to

film on Australia's aborigines, Brian Barron's last piece of work before

contribute

moving to cover the mean streets of New York City.

We're also moving ahead with

some of the individuals involved, plus keynote speakers to be invited, will be

plans for amajor two-day conference on Asian press issues to be held in

eady December. Síith substantial financial support from the New YorkbasedFreedomForum, we're going to

invite some 30 leading editors and journalists from around the region to discuss the role of the press in developing and developed Asia.

Is the belief that the press should help keep government and business honest a'Western conceit not approTnD GoRRXSPoI{DDNT

August 1994

It

.

can only help the Club that

of sufficient import to attract regionwide press attention. This forum is part oT a broader effort we're making to place the Club at the forefront of press related issues in Hongkong and around the region.

It doesn't take the proverbial rocket scientist to figure out that the Hong Kong-based media is facing challenging times in the years ahead. It's very much in our professional interest

to do what we can to confront attempts to muzzle or intimidate the

cflme o

when the Chinese authorities sentenced Ming Pao journalist Xi Yang to 12 years in prison for an innocuous piece of reporting about interest rates and gold sales.

Or when the Indonesian government shut down three respected publications, putting an end to aperiod of relative openness for the Indonesian media. (To which first vice president Simon Holberton in my absence wrote a letter of protest to the Indonesian consulate. They at least responded, unlike the Xinhua approach, though with less than convincing arguments about violations of licensing requirepress,

of

as

ments.

Leaving aside such weighty matters, we mustn't forget that the Club is aplace for people to eat and - perhaps more important drink. To that

end general manager Jethro LeeMahonèy has made a good staÍt at reorganising the kitchen, upgrading menus, making the service more user-friendly.

He's also takenthe leadinpushing forward some needed improvements to the Club's physical attributes, par-

ticulady improving our observance of fire and safety regulations. Badly needed storage space is being constructed inapart of the Albert Room, and renovations to the kitchen will make it more efficient and habitable .

I'd like to thank those members who responded to my call for volunteefs to sefve on various board subcommittees. Among the stand-out volunteefs areJoan Howley and Wendy Richardsonwho, on behalf of the "Ministerof Fun", NuryVittachi, haye taken on considerable grunt work in planning future events. Before her recent fall, which necessitated a brief stay in

hospital, Clare Hollingworth also took the time to giye her advice on our

ongoing effort to improve the work foom.

@

Club r\arlra.ger Jettrro Lee-À/Iahorl e),/ irrrze stig ate d ant alterrlra-tirze lifestyle to tkrat of ttre Àzla-in F9ar.

He found it.wzantirìg-

f t'r . l,n.r.

funny otd iob this. I mean, are no set nours, no clear

instructions andno shortage of bosses.

Some members never see me, believing that I am a figment of the Board's imagination; there are some members who see me so often.theybelieve that I live in the building and sleep in the office (no comment needed, thank you). rüØell, I do spend plenty of time in the Club, but I also manage to get out and about. These excursions make me aware of the sort of choice and standards of service that members may expectwhen they are not using the Club's

facilities.

I

also learn of the cuffent

trends and fads in the marketplace, by which I mean restaurants, bars, cafes and hotels as well as other clubs. An important aspect of this great thirst of

mine for information is comparative pricing, amongst other things.

I recently visited Stanley and a spot of luncheon in the Old Police Station. In 1983 the Antiquities Authority saved it for posterityanditis now an offence to mar or scar the building in any way. Sadly, however, theAuthority didn'tlaydown

thought I'd have

any

des

about the activities therein.

If you've ever worried

as to whether or not it is socially correct to put bread in your soup, you'd freak

out here. They actually put the soup in the bread. Ye s, they serwe an excellent

New England Chowder in

a

hollowed-out bread-roll.

Actually it's not that new an idea bread has always been an integral part of the meal in times past. In fact, the drinker's 'toast' originated as a piece of baked bread placed in the

Iftrese e><cursions rrrake rrre ayzare of ttre sort of ctroice a-nd standards of sen¡ice ttrat rrrerrrl> ers rraa)r e><pect -when ttrelz are not using tkre Club's fa"cilities. bottom of abeakerto collectthe strong dregs. And French peasants stole a march on Italianpizza-makers by serving food on a slab or trencb of bread; the really ravenous diner who ate all the food and then consumed the'plate'

was labelled a 'trencheman' by obsefvant Bfitish travellers.

Meanwhile , the Old Police Station is

agreat deal of metal, wood, linen and leather and lots of those little designer lights that always make me think that had they had bought a bigger lamp in the first place, they might have been able to see what theywere doing and save some money. l};:ad a bottle of beaujolais and a beer whilst munching through some spare ribs and a burger. As I was sipping my coffee, one of the cooks sat at the next table and chatted, not to me, but to the occupying couple; I thought

this displayed a sort of

selective

chumminess.

There was a hint

of

arrogance

amongst the senior staff but not, thank-

fully, the junior.

I

suspect this was

because whilst the juniors were just a

tad nerwous, the head waiter and his pal clearly thought that my sort (not properþ designed, you see), couldn't afford to be in their restaurant. líhen I got the bill I readily agreed - $S¡2.

"Ye Gods and little fishes," as my old Granny used to say - "More money than sense!"

Ah well, I'll soon make up for it; I'm going to have a bite at the Island Shangrila. I guarantee I'll feel no pain when the bill comes. No matter what I eat and drink - someone else is paying!!

prettily, if bittily, designed. There is

@ Angusr 1994 TÃE

GoRRESPoilDENT

--T-I

I

i

Apocalypse now or later?

Dr Gerald Sega-l of Lorrdon's Internati<>rl.a,l Institr,rte for strategic studies addressed an FCC lunckreon in Jubt. Ndictrael lVfaclse¡r recei¡¡ed a lor-rd and clear nlessa-ge of doorrr-

f I

f or

Gerald Segal's lunchtime

speech at the FCC on the People's LiberationArmy's role in China and the

"people are looking afterthemselves".

Nowhere is this view more true than in the PI-A,, half of whose three

region could be summed up in one phrase it would be "Apocalypse possi-

million members are engaged in

ble, but not likely".

who freely admitted his figures were only "guesstimates".

According to Segal, we are.living through "the death of one intemationalsystem andthe birth of another".

Segal spoke at length, but it must be said he displayed a great deal of knowledge and wit of a scholarþ nature which made it an interesting and informative performance.

The problem was that the subject matter lacked order: "China is frankly, in terms of government, a mess" he announced, adding that the PI-A. was no exception.

Segal, however, did disclaim some of the wilder conspiracy theories, like the one which has the Chinese gov-

ernment using mass emigration to destabilise the rest of the wodd. This, Segal said, "assumes too much coher-

ence" (coherence, along with chaos, was one of the most-usedwords of the

speech). He prefers the more down-to-earth explanation that, as China becomes a market economy,

non-military activities, believes Segal,

These non-military activities range

from the trivially-benign such as run-

It seerns that altkrougtr he offered insights arrd general pointers, tre could not l>e sl2ecific-

is going on in China affects how the PLA. deals with the outside wodd and here the outlook is both confused and not very hopeful. Part of this is the conundrum on which Chinese foreign policy is being built.

First there is the dislocation of power. Thenthereis the awareness that China will have to challenge an outside wodd on which it is increasingly dependent for the trade that is making eyeryone - including the PI-A, - rich.

If all this seems confusing, it was, at least in part, Segal's fault. Though interesting, a lot of what he had to say was incidental. It seems that although he offered insights and general pointers, he could not be specific.

One general point he made was

that the decentralisation of power within the PRC which affects the ning restaurants in London to the dangerously comic like the ransoming of Chinese fishing vessels.

"Even by Latin American standards, what's going on in China is bizarre in the extreme," said Segal in a tone that seemed to express both exasperation and admiration.

The point is, however, that what

-

armyasmuchas anyone else would result in a weaker Chinese- foreign policy "whoever replaces Deng".

The example Segal gave to back this up was the current crisis on the Korean peninsula. "China doesn't really have a gteat deal of power there, " he claimed. Then he issued what might be construed as a warning. Firstþ there

was a sharp criticism of the Americans.

By allowing the Koreans to

THE ZCO

BY ARTHUR HACKER

{

w

{

EAT AT

\

o-G

WO NG,S SEAFOOD RESTAURANT

./,,

thumb their noses at the intemational community, the Americans had effectively

"accepted proliferation". This, said to a key part of wodd order". This, in turn, could effect how crises in other parts of the region are dealt with when they occur in future.

And, as if all this was not bad enough, he reported that London's Foreign Office is concerned about a war between the Mainland and TaiSegal, caused "fundamental damage

wan before 1997.

As a consolation, he offered the viewthat China did not have the power to win a war though it could "make life very difficult".

IE TtrD CORRf,SPOIUIENT

August 1994

Sin gapore' s other

politician

p^rty, Dr Chee Soon Jr-ran, addressed ant FCC hrnch recentl¡2, E,d Peters !\zas on hamd to record the lack <>f dranrrlia,-

\ùú.tren the leader of Singal?ore's opposition

fryou want an idea of Singaporean lpolitics, take a look at the - for want of a betterword - opposition.

Dr Chee SoonJuan heads up the Singapore Democratic Party. Unfortunately, in his shiny blue suit he looks more like the new boy who's just been picked on in the playground and still hasn't noticed the 'kick me' sign stuck on his back.

There can be no doubting his

comes difficult to sustain,"

But developing that political structure is not going to be an easy task. Chee continued: "In Singapore, information is hoarded and manipu-

lated by the government. There is hardly any debate on issues. And the government does not believe it can do any wrong.

courage or intellect, however. Chee's reasoning for political change in Sin-

So far, so t>ad. One

gapore was well ordered, equable, utterly reasonable, and delivered

alrrrost e><12ected

with the intellectual strength of

was sacked from the University of

strrieking Lee I(uan -l-ewv, garbed in

doxzn frorrr ttre dining

declared.

So far, so bad. One almost ex-

roorn ra-fters- Etut it

ideas.

".We have developed our economy at the expense of our political system, and to me this is sheer folly," he said. "For too long we Singaporeans have mortgaged our freedom for material gain. As a result we have a political culture that is dangerously underdeveloped, without a stable political foundation based on democratic principles, so long-term economic progress be-

The third requires a little more thought though, with some cunning

and q.ittr talons

mation andlrad to put his house up for sale to pay court costs. To be declared bankrupt would have debarred him from standing for election again. And no, he had not been put up to all this by the CIA, Chee pected a shrieking Lee Kuan Yew, garbed in flapping black cloak and with talons extended, to swoop down from the dining room rafters. But it was not to be. Instead, Chee went on to explain some of his

"The first two are relatively easy.

fla-pping black cloak

Singapore. He was th'en sued for defa-

and it. "

szas not to be.

"The government tries to justify

it

is practicing Asian democracy. But saying there is an Asian democracy implies that there is a Western democracy, which then begs the question: \ùlhat is Asian democracy?

"'Well, only Indonesia, Malaysia

and Singapore have not seen

a

little panache, you can achieve

If all else fails, Dr Chee added, change the one manlone vote system. People aged 35-6O are more important and should be given more political clout. "W.here does all this manipulation end? The beautyis that it doesn't."

e><tended, to sszoop

its control of information by saying

thriving democracy.

"It's a secret I'll let you in on.

One: pay very little attention to the written constitution. Two: let the people know that you can be arrested and detained for over 20 years without ever letting you go to trial. a

Of course, you need a real-life example so get a citizen still a - or better throw him member of padiament in prison, and let him- rot. Three: constantly amend the political process, so as to make sure the election results always favour you.

a.

a

university don.

Teaching is - or rather was Chee's profession. That came to an end after he challenged Lee Kuan Yew's governing party, for which he

tanned gtaffä artists? Chee thought there was.

"If there is anything anyone can learn from Singapore it is how the ruling party is able to disguise what is essentially a dictatorial system, as

For all Chee's speechifying, however, there appeared to be no fire in this belly, no passion in his words, no lust for change in his heart.

Perhaps it was his recent battles

and the smug complacency of the electorate that knocked the stuffing out of him. If anyone is to get the better of the Old Man of Lion City, they'll have to be tougher, wilier and a damn sight more determined.

a

At the moment, this doesn't seem

change of government in the recent

too likely. Dr Chee is not quite the Second Wind he would like to see himself as - more like the 'Mouse that Snored'.

past. " So is there anything to be learnt from the litter-free Lion City with its

@

fragrant public toilets and well August 1994 TÅE

GORRDSPONDDNT

gether this patchwork of connected transactions, might be available to explain them is a joke.

This bleak story is even grimmer

Nasty business

for those who, unlike the SCMP or the Economic Journø|, aÍe taot a regular vehicle for company notices, and so must pick up the stories as best they can.

We should eYen spare a thought

Ckrina, Hong l(ong and ttre rest of Southeast Asia containsorne of the rrrost secretilre societies in the vrzodd and reporters orl l>usiness rnattefs fa,c.e a danrnting task qztren tryirrg to produce a-ccrJfa-te a"lrd anr.alyt.ical -vrzork- Ra).

Eleattr, ttre busilr.ess editor at tkre SoutVt (]b irza

n4c>

rrtirtg

P<>s

t

descril>es tkre struggle-

ways fair game for controlling share-

holders, who will be lookingforguidance from the newspaper.

If one fact is misplaced, one calculation incorrect of one assumption faulty, then telephone calls and letters

will surely follow.

But before directors, PR peoPle and stock exchange officials who take

a more than passing interest in the results of this process which sadly passes for financial communication

in

Hong Kong reach for the telephone, they should consider not the glitches, but the nightly miracle which brings the corporate actions of this town to the breakfast table.

If the aYerage company director

was confronted with the standard method of communication in Hong Kong - the official advertisement and had to sum it rip, draw conclusions and write a report in less than an hour, the result would be yet another valium addict.

The strange way in which Hong Kong companies go about releasing

- late at night, and through classified advertisements means that the most important telinformation

magine the average middle manfI ager in Hong Kong, com ing to the end of a longer-than-avera.ge day. After almost 12 hours on the job most

of it has been spent on the run,

companies whose domicile stretches

from the

Nethedands

to the Cook

Islands and Bermuda, and eyentually,

Hong Kong.

It's now Il.3O at night and our

trying to meet a series of unbreak-

tired executive has exactly

able schedules.

Then onto his desk drops

half-an-hour to read, comprehend and summarise this porridge of jargon.

But, of course, this is no middle m ttaget, this is a Hong Kong re-

a

large

and complicated document. It has been faxed in four pieces because it is too large for the standard A4 format. It is written in heavy legal jar gon.

The "wheretofors", "hereafters" and "howsoeyefs" are part of an impenetrable descrþtion of a series of labyrinthine share deals which involve TEE CoRRDSPoI|ItENI

August 1994

porter facing up to the nightly rigours of financial journalism.

Inevitablythis deal, and the other four or five which might arrive in similar fashion within an hour, will involve the great, the powerful, and not necessarily the good.

These deals usually mean that large blocks of shares, perhaps even control, has been moved around, or that significant plots of land have beentransferredfor gargantuan sums.

Then, adding to the intellectual pressure already bearing down on our

unfortunate late-working reporter, there is the knowledge that the interpretation of this legalistic nightmare

withwhichhe or she is nowwrestling will be on the front page tomorrow. It will be read by the insiders and the merely expert, as well as by the idly curious.

Just as daunting is a responsibility to the minority shareholders, a|-

ephone numbers on the office computer are not those of key bankers,

for the foreign correspondents and wires who are forced to do what looks like the hack job of following up the local press.

There might be some excuse for sticking to this bizarce midnight run when takeovers or other exceptional transactions are involved. Once the deal is done, then information should obviously be released as soon as pos-

sible, and it can be the nature of corporate affairs

with journalists. !Øhat more could financial rep orters want?

Surprisingly, some of the reporters want less. Some companies, having wheeled out the top brass for a few minutes, complain if they aren't in exactly the right spot on the front page the following day.

But is this worse than the treatment described here by "Frustrated of Quarry Bay"?

"Writing about Hutchison is the ultimate in nightmare jobs. If you want to write anything about Hutch, and need information from the firm, forget it. First, the press officer just laughs at you for asking. He then asks for the questions to be faxed.

He then ignores them. That's why journalists and analysts on two continents are now united in talking

that the deals are

not finalised until late at night.

Until now

the Stock

Ex-

change has hadto

So ttre rrrraj<>r cornplaint al>out practising financial j ourl1alisrrr in IJong Kolag has to l>e al>out cornrnllnica-tion in general-

approve the final wording of such aî announcement. But that process is now ending, and the ads will soon hav€ to be regulated by the lawyers. Theoretically this should speed up the process. But, inevitably, as the

it will actually slow it down

lawyers, without the comfort of the Stock Exchange stamp of approval, will insist on one last read to make sure all is in order.

But the same process is all too often applied to the regular release of company profits.

In a market like Hong Kong a raft

down Hutchison's telecom business. " For some, however, the late-night process of placing corporate an-

nouncements in the papü is not without its merits. Gareth Hewett, deputy business editor of the SCMP

is only half-joking when he argues that it gives the Post an edge. We get the ads, we are experienced enough

to do a competent job of intefpfeting them, so we get figures.

a

free run at the

senior executives or top flight ana-

of exceptional and extraordinary

Having been weaned on Lon-

lysts, but the typesetters who process the copy. In their ranks are angels who will give reporters some idea of

items in the profit and loss accounts is inevitable, but once again, there will be no chief financial officer, nor a company secfetary, to explain the

don's developing system, and after almost two decades of corporate reporting, I largely disagree.

when they might expect the

ap-

proved copy to arrive.

Often there is no-one else to turn to. Sometimes there might be advance warning through a press release, but in too many cases the contact numbers at the bottom ring endlessly, unanswered.

correct method by which the journalist might compare like with like Of course, there are exceptions to this amateur dissemination. Some of .

badlywritten

the Hongs and the bigger banks actually behave like corporations in other business centres. They give newspapers advance notice ofthe date ofthe results, release figures in plenty of

tors who have actually pinned to-

time, and callpress conferences. Some even have one-on-one backgrounders

The release itself is frequently so as to be misleading, and the idea that any ofthe company direc-

Arrgrrst 1994 TÃr

CORRDSPOIYIIDNT

What would be wrong with releasing full financial figures in the

to use you

hour before the Stock Exchange

journalist.

opens, as they do in London?

The Stock Exchange information system would have to cope with car-

rying full text, butwhere's the problem with that in 1994? ltwould give the entire financial community all day to study, analyse and comment.

The reports tlaaf appearcd in the

press the following day would have

the benefit of considered opinion, not late-night, deadline beating.

Companies would get better coverage, for the instinct of journalists, having already written the story, even only in its barest form, is to move onto the next challenge, not to return to yesterday's tale.

The change would not be without its disadvantages. Company directors faced with unpleasant results, of pfesenting obviously massaged profits, would have to spend the whole day dodging calls from keen fepoftefs.

Public relations execLrtiyes would be forced to give real advice to their bosses. It would have to go beyond "Stay away from the phones". The better practitioners would welcome the chance to run a properly constructed release pfogfamme the fees could go

-

up.

as a PR tool," comments one senior and experienced financial

Sometimes, journalists have

little

sympathy for those whose phone never rings. "There are too many reporters who don't ask the right questions and don't really understand the subject. If you have credibility and experience, people will come back to you," says another reporter who has no difficulty opening doors at the very highest level.

But pity those who have to cover

Chinese companies, with'H' shares or 'B' shares. Penetrating tlre maze of

national investors as fair

a

view

as

possible about events.

do not suffer the problem, can read on

as

\"\ %^

with suitably contemptu-

ous smiles.)

'When

offinightmare. When the right man does arrive at the phone, he is invariably so jndoccials is

trinated

a

in the idea

that information is se-

Once they are regularised there

what the conversation was really about

.

No problem with published

in-

formation, though.

The first batch ofac-

formed? Certainly there is a bland-

counts to be issued

ness about much of the financial

by'H'share companies has shown lev-

"CEO's never phone you back, or you wait two years, and then they want

of a favour these heroes and heroines are doing the country by giving inter-

whingeing by gueílos.

(From here Cantonese speakers

is the risk that the public relations machine will take over.

The UK financial press may have more information than it once did, but is it better in-

thusiastic.

dering in English. But why do the chairmen of these meetings not quicklysumup the points made those who are not bilingual?

'l'he Ercnrl-N,latic (ìNI'l'givcs )¡ou a

Never assume, however. The Allied Group recently escorted an SCMP

rcscrve. Ancl if yorr nced to knclu'u,herc )/ou stancl in another timt:

feportef from what it said was a private meeting, even though most of th€ opposition press was well repre-

z()nc,

els of disclosures sented. agreeably high.

The bouncerwas most sternwith Trouble is, many' the offending gid who had let in the intruder. He assumed that Tim analysts don't beIieve what has been disclosed.

The biggest hurdle to be faced by

Hong Kong's financial journalists is going to be how l-o treat

re

alocal company press conference is held, the initial remarks are usually in English. So is the first question. No-one presenthas anyproblems.

AII are, or should be, sufficiently comfortable in the language to be able to understand exactly what is going on.

But th€n, a rigorously correct reportef switches to cantonese, and the event never switches back until a gtueilo manages to get a question in.

Let's assume I am wrong, and some local reporters really are floun-

it rvill tcll vou th¿ìt too. In fact the onlv uncortaintv is u,hich of

thc trvo moclels to choosc: srccl lncl golcl

rtr

solicl

113

ctrat yellorv golclÌ

Charlton, young and boyish looking, was effectively deaf to the insults.

'Wrong.

Mr. Chadton does very nicely in Cantonese, and don't try switching to Mandarin either. He knows all about communication.

@

ETERNtrI \ltclrtl ol trrc

TIIE C0RRf,SPoNIIEI{T August 1994

POWER

Hong Kong has to be about communication in general. Same as everywhere.

There are also particular complaints, which can be regarded by those who

cret that even the vaguest of answers has to be dissected for some clue as to

reporting which should not be imported here.

Views on how accessible the big names of this town are to journalists vary with perspective of the observer.

Singaporeans can't believe their luck. Others are less en-

KNOWLEDGE

So the major complaint about practising financial journalism in

that, like imperfect stock markets, imperfect informatiorì systems throw up opportunities.

The downside for the press is

information from China, be it economic or commercial.

The penalties of being too zealous have akeady been made plain.

The safe way of covering China today is on a Xinhua pass, but that system is stifling to the many professional, keen and courageous reporters in the territorywho are still ready to slip across the border and come back with the story.

China should rcalize how much

Slltrc llii6

Sole Agent and Service Centre: Desco (HK) Ltd Tel: 369 1221

Getting the bigger picture Prize-vrzinrring ptrotographer Eddie Adarns r\zas in tovrzn recentl¡rHe talked to l\dichael llzlaclse¡r al>out snapping at ttre front lines a-nd elselrztrere.

r! þ

youngster, he bought a projector for $ 3 and a co py of Hop ølong C øssidy.

He then charged an entrance fee of a

US

penny to his makeshift cinema on a blanket in the bacþard of his parents'

p

ooi. Adams' mosr

famous

cedes the point. "It conveyed more

to the arfü-war

a

young, veiledJacqueline Kennedy at

I-rphotograph is the one which

it

hangs in the main bar of the FCC and shows a South Vietnamese general shooting a Viet Cong at point blank range. It won him the 1968 Pulitzer prize. Talking about it, Adams explained why he left war photography.

"It got to me. I felt helpless. You could only photograph it and hope that the picture did some good."

Thatparticularone did ithelped swingAmerican public opinion against the war. Even Hugh Van Es, who takes a different political view to other people's rnilitant anti-war stance, con-

movement a lot," said Van Es of the

the funeral of her husband and captured the widow looking beyond her

photo.

situation.

rf,D

CoRRf,SPot{DEt{T ,A.ugust

1994

really contributed

But for Eddie Adams, it was part of a process thatwas too much and aÍterthe Vietnam'VØar he concentrated on what was to become known as glamour pho tography. He said he becameapaparazzi because "it was easy. I got paid more money. It's sad, but I sold out."

But even before he was photographing the horrors of the Vietnam '$Øar, Adams was in the running for a Pulitzer prize. Covering the biggest story of the time, he took a picture of

The picture was nominated for t]¡le 1963 Pulitzer but Adams lost in what he was later told was a tied vote to more dramatic pictures from Dallas.

He modestly disclaims any particular talent in getting the shot, saying it was "onlybecause I had abiggerlens inmy bag than anyone else".

The story of Eddie Adams is woven around images and the press from an early age. He was always fascinated by movies and recounted how, as a

house.

This generated enough money for him to buy a stills camera and at the ripe old age of 12, he went professional. He specialisedinweddings and sold the photos on to the hometown newspaper, the since-clos ed Daily Disþatcb in Kensington, Pennsylvania, where, he fondly remembered, "they got to know me as a little kid walking

in with a 5x1O picture".

Joining the Marine Corps afterhigh school, he was sentto Kofea as a com-

bat photographer. "That didn't last very long," he says with just a hint of regret. Still, the experience was invaluable andhis cov-

erage of the war included the truce talks and Marilyn Monroe's visit - an assignment he describes as "pretty dangerous, the worst part of the war".

August 1994 rE,j, ConnxsPoilllDl{T

Then, after a spell at the University of Pittsburgh, it was on to another

war, this time in Vietnam. In fact, Vietnam is one of 13 wars that Adams has covered. Not that he reckons covering wars takes much talent, "Photographing a war is the easiest thing in the wodd. You can close your eyes and aim your camera," he says. He is also highly dismissive of the view held by some that the press deliberately lost America the Vietnam War. "They weren't trying to prove anything," he says of his then colleagues, a handful of whom are now FCC stalwarts.

il?

B,{NY,{N

LUXURY SPA RESORT A

Mentu OfScln Hatilt

è Rmrr lunnnno¡al

BANYAN'I'REE PHUKE

f

For funher informarion

In those pre-television days the ethos of war reporting was different, although some things do remain the

h

same. "The cameramen used to go out

BANYAN TREE

(into the countryside), not the corre-

NASUCBU EVERCIìEST

the rest who covered Saigon". The only writer he

i3onyan Jtnn

OPENS ltr\

SEP'I EMBER ]994

t

spondents.'!Øe'dkeep each othercompany andwatch each other getblown away," he says of that period and the 40 or so photographers who he described as "front line versus

J6n

TREE

pleasc call

or

fu

numbers

lisrcd beìorv

76uÂe/ ìsn)/

BANYAN TREE BIN,I-AN OPENS IN

ÂPRIL 1995

BANYAN

I

REE

/'us/ a resorl þr

MALDTVES VABBINFARU

counts amongst these brave

OPENS IN

men is Peter Arnett, now

NOVEMBER 1994

famously with CNN.

In between bouts of

your 6o{y

would hop all over Vietnam. The motto of the day was, "If we're lucþ we'll get amR&R, this trusty band

bushed". Adams admits that

9/'t a sanc/uoty /6e

f"t this was eady on in the war, before the sick humour started and kidnapping

sou,f.

ffi

meant death. The memories of this earþ time are cleady happier than those that came later.

By the way, to that member of the Club involved in an unrepeatable anecdote Adams related and claims to have photographed, my silence can be bought for a few bottles of wine.

@ rEE coRRXSpolfItEI{T Augusr 1994

Under the shelter of the Banyan Træ resl com6 mther

øily

to a soul.

That's

because an essence

of rranquiliry

peruades rhe air at the Banyan Tree.

From the quiet elegance ofìts private villas to its contemplatìve wate¡courts and gardens. From the serenity ofits superbÌy Ìandscaped 18-hole golfcou¡se to the therapeutic comforß ofits spa. And, when your surroundings exude such peace, there's

a very

good chance rhat some

ofit will filter inside

you.

Making free atr the

Frorn hole to hole In the

first of a- series of contrit>utions, a-ssociate rrrernl>er Dan¡id. Ga_rci. ta-kes rea_ders o1a a- journe¡z to sc,rre of tris 1-ìore rorrra-ntic xzork pla_ces.

Take Beirut for example. During the late sixties and the eady seventiei

itwas known as the paris of the Middle East. I was there working for an oil company as a commercial diver. It was

a one- day Y alhalla. Casinos, outstand_

ing restaurants, beautiful

beaches, great snow skiing, cultural sights, yon name it, Lebanon had it all,

Then, all of a sudden

Wfftäîåîî:î:fåï?ü,î during the fifties, myfather (who was

also a rathole specialist working as a petroleum engineer in various garden spots all oyer the planet, particularþ the M iddle East ancl North Africa) useå to pack up the family for surfing safaris

down the Baja peninsula

in lower

California.

These were the days when there were no roads south of Ensenada, only

dirt tracks marked by broken down vehicles and dubious signs indicating ranchos in the area.

In my teens I foilowed the same

routes, impressing my friends with

my knowle dge of far off spots in un_

marked areas trayelling throughout the Baja Peninsula and to the Mexican mainland as far south as Guatemala and east into the yucatan peninsula and British Honduras.

Then I was drafted in the US Army and sent to the ultimate ¡athole of ali, awaf zone.

It really doesn,t mattef where you

to brighten up but the ruminants of other visitors still can cloudyourvisuals

- the East Europeans and the Russians. They sure like their grey cement and had a tendency to put them in plain sight of a really nice beach.

bang,

unrest, hatred and confusion reigned.

No place for the likes of me.

I finished my education and founcl that not too many pe ople were all that inspired about hiring a Vietnam vet so itwas o

they,

willing

i:Tl:: åxotic

Thus began my professional and self-imposed career as a rathole spe_ cialist. I wanted out of the States and on to newer frontiers. After Vietnam

you r annual membership fee

barked on a new career - iron ore trading. Could this be worse? _ The other day I was travelling home from work listening to the radið

and over 100 f¡ne gifts can be d¡fficult,

and these cosmic-sounding chimes permeated the air. On comes one Bill Poftef on a "Yellow River Odyssey,,.

Has this here guy really been to China? To hear him tell it, the place is a wondedand of pleasant and cosmi_ cally lifting advenrures. I know many people who travel and work in China and none have ever made it sound like ole Bill. After neady 13 years of hus_

tling in and out of the people,s Repub_

IJpon retr-rrning to the States after a. prolonged rzisit to Vietnarrr I encountered another forrrr of ra-ttrole; ctra-os, Lltarest, hatred and conft sion reigned. NTo place for ttre likes of rrre-

Uponretuming to the States after a prolonged visit to Vietnam I encountered another form ofrathole; chaos,

places.

night.

_

gone. 'Whoosh, like a giant vacuum cleaner sucked out all the good pats and left this shell.

Vietnam also had, and still has, its share of beautiful locales. But once again you find yourself sunning on a picturesque beach and the next day you are being shot at. Now that the waris overthings in Vietnam are starting

what could be worse?

After foufteen years of travelling to garden spots for the oilman, I em_

lic I must have missed some-

thing

But,

some-

-,M-,

wit

t

where. I have to find this guy and get the name of

you can

his travel agent.

China does have its share of

interesting locales and, of

course, the mines and the steel mills seem to gravitate to

Q*s

them.

The thing about travelling to China is that you always come out with a story which usually involves

-"\

your food, accommoclation, transport

and adventures that occur with just about an¡hing you do there.

- In future articles I will do mv besr to take you through various ratholes I

have travelled to, in no particular chronological order, basically when mymuddled memory can retrieve the experiences (usually with the aid of

Tequila or some other decent inebriat-

ing liquid). Sray tuned for further ventLues in

wonderland. f,]!

ad_

Welcome to Club Beward, a new scheme that offers a variety of impressive gifts and benefits to Diners Club cardmembers. lt's just one of the

exclusive privileges that Diners Ctub cardmembers

have come to expect.

J

i;ij

As you get one point for every dollar you spend with the Card, you'll soon have enough pàints

l: : fl "" ::

ï

:",".[*

l,

]î,'

Ilì

frequent flyer miles and fly free with Northwest

fut

to claim your choice of free gifts from Club Beward.

li"ii:: ; I ",;"i î":;,

crystalware to exotic holidays. you can also choose to waive your annual membership fee. Or, if you prefer, convert your Club Beward points to Worldperks@

Ð

;

@ Nuæ

Airlines and KLM Boyal Dutch Airlines.

And, because there's no time limit on using ., your Points, you can exchange them fór gifts or privileges however and whenever you wish.

For more information, please call our Customer Service Hotline at 860 lggg anytime, day or night.

A lion not led by a donkey Follovzing a- rnassirze shake r-r12 of ttre BEiC's corporate stftrcture and a reassesslTtent of goa_ls, \zetera11 cofrespondent À4ark lFull;z ha"nded in his resigna-tion. He g.a_ve his reasons in Lorrdorr' s fn clep erz¿le tz t tt rz S zzn.clct1t ne\\zspa-per- His .r¡ieuzs could t>e seela to tranze relerzattce for all large rrredia orga-nisa-tions -

È

s

Out, the BBC after J0 marvellous years in its service because I could

not sign what amounts a gagging

great deal of change ahead but we won't have to embrace it at the speed we have had to over the last 18

clause. If I wanted to continue work-

months."

fI

ing then I would have ro keep my views on the Corporationprivate, even though since last year they have been

vety public.

My timing might seem odd. The Government recently announced that the BBC is not to be privatised. The licence fee is guaranteed for another 10 years. That is good newsfor allwho care about broadcasting and those like me who have questioned the changes taking place within the BBC. It has to be said, however, that no one took the threat to the BBC's char-ter very seriously. 'When the Corporation's management was aclopting, with enthusiasm, all the management medicine the Govemment was trying to force down the thloats ofdoctors, teachers and po licemen, it was hardll'likely to be rewardecl with a death warrant. But it

But that assurance will not be enough to revive staff morale, which is surely the crucial problem now.

Morale will onlybe revived if the management is able to persuade staff that they are listening to their concerns.

These are based on years of experience of what actually happens in broadcasting, experience that few members of the board of management deep- rooted commitment to public serwice broadcasting. have, and

a

a

Unfortunately, John Birt has made

bad

staft

here

He has said that "above all, staff are concerned about redundancy." This has been the Director General's view for some time.

I

believe

it to be a dangerous

the management wants to make peace.

half-tmth. Of course, the staff are concerned about redundancy, but many of my colleagues are, I know, insulted by the suggestion that they are only worried about their own ftiture. They have very real concerns about the impact of the reforms on the quality of programmes and on the BBC's tradition of excellence. If the management does not acknowledge those apprehensions even exist, what hope can there be?

The BBC Director General, John Birt, for instance, has said: "There is a very

The BCC management should also realise that staff are not just there to be

wonld be chudish to deny the BBC management their moment oftriumph.

It is more appropriate to look to the future. Now is a time to make peace-peace between the management of the BBC and the staff.

In

the

many euphofic statements issued in the past there have some hints that

TIIE

C0RRDSPONItENT

August 1!p4

talked to. They want to express their views certain that those yiews are given

barrier to communication. Many mid-

consideration.

During a recent strike, one senior manager was trying to convince a

strate that they are on the side of the bosses and so the message becomes even more rigorous than the Board of Management intended. That also

group of journalists that the BBC's position was reasonable. He asked why no one turned up to the meetings he had called to explain the management's

point of view. A journalist replied, "Because )¡ou are not interested in hearing our point of view".

The BBC's latest annual report com-

mits managers to hold meetings with their staff at least once a month. It is to be hoped theywill be somewhat more productive than those which have been held over lhe past- year.

The BBC management always seeks short cuts to communication; glossypublicationswhichinfuriate the staff, a honse magazine known as Praucla, and one-day seminars to give PR men opportunities to 'motivate' groups of staff. Some staff see these as a bad joke and others as an insult to their intelligence. Nor have some of the seminars given much comfort to the members of the Board of Management, who usually grace them towards their end. At one recent seminar a staffer stood up on behalf ofhis group and said: "I have no questions.

I only want to make a statement. 'Sle

are lions led by donkeys."

This style of management which has come in with the reforms is also a

dle managers seem an-xious to demon-

means the decency which should srrrell' still characterise an organisation such as the BBC goes ollt of the window.

I don't want to'personalise the afglrment but I can't fesist giving one example of the carelessness of BBC midctle management. The Corporation's annual report makes much of the number of awards the BBC has won this year. By great goocl luck, and much hard work b¡' ysnsrsa Harrison, the producer,

a

prograrnme I presented

This was put even more succinctll' by another journalist who , after a managet had tried to explain the virtues of performance-felated pay to a group of staff, stood up and said, "that's a char-

the Radio Academy aclclress in which I appealed for a dialogue between the BBC's management and the staff. It has not taken place. l,et us hope thatwith the charter assured it will now, so that the realreason the BBCwins the next chafter is that the public wants it.

E

ter for toadyism".

Ayear ago I was privileged to give

"The most distinguished

coffespondent" Along uzith the at>or¡e a-tticle, ttre Irzclepenclettzt <>rt Sttrzcirzj,t fan tlae follo.wing tribr-rtes to lVla-rk Tully.

won one of those awards.

I was

not informed that I had been

invited to the award lunch. After the annoLrncement of the award, I was not even informed by my management that I was one of the winners, let alone congratulated.

With the present mistrust between

middle management and their staff, the concept of performance-r'elated pay is particularly dangerous. In a letter to Tb e Guctrclian, the veteran journalist Chades \ùØheeler wrote: "The

trouble with performance-relatecl pay is that it tends to reward obedience, discourage non-conformism, and to put too much power into the hands of middle managers."

r Tully's resignation

was

described as "terribly sad" by Sir Alasdair Milne, a former BBC director general. "He's the most distin-

guished correspondent, known woddwide, that we have," he said.

"His speech last year about the

way the BBC is being mn underwrote general anxiery at the BBC. People are being kicked out in the most extraordinary way. Recently there were reports that the BBC had saved millions of pounds. Well, you

can do that by sacking 5,000 people but then you have to replace them.

"Losing people of great quality

like him is not an exercise I would indulge in myself."

Gillian Reynolds, chair of the Brit-

ish Radio Academy Festival where Tully made his now-famous speech last year, also expressed regret: "I'm vely sorry. I've missed his reporting but it was obvious he was being sqneezed out."

She confessed admiration for John Birt but said the heartwas being torn from the BBC by his reforms. "I admire him for sticking to the plan as he saw it but I deplore its impact on staff. A generation-and-a-half of expertise has been lost." [@

August 1994

TÅD,

Ted's new wig It started innocently enough. Back

Getting to know you There's a new line-up in the Club's front office, and the girls recentþ posed for this

l.4:arciage

happy snap. Frorn Left to Riglt /; Shidey, receptionist; Sarah, membership secretary; Karen

lines

Long - time (now absent) memberEdVan Kanwho was based here in the sixties and eady seventies as a,cameÍamaî

En, executive secretary/assistant to general maîager; Sophie, functions co-ordinator and Amy, receptionist.

for NBC news and ITN, returned to the colony with his companion Madeleine Van Hagen and son Eyerard @orn in Hong Kong 22yearc ago from a previous marriage) to go for a "third time lucky" in the mariage stakes.

The couple were married in Hong Kong on July 6th.

Seen with the Van Kans are Hubert and Annie Van Es, who acted

as

in the eady-seventies associate member Ted Thomas found himself travelling to London on a monthly basis.

Pining for the ambience of the FCC he was led, more or less willingly to the Wig & Pen Club in The Strand-which old Fleet street hands will know is not more than a No. 5 wood and a No. 3 iron awayfrom the Street of Adventure (a.k.a. Fleet Street) itself.

Theywere awelcoming lot at the \Øig & Pen in those days, and still are.

"There's a temporary membership card, sign it but don't put a date on it, " said Patrick, the doorman. "And come here for the rest of your life," added Richard the barman.

Very hospitable, thought Ted and

wondered why Hong Kong's FCC didn't make it equally as stress-free for visiting London hands.

For the next 30 years Ted used the

¡Ë t:ù *:å

t.

,''rr ,

M icb ae I Lìntern-Smítb and a.t tlre Hong Kong Wíg gatlrering a.t tlre FCC

\üØig

&

t

^*.,

ñ

fr ie nd

U

Pen

Pen regulady,

-¡*/

al-

though the original tempo-

Ieft tu rigbt: RogerJackson

rary membership card is looking a bit dog-eared and

"Gopi" Gopalan

Pete¡ Robers and

limp these days

Friday evening of every month at the

According to Ted the synergy between lawyers and scribes is some-

FCC.

"Althoughwe are unable to issue a temporary membership card that will

thingworth developing in Hong Kong.

After all the two callings have a lot in common.

be good for twenty years, we can promise that you'll meet a few

Thus was born "The $Øig & Pen in Hong Kong", which meets on the last

ple,"

witnesses to the happy event. Hopefully Eric's last.

of Hong Kong's more interesting peosays Ted.

.TRETITS

úl

Erratum

+ ilt9

zÈ,

The oldest swinger

f"l

For All Your lnsurance Requirements

sometimes surface to hauntthe Club's

whether individual or corporate.

What did the normally sedentaryArthur

. Corporate - General .

Peter Humble/ Ceoffery LunB

Hacker think he was doing when he wielded this stick in 1982?

Contrary

to the informa-

tion in the August issue of 7åe Correspondent, t]J.e list price

of Stefan Riesner's Cbinø Auant-Garde is $325. Club

members, however, can benefit ft om

a 2O%

discount reduc-

ing the price ro $260. For more information, please call Margeret Lo at 516-3196 and give your membership number.

THE C0RRESPOMIENT

August 1994

Obituary LYNNEWITSON Lynne (47), widowof Ian Wilson, passed away onFriday,July22nd,in Prince Rupert, B. C., Canada, after a courageous battle with oyarian cancer.

She is survived by her son Nicholas (15), father and brother Graham. She will be greatly missed by all her friends in Hong Kong and elsewhere in

the world. A full tribute will appeu in the September isste of Tbe Corresþondent.

f'r[

Please call us to discuss any of your ¡nsurance requ¡rements,

rapidly maturing members. However, some questions remain unanswered.

,Ef

'li& 9- I'FÊ ^t b

From deep in the archives of The

Corresþondent arcient pictures

itr -, TE

t

. Life - lnvestment.

Mike Carroll/ Fiona Wilson . Personal - Medical .

Bobbie McCraw /Eric Chan

14

Contact us at:

Tel:865 3228

/ tax:865

2386

Stu W¡lliamson chose Elinchrom. ÉËltEEËiä;EF^É À B

MOLLERS' INSURANCE GROUP

rF E :F rfi tù E {+

s()l

g

ft # ffi :

EãÉ:s03 3082

å 4

!

EillE:512

2952

:1I fl 3iu I'* n*f '*1"^,",,i

rË

"'-T.,.,,.,,", 8ehgtr4

August 1994 THE C0RRESPONIIDNT

Snob heaven Ed Peters packecl his sqzirrrming trluaks, l2olished urp leis Ray Bans, ancl todcllecl off to :fa.laiti_ Flere's q¡h¿r_t he f-ouncl-

Q

ñ

È

e've had truth in advertising

- now for truth in travel writing. So to be blunt, chief among Tahi

ti's many attributes is the fact that it commands definite snob value. Any bugger can go to Boracay. Tahiti may have put the cash in cachet, but it,s worth it. Remember too, it,s French.

Perhaps that has something to do with the snob value. palm trees waft over sun-kissed beaches and do everything else the travel agent promises closer to Kai Tak, but around Faaa (supedative name for an airport) and its environs there's a distinctly Gallic air.

Unl'ortunatell' hou,ever, -I'ahiti has suffeled the indignity of being invaded by gangs of American honey_ mooners ("Gee, isn't that sunset like

an out-of-bod¡' experience, sor-ta?',), and tramped beneath crocodiles of Japanese tourists. Antipocleans gurgle towarcl rhe all-in, clrink-all-you-can

resorts. Thankfully, it,s at least

be_

vond the bounds of the Eurolollt. yet, where other idyllic locales have succumbed to the invading tourist hoards, Tahiti has merely risen above the comrnon herd with true Flench hauteur.

Take the beach. It,s become

a

trar cller's aphorism that the gllests you see on the hotel beach display swa¡'ing bellies and other pro_ tubelances which would be better covered r.rp and not wagglecl about like trophies.

Cut to the beach on Moorea. No loungers (chairs, that is), umbtellas, or hovering waiters. A strip of sand, a cluster of mangroves. and a stra). co_

connt shell or two. A little wav

off_

shole, unrefined merriment, unintri¡-

ited G-strings, upenclecl bottles of Hinano beer as a young islander and

Cotttintterl rnt frr.qe ) i

August

1

(.ontitntctl l)otn lttrgc 22

two girls stood s\\¡igging ar-rcl giggling, n'aist dcep in a sca that was as clear alìcl fl'esh as their fìrces At inten'als olle \\¡oltlcl slosh ltsh<¡re ancl scurr). ofÏ for ¿t relill. It r,v:rs a ricliculor.rsll' carelì'ec scene Yup, Tahiti's

still sex¡-

.{ strip of sancl, ¿t cl|-rstel- of m;r1l¡3rc)\/es, ancl ¿t str¿ty cocol-ìLlt shcll or t\^/()Take the restaltrant. Ur-rimposing, loc¿rtecl miles from anl..where, a husl¡and ancl wife affair Front of house is run b1- Le monsieur. Ribulous, obese,

ebtrllient, a grin cfeasecl rouncl his wine glass :rncl a welcome word for e\¡eq-olle . 'l'he r,vine list? Of course. A table-i Possibll'. Perhaps, he emphasisecl, in ts,'ent). minutes or so. A

clrir-rk beforehancl? Assr-rreclll' A waiter came

-

irncl went. Mon-

sieur returnecl.

Profuse ltpologies Some mole rninutes rve nt bl'.

Preventing the whole operatioll from sinking iuto the Pacitic is ñIaclame. F-ort1' oclcl.

Beltortcl tbe boutlds of tbe

through

sr-tpre mel1,

eleg2ìnt, exquisitell. çei¡..t...t ancl garbecl, encl-

BatlJirlg in a

sea. as

clear anclfi'esb (ls theirfttces

lessl¡- efTicient Now briskll'sauteeing in the kitchen, then calculating a bill, her pencil fl1-ing through the fìgures, finalll. gentll' prising the cogllac bottle frorn le þatro.,i.'s gr¿'sp.

A husbancl ancl wife operation. The sterco humrncd ancl lizards flickerecl ovcr the matting rvalls. In all sense s, it was a clelicious meal.

Elsewhere the tricoleltr trickles, policernen in kepis clawclle over a

micl-shifi coffee in the hotel fol'cr, and the arÉaot is, well, argot Coulcl tlre Côte cl'Azur have slippecl a conti nent or two-i 'l'heloux got it w1'o11g ilr his THE C0RRf,SP0ilDENT Augr-rsr 1994

Polyuesian vclltlrre. His tt'aclitionnlll' amllsillg aucl acerbic pen cleYeloped a split nib as he paddlecl the Pacific, onllz çe-ittg to rights when he reachecl H¿rwaii, a familiar corner of

his native countr)' which he allowecl himself to label Par';rclise Perhaps poor health leacl him ofÏ colrrse, or malte being hunchccl up in th¿rt cauoe rlade him unnsualll' analll' retentive. Ilut he sneerecl at Palreete ancl its cock-e1'ecl colonial adlrirristration. He bitchecl abor,rt the prices ancl wl-rinecl about the arrogar-rce of the bureauclats. Br-rt viervccl

¿r

Etroktut

Hong Kong pelspective

,

he

s¡ils scafcely justified Schoolbol' French worked wonders, ancl Lan Kwai Fong conlcl clo with adjusring irs

prices Tahitiwarcls. Taxi clrivers, albeit pricel.even when the)- consent to use their meters, ha\¡e been known to rouncl prices clown to the nearest convenient figure. Separate ancl cann1. the islanclels are, aloof ancl greecly

thel'ain't.

Tahiti: there is little to colltpare with it this sicle of Guacleloupe. Inconvenientll' situatecl, getting there iuvolves going via either -A.r.rcklancl or Tokl'o. Either wa)' iu'olves so suclden a crossing of the International Date Line that one can even be forgiven asking the legenclary clumb tortrist's question: "\ùØl-rat clay is it, ant'wa1-?"

¡æ

O n ly Cathay

Pacif

ic

has

an all Rolìs-Royce powered wide-bodied fleet, ìncluding the

747-400. Which is why we can

fly more non-stops to and from

our

home in Hong Kong, the heart of Asia. And with cabin attendants from

0 Asjan lands, we stop at help you arrive in better "ft

/l Arrive in better shape.

nothìng shape.

Your

Shoppirg List The FCC offe¡s members and theirguesrs (Hong

Kong

ancl

New

Territories

only)

a vast range of items at attractive prices.

The following is a lisr of the wonderful fhese wines may be ordered from the Club, billed to your account and delivered to the address of your choice. Only complete cases may be ordered under this scheme To place an order please send or fax this compteted form ro rhe Ctub u"¿

SAVE

value-for-money goods currently available from Reception.

lUl0 N EY Coffee Beans ready

for

$lI0

}Vl

Polo

IYIh." a iournalist is arrestecl W ¡",,.o wnlre on assrgnment,

Shirt

$90

Country Chardonnay, 1993. $66 ($792 per case)

Shor¡sleeved

August Sebastiani, California

sizes from S to XXL

-

Sweaters

citric flavouts. Thls family-owned company operates wineries in Sonoma and

Lambswool

Woodbridge. Chardonnay is at the forefront of their sucess with so-called 'fighting'

V-necked in light blue, red or purple.

varietal wines which offer higher quality together with competitìve prices

Telephone

$190

Cards

$ 100

Stored value in your wallet.

Chardonnay, I992. $84 ($1,008 per case)

Leather

Collavini Italy The first DOC Chardonnay to be produced in Italy comes from an area

known

as 'Grave del

Frìuh' stretching from north of Ventce towards rhe

Wallet

$f 50

Soft black leather with

credit/card spaces and penholder.

Umbrella

borders of Austria and Yugoslavia The Collavini family has been making

FCC

wlne here for four generations This example has

Gold logo on navy blue background.

a

lovely bouquet reminis-

cent ofgolden apples and freshly-baked bread,

Large'goll type.

Gentleman's

Gour^.

],*¡¡.o¡.u

MAcoN

!rt

(Batttery not supplied)

1995Diary-DeskandPocket These may be pre-ordered

wines are often llghter in fruit than Beaujolais The

i

rustic quality sults cheese and spicy dlshes. Serve

I slightly chilled

H.K.

a

($l,l16 per

in Ocrober.

Poster

$I00

to brighten any wall.

FCC AUG R4 Cabernet Sauvignon, 1993. $93 McGuigan Brothers, Australia

TBA.

An lJove-Hongkong picture

FCC

This Bin 4000 is

$170

Macon Rouge, 1992, $73 ($876 per case)

Although produced from the Gamay grape, these

SUPERIEUR

Watch

Leather strap, unique design.

Caves Syrdicales, France

ùelouìgoqne pmuru,p-*.,

$f40

FCC AUG R3

case)

Lithograph

level lt is produced to be enj oyed young and slightly chilled

$f,OOO

by Murray Zanoni, a highly

Letterca¡ds

A number of organisations are pre-

with legal aid and freed journalists have said: "I think it saved my life. " Others have cited improved, conditions, an end to beatings or other abuse, the dawning of hope.

Though we believe it is well worth the effort, it would be cruel and dishonest to say we really have the answer. The journalists still in prison, some under long sentences, indicate otherwise. The best we can do is try to help - and pray it makes a difference.

In a siclebar to this repoft is a list of a dozen international groups that put a spotlight on abLrses against journalists, hoping authorities will back off when they know the'wodd is watch-

I0

1. Organisations in the sidebar list indicated with a (+) are members of a Toronto-based activity known as IFEX. Information reaching IFEX through member groups triggers a

2.

ororganisations canturn. The ICRC

a situation and alert free press and/or human rights networks to do the same.

tfoops. A journalist's own newspaper,

operates quietly to locate prisonefs, asceftain conditions and pfovide what help it can.

United Nations organisations that should be considered include the UN Human Rights Commission (UNHRC) in Geneva, the UN Educational, Scien-

agency or station can be his of her best

Organisation

3.

tific and Cultural

Postcards

Name

FCC No.

AUG FCC AUG FCC AUG FCC AUG

Wine Ref: FCC

Full order value:

$

Fu1l address for delivery:

No. of No. of No of No of

Cases Cases Cases Cases

mittee, in a meeting in Hong Kong last October, stressed that the vallre to China of Hong Kong could be lostif its free press is stifled. 'SØe believe, and stated, that economic success and a

free flow of information are

tions and authorities can exert. In some cases, leaders may have no regard for wodd opinion and can't be reached.

However, those with global aspirations who ignore wodd opinion must know that at some point theywill pay the price.

If even just one journalist remains in a cell, we must do what we can to help. In enough cases, that help has made a

difference.

Arlìcle 19+ Lancaster House

33 lslington High Street London N1 gLH, uK Iel:14471)287 9292 Fax: (4471) 713 1356

Full colour card of the Zanoni FCC Print.

Tie

Tel No.

CIub

Toral Price $ Total Price $ Total Price $ Total Price $

A perfect gift, available in blue or red.

(Gift box $10 extra)

$150

Canad¡an C0mmiltee t0 Protect J0urnal¡slsr Suile 205, 490 Adelaide St West T0r0nto, 0nlario. Can¿dÌan [45V ] T2 Tel: (416) 867 1638 Fax: (416) 867 1034

C0mmillee l0 Protect J0urnal¡sts {CPJ)+

Compact

Discs

$I00 each

a. Music from Middle Kingdom

b. Subversive comedy Postage

Stamps

12lF, 330 Sevenlh Avenue New York, NY 10001, U S A Tel: (212) 465 1004 Fax: (212) 465 9568

Freedom House 120 Wall Street Nelv York, NY 10005, U S A Tel: (212) 514 8040 Fax: (212) 514 8050

lnlernali0nal C0mmillee 0f lhe Bed Cross Press D¡vis¡on -'Hol Line' 19 Avenue de la Paix CH-1 202 Geneva, Switizerland

Iel:

/.22) 734 6001 Fax: l22J 734 8280

lnlernati0nal Federal¡0n 0l J0ürnal¡sls (lFJ)+ Blvd Chalemagne 1 (box 5) B-1041 Brussels Belgium Iel: (322) 238 0942 Fax: (322) 230 3633

lnlernati0nal Federal¡0n 0f Newspaper Püblishers (FIEJ)i+ 25, Bue d'Astorg Paris 75008, France Tel: (331) 4742 8500 Fax: (331) 47 42 49AB

lnlernalional

Reporters S¿ns Fronlieres (RSFf 17 Rue Abbê de I'Epee 34000 l\¡ontepellier, France Tel: (33) 6779 8182 Fax; (33) 6779 6080

PEN +

9-10 Chader House Buildrngs GosY/ell Road London ECl lM 7AT. UK lel \4471) 253 3226 Fax:14471J253 5711

lnternali0nal Press lnstilule Spiegelgasse 2/92 A-1010 Vienna, Austna Tel: (431) 512 90111 F¿x: (431) 512 9014

Press Foundalion ol Asia P0 Box 1843 l\¡aoila, Philippines Tel: (632) 598 633 Fax: (632) 818 9720

W0rld Press Freed0m C0mmillee (WPFC)'11600 Sunrse Valley Dr

(lPl)*+

Reston, VA 2209l. U S A Tel: (703) 648 1000 Fax: {703) 620 4557

Most values

Signature: This

oÊfer is

for August only

¡t:*fC

Freedom Fighters $2 each

so

intedinked that throttling one will lose the other. It is true everywhere. I hope someone was listening.

For now, resorting to the groups listed here will produce pressure to supplement that which local organisa-

Folded cards, with envelope,

of the Zanoni FCC Print

Wines by the case delivered to you

High Commissioner for Human Rights

who might be approached.

The Wodd Press Freedom Com-

global alert to J0 or more organisations which, it is hopecl, will issue their own protests.

Groups indicated with a (*) do much the same and also operate a joint Funcl Against Censorship administerecl b). the Wodd Press Freedom Committee which makes modest legal aid grants in cases where journalists would otherwise go

issue a protest or otherwise publicise

faster. In Hong Kong, for example, the Journalist's Association, the FCC and

(UNESCO) in Paris and the UN itself in New York. UNESCO has an internal group to handle individual cases of abuse. It should be contacted through the Director-General. The UNHRC now has a special 'rapporteur' on freedom of expression who has indicated willingness to take up individual cases.

The UN in NewYork has just named a

should also be pressed to lodge strong official protests. Though essential, none of this is new. On the international scene, though, there are some new or, atleast, less well-known things to be aware of.

ing. Typically, upon receiving a report, those authorities will veriry facts,

similar organisations are front-line $40 per

adyocate. Government authorities

unfepresented.

The International Committee of the Red Cross in Geneya also operates a hot line to which families, editors

Local groups can get into action

collectable limited edition.

rich, intensely flavoursome red with typical alcohol

news meclia come Lrnder attack, the

parecl to help

Always useful to carry.

FCC AUG W2

or or

'Who can help?'Will big questions are: it do much good? The answers are not altogether satisfying.

various colours and

Excellent with seafood and lightly-spiced dishes which combine well wirh its crispy

*siÁ3;,:1¡::l--

,{s rrla-n¡r parts of tlae s/ofld l>ecorne e\zer rrlofe dangeroLrs, Dana Elullen, e><eclrtive director of ttre Núzodd Press Freedorrr CorrrrTrittee, gives arì.

Lrl2date on q.h.ere threatelaed or jailed journalists <ran turra to itr tirrres of tror-rl>le_

per kilo

grinding. Why pay higher prices?

FCC AUG

Pray it Írrakes a difference

Atrgnsr 1994 THr, coRRlsPoNItDNT

Paul Willi arrr Doughe fiy (1938 1994)

Reciprocal Clubs

Cambodia

Japan

ing methods.

\üúrtren GIS refused to a-llouz trirn a. credit in

tkre yea"rbook, he str-rck his narne in ttre inde><.

proved by an Italian meal rather carelessly eaten. I ended up by being given the honeymoon suite.

What it is to have friends in high places.

Paul later achieved a boyhood ambition by

becoming editor of the

Australian Playboy

thunderstorm in Manila the day before .

Butitwasnot quite what he had ex-

The receptionist greeted me with awe.

"Are you sure you're Mr Hacker?" she kept asking. After I finally convinced her who I

pefs.

a

she

He went to New

I was whipped

York where he worked for various tabloids be-

to allow

him

a credit in the yearbook, he stuck his name in the index.

He was a massive man, somewhere arowd 6' 4" in height and weighing 20 stone, when he wasn't on a diet. Three years of GIS was enoughfor Dougherty.

He went toJapan where he worked as a foreign correspondenf for t}ae Aus-

trølian Finønciøl Reuieu, before becoming a press secretary in Gough Witlam's government.

I was in Australia on holiday in 1974, and arrived at the Koala Motor THE CORRESP0!{|¡EI|T

Augusr 1994

away by Paul for a few beers (14 or 15 if I remember correctÐ and

lore returning to

Aus-

tralia. He was an enormously capable journalist. Last year he was di-

returned to my hotel eady next morning. I

agnosed as having a braintumour. Aftertwo operations he

was shown to my room only to find a total stranger asleep in my bed. I was suffered a relapse and died of a heart told by the receptionist that, as I had attack in Melbourne, 2 July 1994.

not reappeared since the morning, He is survived by his first wife, they had let my foom to someone Robyn,fourdaughters,safah,Bridget,

else.

Susie and Lulu, and his widow, Susan

"I was called away to the Prime Duncan, editor of Neu Idø. By an Minister's office." I told her indig- ironiccoincidence,hisbelovedpussy

nantly.

"Oh, you're the one," she said

in

Int'l

P¡ess Centre

14 Snaregade DK-l205 Copenhagen

'r:45-t-t3I6t5

T: t-213-469 8t8o

K

23lF, Dusit Thani Hotel 946 Rama IV Road Bangkok 10500 T:66-2-2360450

Indianapolis Press Club 150 W. Market Indiaflapolis, lN 46204

France

Ti 7-377-237-6222

Societe de Gestion du Presse Club de France

Miami Int'l Press Club 1800 Club, 1800 N E (at 18 N. Bayshore Drive)

11Avenue D'Iéna 75176 Paús

MiamiFL33732

T:33-147237816 F:33-l-4O7O

\:

OO28

Australia

P¡esse-Club Munchen Marienplatz 22 (P eter'JoÐ 8000 Munchen 2

Club 18/F, Korea Press Center Bldg 25, 1-Ka Taepyong-Ro Chung-Ku, Seoul

T:82-2-7343272 F:82-2-7347712 Sadan Pubin Seoul Club

Brisbane, QLD 4000 T:61-07-229 3766 F:61-07-229 5207 Darwìn Press Club

Macau DSFSM (Clube

Brisbane Polo Club Inc. Naldham House 'Waterfront Place 1 Eagle Street

Militar)

The Journalists' Club 36-40 Chalmers Street Sydney, NSW 2010 Ti 67-2-271 2966 F:6t-2-281 4667

Calcada Dos Quarteis

T:853-559994 F: a53-712704 (Closed for renovation)

Philippines The Manila Club San Gregorio Street (cor Soùth ExpresswaÐ Magallanes Com'l Center

Makati, Metro Manila T: 632-833-3506/08 F:632-833-3506 Manila Overseas Press Club G/F, Old Elks Club Building Roxas Rlvd (cor. T M Kalaw St ) Ermita, Manila T:632- 521 9542/571362 F:632-581355

T: 49-89-26O-8Oa8

Holland Nienwspoort Inteúlational lange Poten 10,2517 Cl The Hague

Cavenagh Street

Darwin, NT

National Press Club 16 National Circuit Barton Canberra, ACT 2600 T:61-62-733644 Rugby Club Ltd Rugby Union House Crane Place

United lGngdom The Foreign Press Association I 1 Carlton House Ter¡ace London SI(/IY 5AJ T : 44-7 t -93o-o445 / 8883 F: 44-71-925-0469

T:61-2-273344 F:6t-2-2512434 The Victorian Club Level 47, Rialto South Tower

525 Collins St Melbourne,VlC 3000 T: 67-3-614 2127 F:67-3-629 2086

).-305-373-1093

National Press Club 14th&FStreets, NSí 'Washington, DC 2OO45

T: t-202-6627500 F: l-2O2-6627512 Omaha Press Club 22OO One Ftust National Ctr, Sixteenth and Dodge Streets omaha, NE 68102 T: t-4O2-345-8oO8 Overseas Press Club olAmerica J20 East 42nd Street, Mezzanine NewYo¡k, NY 10017 T : 7-272-983 4655 (Lodging) T: l-212-986 8800 (Meals)

F:1-212-983 4692 Press Club of San Francisco

555 Post St.

London P¡ess Club & Scribes 4 Carmelite Street London EC4 Y0BN T : 44-7 t-353-5 r23 / 4901

Wig & Pen Clnb 229/23O Strand London WCzR 1BA T: 44-7t-353-6864

SanFrancisco, CA94[O2 T: t4I5-775-7aOO Reno Press & Virginia Club 221 So. Virginia Street Reno, NV 89501

Int'l

Press Club Of Chicago

222W Olltario St.5O2 Chicago, IL60610-3695

T:312787-2679

(off

31À Pitr sr) Sydney, NSìí 2000

F: 7-213-469 8183

F:45-l-977673

Seoul Foreign Correspondents'

ia's ugliest, with no

Minister's office. "It's

Denmark

Korea

pected. He had to wade

there was a message to ring the Prime

Suite 334, Radisson Holllnvood Roosevelt Hotel 7000 Holll.wood Blvd Holl)'wood, CA 90028

Germany

Jangchoong-Dong Chung-Ku, Seoul T: 82-2-238-79OO/7666 F:82-2-234-3866

clothes on, in a fodorn search for presentable Bunnies. Disillusioned, he returned to newspa-

1ll4

The Greater L. A. Press Club

Euroþe

Austrøløsìø

#208,2-KA

photographs of Austral-

said.

justice. S7hen GIS refused

Chiyoda-Ku, Toþo T:81-3-3271 3761 F: al3-3271 3168

magazine.

through thousands of

was, she told me that

Mr Dougherty!"

Paul was a gteat man for theories.

He also had a strong sense of natt$al

sa-

fari suit whose appearance had not been im-

Singapore

The Bellevue Club 525 Bellel'ue,{venue Oakland, CA94610-5096 T:1-510-451-1000 r: |5IO-832-O219

F: 65-740 2276

FCC Thailand

7-1 Yu¡aku-cho 1-Chome

disbelief, eyeing my

Electronic Publishing Division Singapore Press Holdings 82 Genting Lane

Thailand

FCC ofJapan

suit had been slept in, after being caught in a

F:64-4-4780952

Singapore Press Club c/o Ms Salma Khalik

T:855-23 27846 F 855-23 26189

at th€ Hilton and later we went to language school together. After class we would drop into the Pussy CatBat for a few light ales, and discuss what was wrong with the teacher's teach-

\Vellington

Singapore Shopping Centre Singapore 0923

Cambodia

363 Katl Marx Quay Phnom Penh

a drink, I returned to the reception desk to demand a place to shower and change in. I was grotty - really grotty. My white safari

P.O.Box2327

#to-33/34

Asìø

of

ter searching in vain for

National Press Club

F:65-336 5581

Foieign Correspondents' Club

Inn in Sydney earþ one morning, tofindthatmy room was not ready. Af-

New Zealand

T:65-336 6885

Artl'nrr Flacker, a close professional and personal friend pa).s tribr-rte to Paul Dorrgkrer:ty, a long-tirne FCC rrrerrrt>er -wkro uzill rte\zer t>e forgotten-

aul Dougherty arrived in Hong Kong in 1967 during the disturbances. He worked for the Star newspaper before joining the Government Information Services (GIS), where he edited the government yearbook for three years.

He introduced me to the old FCC

Singapore Foreign Correspondents' Assn 190 Clemenceau Avenue

F:312787-268O

Nortb Amerícø

Ca¡ada

United States

Ottawa National Press Club

The Ashford Club 10th Floor

150 Wellington

400 Perimeter Center Terrace Àrlanta, GA30346

T: 1-404-395-1333 F: t-4O4-677-OOü.

Ottawa, Ont,

KlP 544

'lfinnipeg Press Club Marlborough Hotel 331 Smith Street 'Dfiflnipeg, Man R3B 2G9

Cat Bar closed its doors on the same day he died. @ August 1994 THE C0RRDSPoI|ItENT

PLEASE

PATRO N I5 E

TH E5E

From MalaÍrto Mandela

sUPPORTERS

FCC

Bull & Bear

o*::,"r";fiÂès

Come and join us at one of Central's favourite pubs.

Opening Hours: 9am-2am, Monday - Saturday;

Y

Noon-Midnight, Sunday ; Happy Hour, 5-8pm.

Hearty English Breakfast served till 10.30am, Mon-Sat,

n

Traditional Pub Grub, Daily Special,

Buen Vino P,{S S -Jl

We

BAR

look forward to seeing you!

South,{frica - that is to say, the British afld Dutch citizens v/ho make up between them a minority of the population of the Union and a vast majority of its electors votes today for a new parliament. À Nationalist victory today would be a disaster. Dr Malan has chosen, for v/hat seemed no doubt strong electoral reasons, racialto fight on the worst possible field

Ground Floor, Hutchison House (next to Furama Hotel) Central, Hong Kong. Tel: 525 7436

WYNDHAT\I STREET TEL: 8t75472

G.i"d. food. t,'dl a sv¿L]r-n

*"l"o-n" await you..

CEl\TTR.A.T&

beer in a relaxing and friendly atrnosphere.

HAPPY HOURS - ALL DAY SUNDAY AND 6 - 8 PM & I1 - 12 PM EVERY NIGHT

Great food, wine

Mancbester Guørdian car

ried the following editorial:

Roast Beef Sunday Lunch

\-

Wednesday, l/:ay 28, L948

Tbe

ism

-

-

and to put forward the worst possible

policy

GÆ., ON HING BLDG. (UP THE STAIRS, opposite'LOFT" lN WYNDHAM ST.) CENTRAL. RESERVATIONS: 81 01 1 62

segrega- apartheid, or wholesale tion of blackfrom white He and his friends wish to sv/eep away what little political

South China Building, 1-J Wyndham Street TeI: 526-5293 Fax 801-5006

advance the Bantu majority has made in the

Union

-

the Native Representative Council,

the three members elected to represent them

in the House ofAssembly; to stop anyfurther

THE GODOWN

movement of the Bantu into the towns; and to forbid them any scope for advancement

Closc Ir¡cot¡nters of thc Ëxotic lrrdi¡lr Kincl

-WHERE THINGS REAttY TAKE OFT-

The Ashoka

anluzhere but in the Reserves.

llrelif'l¡urJrt ¿\lìtrt,¡lllru¡rrr¡ttlelittrrrrils,¡trr,ttithYdl.'LI'.trlingServire I ììr lt) lìlì l' 'ì' I l,¡lrr\rr¡r' ,\tlt'lrtitrrslrt.lirrrlntlulll'rr.e \!r.lrljrortht'lnclttll¡rntctrrr, lrrtr!r...rr ,'(\) | ¡ìì llì tì(l I rtì 1ll()('ll,¡laa7l9 \\'r..r,'slilìtlrr,'(..ìl'i;'.()\\'r'ntll¡¡rrr\1,!(rrtr¡ì,llK,ld .rn.l ¡l'¡ ¡l ,'rr¡ l,r¡n.l rrrrv I'l,rLe ¡t (,/ìj( rr¡trr.rttS,ltl ('t¡rtÌ¡tr'rcial lhriHin¡¡, lri"\\1¡n¡ìr¡i ìiirrLl, II K, lel sql sql'1,.'ì(rl iíl5l (;'lìt)

This is not so much

a

policy

as a

neurotic

it could not be realised even if the Nationalists came into'power. The Bantu

fantasy:

cannotbe confined to the Reserves, because

these are neither big enough nor fertile enough to maintain them They cannot be excluded from the towns, because they are needed there; SonthAfrica's industry cannot

r> 7n rZ*/

.% .Øt;r.tz.Ør**l7u"t";ut

.t6rt/.7/"-Øø¡(%'l'*,%'*.2

D

GO

W N

LUNCH, DINNER & DANCING -PRJVATE ROOM-

- LUNCH - DINNER -

A SHORT TAXI RIDE FROM THE FCC HAPPY HOURS 5-7 PM, 1 1-12 MIDNICHT FOR RESERVATONS CALL

1

B-13 !?o On Lane, Lan Kwai Fong, Hong Kong

CROUND FLOOR, HONC KONG

Telephone 52.65965

Late night supper

Frida¡ Saturday

A Çreøt Lurch-tirft¿ leø[t

a.m,

and eve's to public holidays,

M 58-62 D' Aguilar Street Lan Kwai Fong Cenlral Hong Atr ù)lite Cotrce¡tt

lt

Kong

Tel: 845-5577

fo,

from7l

g6

6Ifrz'I)i

+Jfilcl-

[-Sept'94

ttøge

for

(

Inlian) I(staurønL

Currg Loaers

\uemøtions: 5257410,'Iafo-øøøy (t Coteing

3pm Diflrer(Mon-Sat)6:00ptn 11:æ!1fl D¡ntret (SulL)6:001f,-11:00pft

Lurc[L(w{on-Sat)11:30am

as a

solution

seraice: 525 4177

57'Wynlñamstree¡

ßNercfl't{0fl81þttt

heid system and begin a dialogue with jailed AfricanNational Congress leader Nelson Mandela.

Withinmonths thepillars of apanheid had fallen and Mandela was released after 27 years behind bars.

The four decades of apartheid, however, have left their markon SouthAfrica... black, white, coloured, Chinese and Indian alike. Its legacywill be long and enduring but in order to understand the present

This movement

will not go by the

same

path, nor at the same spee d, in all theAfrican

territories. It will create different problems in each and call for different solutions. The outcome which is not conceivable is what

Dr Malan demands once and for all.

-

to reverse the trend

ttríhat this book tries to do provide some understanding of the problems facing the new South Africa by mixing cuff ent commentary with historic reporting lrom Tbe Guørdian's archives.

From that very first editorial on May 26, 1948, to the

present day, Tbe Guardian has given wide coverage to

white man who had been in a serious The Nationalists won the election and Dr Malan became Prime Minister.

In the four decades that followed South Africa became a deeply divided

nation where the minority had all the

Although half-white and halfnonwhite under its former laws, Chi nese wefe placed in aracial category all of their own ... Chinese. Japanese,

is to

Tb e Gu ardi an's editor P eter Preston in his forward to the book writes: "The Guardian, througr,q the years of oppression, did not let South Africa rest. It reported the facts, the details and the horrors."

The stories ftom The Guardian, which are reproduced in the book, help to illustrate the tragic and absurd nature of apartheid.

Take the storywhich appeared on August 2, 1967 under the headline: "Casualty of apartheid". It dealtwith a

bttt

entering the members' enclosure at the exclusive Turffontein race course.

After years of being admitted aIl of a sudden theywere barred under a law restricting rucially mixed audiences.

yeafs.

South Africa.

- often painfully slow -

peared on September 14, 1965:' "Chinese puzzle at S. African racecourse".

This story dealt with a group of Chinese race-goers who were barred from

it's important to know what happened in those 4}-odd

to South Africa's race relations is irresponsi-

pean civilisation.

i( ( ( (

individual's race, where people could live and who they could sleep with, Fouryears ago, however, the then 'W. President F. de Klerk began the unthinkable ... to dismantle the apart-

ble The one inescapable fact which domi-

ultimatel)' irresistible movement of the African peoples towards the standards of Euro-

A6d 66

Eø

put this wild stuff forward

the slow

-

AFTER DINNER

THE CODOWN, ADMIRALTY CEMRE, TOWER 2,

"Its late and had a h we havenft from lO - l2

To

nates the future of the African continent is

-

LIVEPIANO AND AMBIANCE

grow without them.

power and the majority nothing.

Draconian laws determined an

car accident only to be left lying on the side of the road for an hour and ahall because the ambulance which arrived on the scene was for non-whites only.

Then there is the story which ap-

on the other hand, were classed

as

honourary whites.

From the absurd to the tragedy of Sharpville and Soweto and the brutality of a systemwhich treated the black

majority with utter contempt, Tbe Guardían has covered it all.

For anyone wanting to know some-

thing about South Africa, its past and what the future may hold, this book comes highly recommended.

Reviewed by

IkdVilson

Tbe Legacy ofApartbeid Edited byJoseph Harker Published by Tbe Guard,ían 214 pages

'Íe[: 525 7410, 525 4117

August 1994 TÃE

CoRRDSPoIVDENI

A montbly portrait of FCC irreplaceables

Nîkon

e

il â1,

rr1 , tl

Æs t,f

.F__'

#= 1;

Hubert Van Es Member Since:

1967

Age:

One year older than last year

Occupation: Nationality: Intefests:

Photographer Dutch Too many to mention here, but one of them is weight-lifting (mainly half-pints) That good looking dude with the bags under his eyes, also known as the Dutch Minister for Couth and Culture.

Description:

NE\rySMAKER Where history is made, as it is being made, the Nikon F4 toils. [Jnfailingly, tirelessly.

The F4. Good news for pros everywhere.

Pltotograþbed by Eddie Adams, courtesy of Kodak Sole Agent: Shriro {H.K ) Ltd., rSE GoRRXSPoilD[NT August 1994

zlF

Centra Hong Kong Te 524 5O3l

l

WUE,N YOU BUITO FOR THE FUTURE, NE,VE,R FORGET YOUR ROOTS.

l

Established in 1886, the Wharf Group's main business relies on long term core investment projects in Hong Kong. However, as we pursue other investment'opportunities elsewhere, such as China, Singapore and the United States, we are committed to developing property and infrastructure projects simiLar to the ones we have successfully completed in Hong Kong over the last 100 years. It is this

simple philosophy of always remembering our roots that we tell our investors all around the world.

\체HARF Cont창ct numbers: The Wharf lHoldingsJ

Ltd

879

3388

.

Wharf Cable 611 6868

.

Omni Hotels Asia Pacihc 738 3232