This Sunday, come celebrate International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination with us in Kowloon Bay. We have lined up an array of programmes, such as yoga demonstration, ethnic dances, sharing by members from ethnic minority communities of their experiences, performances by Canto pop singers, and games. We will also announce a new campaign that day. All are welcome. Bring your friends and family!


Event details
When: 12 March 2017 (Sunday), 2:30pm to 4:00pm
Where: Atrium, G/F, E-max, Kowloonbay International Trade & Exhibition Centre
(Shuttle bus service is available between Kowloon Bay MTR station and the venue)

About IDERD
Information about past IDERD public events organised by the EOC

A press conference was held yesterday (9 March) at the EOC office to reiterate the urgency for legislation to protect sexual minorities from discrimination. A joint statement was released by the EOC and the Gender Research Centre (GRC) of the Hong Kong Institute of Asia-Pacific Studies at The Chinese University of Hong Kong, urging the Government to act on this matter. The statement was endorsed by over 70 organisations and individuals, including international financial and law firms, consulates, chambers, NGOs, and concern groups. Some representatives from these organisations attended the event to show their support.
 
Professor Alfred CHAN Cheung-ming, EOC Chairperson, said that the strong support from the business sector indicates that offering LGBTI persons basic legal protection is not just moral and human rights obligations, but it also makes good business sense.
 
Also released at the event was the report of the second international conference in Hong Kong on LGBTI rights, which was held by the European Union Office to Hong Kong and Macao, the German Consulate General Hong Kong, and the GRC in November 2016.

Read the press release and statement
Read the EOC’s Study on LGBTI anti-discrimination legislation

In palmistry, the term “career line” (事業線) refers to the line on a person’s palm indicating his/her career prospect. Today, it is widely used to denote a woman’s cleavage, hinting that sex appeal is women’s biggest asset. This is unacceptable, given that a lot of Hong Kong women are working hard with their knowledge, skills and capabilities. In fact, women’s labour force participation rate has increased over the years, making significant contributions to the labour market and economy.   
 
To voice out against gender stereotypes and objectification of women, The Women’s Foundation (TWF), an organisation working towards gender parity, launched a campaign entitled “MyRealCareerLine” on International Women’s Day (8 March), sending a clear message that women deserve to be respected and celebrated for their professional achievements.
 
The campaign takes aim at the popular use of the term “career line” to refer to a woman’s cleavage and invites people and organisations to make a stand against casual sexism, objectification and inequality in the workplace. The campaign hopes to inspire women to take pride in and celebrate whatever it is that makes them exceptional, knowing that their true value and worth is based on far more than just their appearance. TWF also hopes employers will play their part by working harder to ensure they are using objective criteria when assessing female candidates for job openings or promotions. And finally, TWF hopes the media will stop to think twice before using terms like career line and commit to representing women in a more authentic, three-dimensional and aspirational light.
 
Prior to the official launch, TWF created a fictitious pop-up “Career Line” cosmetic surgery clinic to generate social discussion. Female icons from different sectors are acting as ambassadors of the campaign, which also has the support of numerous organisations, including the EOC. As a guest speaker at the press conference, Professor Alfred CHAN Cheung-ming, Chairperson of the EOC, said, “The EOC is committed to working with different organisations and parties, including TWF, on creating a safe and harassment-free environment for everyone. Through concerted efforts, we aim to foster respect for everyone, irrespective of gender, and ensure a level-playing field for men and women.”
 
Other than the TWF event, the EOC attended activities organised by various women’s groups in celebration of International Women’s Day, including the 2017 Hong Kong Women Celebrating International Women's Day Dinner and a seminar on “Collaborating with Men” organised by The University of Hong Kong.

Read the EOC’s fact sheet on gender equality
About the MyRealCareerLine campaign

Gender stereotypes exist not only in the world of grown-ups but also among our younger generation. The fact that more boys study STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) subjects because it is perceived by some people that males are “better at logic” is one example. To gain a greater understanding of the attitudes of junior secondary school age girls towards STEM subjects, TWF – with support from Goldman Sachs Gives – commissioned Dr Dannii YEUNG and Dr Mario LIONG to produce a report examining Hong Kong female students’ inclination not to select STEM subjects. Nearly 1,000 female secondary school students and teachers from five girls-only and eight co-ed schools in Hong Kong participated in the study. Findings from the research point to a broad set of barriers to girls pursuing STEM subjects and uncovered key differences between girls-only schools and co-ed schools in the attitude of students, teachers and parents towards girls in STEM. From these findings, TWF developed a series of recommendations for the Government, policy-makers, educators, businesses and parents to address gender stereotypes and barriers, including reviewing the current STEM curriculum and pedagogy through a gender lens, providing more support to teachers, more STEM careers guidance for parents and the promotion of female role models by businesses and in the media.

Read the study on girls and STEM education by TWF (create an account to view the report)

One. Two. Three. Four. Every four seconds, a new case of dementia is diagnosed worldwide, according to the World Health Organization, which also predicts that 76 million people will live with dementia in 2030. In Hong Kong, it is estimated that 10% of the elderly population (about 100,000 people) have dementia. As the population ages at a speedy rate, we can expect the disease to become more prevalent, and a pressing issue.
 
There is currently no cure for dementia. However, therapy and medication may help slow down the deterioration of the brain’s cognitive and intellectual functions, and early identification and intervention is crucial. To increase public awareness and vigilance about the disease, the Department of Health has worked with TVB to produce two short TV episodes on the topic as part of its “Joyful@HK” campaign promoting mental health. The first episode (4 March) looked at two real-life cases in Hong Kong, while the second episode will be aired this Saturday (11 March). Veteran TV celebrities Helena Law (羅蘭) and Steve Lee (李家鼎) also appeared in the show to share how they age gracefully through SME – sharing, mind, and enjoyment – the theme of the Joyful@HK campaign.

Watch the first episode online
About the Joyful@HK campaign
Learn more about dementia