HONG KONG LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL 11 May 1988
1369
A combination of all these factors has helped to tame, in my view, somewhat the hard working spirit of our youths. This may be acceptable up to now but if we were to look further ahead, we should be aware of the fact that world. advancement in technology will surely bring the world closer together. As a result, our community will face much more fierce competition from other communities of the world in our quest for further economic advancement. Our youth today will be the pillars of our community tomorrow and they will have to bear the brunt of that competition.
It will be difficult indeed to maintain our economic well-being without putting in considerable hard work and effort. For our youths to sustain the kind of economic benefits they have been exposed to, they need to develop the skills to handle tough and difficult situations. They should not be encouraged or conditioned to think that the community owes everyone a living, and that, from cradle to grave, Government can always be looked upon as the natural provider. In my view, our future economic successes will be very much dependent upon the ability of our community to continue to appreciate and accept the value of hard work.
We must also learn to work more together as a team in meeting challenges from our competitors. Our youth should therefore be provided with the opportunities to be exposed to programmes designed to enhance their ex- periences on the benefits of hard work, team work and collective wisdom. This is the area where Government-sponsored programmes will be most meaningful.
Before I close, Sir, I would like to pay tribute to the significant work done by the Central Committee on Youth chaired by my hon. Colleague, Mrs. Rosanna TAM. We should be thankful for their work and their report should really provide a good foundation for any further efforts. I support fully their recommendations for Government to formulate a youth policy and then to establish a commission on youth.
With these remarks, Sir, I support the motion.
MRS. CHOW: Sir, in 1985, I was fortunate enough to serve with a group of extremely enthusiastic and relatively young people in a committee to co-ordinate the numerous celebrations staged by hundreds of organisations over the territory in honour of the International Youth Year. One of the more lasting recommendations that emerged was that the focus on youth affairs should not be allowed to fade, and the impetus provided by the year should serve as the momentum for a more concentrated effort to determine and shape the youth policy most suited to the needs of our community.
The Report on Youth Policy published by the Central Committee on Youth fulfilled this task admirably, and I would like to speak in support of it.
The proposed commission on youth is, of course, quite necessary to spearhead thought and action related to the formation and implementation of a youth policy. I am, however, somewhat concerned that little emphasis is given to the