Following is the transcript of remarks by the Chief Executive, Mrs Carrie Lam, at a media session before the Executive Council meeting this morning (December 3):
 
Reporter: Mrs Lam, you said you were going to set up an independent review committee to look into the causes … but that’s not what people have been asking for almost six months now. It’s clear that so many people, at least the 2 million people on the streets, back in June, they wanted to have an independent commission of inquiry to look into the Police’s  handling of the protests as well as the causes of the unrest. In fact, the international expert panel of the IPCC already said that the IPCC itself lacks the power to conduct a rigorous inquiry into the Police and the protests. You said you wanted to find a way out of the crisis so why not try listening to the people and what’s stopping you from doing what so many people have so sincerely wanted you to do over the past six months?
 
Chief Executive: First of all, it has been some time ago that I announced that we would invite a group of community leaders,  academia and experts to independently look into the causes of this prolonged social unrest, including the underlying, deep-seated problems that have been bothering Hong Kong. What I said perhaps in more explicit terms last Tuesday was the idea of inviting these people to form themselves into an independent review committee. This independent review committee would look into the causes, which is the first part of your question, of the social unrest and come up with recommendations for the Government, because we don’t want to see the recurrence of this social disturbance in future. We have to tackle not only the phenomenon but also the underlying causes. As far as the investigation into the Police, the well-established mechanism is to use the IPCC (Independent Police Complaints Council) to look into those allegations and complaints and this time the IPCC has taken the initiative to conduct a thematic fact-finding study into the more significant incidents that have caused a lot of public concern. By now, the IPCC has already worked for five months. I think the best way is for the IPCC to complete its finding, and for society to examine the findings and have a good discussion on the outcome of the IPCC report.
     
(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the transcript.)
 

     The Leisure and Cultural Services Department announced today (December 3) that Wong Nai Chung Sports Centre and Wong Nai Chung Public Library in Wan Chai District have been reopened.  The sports centre and the library were temporarily closed earlier on due to a fire broke out at the building.

     The concert by Xu Ke and the Tokyo String Quintet, originally to be staged at 8pm on December 14 (Saturday) at the Auditorium, Tsuen Wan Town Hall, has been rescheduled to 3pm on the same day.

     All original tickets remain valid.

     For refunds, please contact the Cultural Presentations Section of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department at 2268 7321 during office hours or by email (cp2@lcsd.gov.hk) on or before January 10, 2020 (Friday). Late requests will not be accepted. Please keep the original intact ticket(s) (with stub) for refund arrangement.

     Concert tickets priced at $120, $180 and $220 are still available at URBTIX (www.urbtix.hk). For telephone credit card bookings, please call 2111 5999. For programme enquiries and concessionary schemes, please call 2268 7321 or visit www.lcsd.gov.hk/CE/CulturalService/Programme/en/music/programs_877.html.

     The last round of the roving exhibition "Pleasure and Leisure: A Glimpse of Children's Pastimes in Hong Kong" will be held at the Hong Kong Central Library from December 4 to 30. Through this exhibition, one can learn more about the transformation of Hong Kong's society and livelihoods from the 1950s to the 1980s, and relive the joyful childhood moments in those years.

     "During the roving exhibition, we will also hold a talk entitled 'Pleasure and Leisure: A Glimpse of Children's Pastimes in Hong Kong – Our Archives, Our Stories' on December 14 at the Hong Kong Central Library. The talk, to be conducted in Cantonese, will cover the functions and services of the Public Records Office (PRO), some highlighted holdings and the current exhibition. Limited seats will be available on a first-come, first-served basis," a spokesman for the PRO said.

     "Our public engagement programmes, 'Share the Joy' and 'Childlike Innocence on Camera', as part of our exhibition, concluded on November 30. We would like to express our gratitude to members of the public who actively responded to the programmes. Our exhibition has been enriched by the toys lent and photographs provided by them.

     "Through the public engagement programmes, we have collected 50 toys from the 1950s to the 1980s, and 39 photographs depicting childhood playtime within the same period. These toys and photographs are part of our precious collective memory. The toys will be displayed in the Exhibition Hall, while the photographs have been uploaded to the exhibition's dedicated webpage and will be mounted at the Search Room. The last batch of toys borrowed from the public will be displayed in the Exhibition Hall from January 2 to 21 in 2020. Members of the public are encouraged to take the opportunity to view the exhibition."

     Details of the roving exhibition and the talk have been uploaded to the dedicated webpage of the exhibition (www.grs.gov.hk/ws/online/pal/en/index.html). Admission to the roving exhibition and the talk is free.

      

     The Leisure and Cultural Services Department announced today (December 3) that due to a fire that broke out at the building, the Wong Nai Chung Public Library in Wan Chai District is temporarily closed until further notice.