Wednesday 20th February 2013

Dear Reader,

Thanks to over 900 people who have already participated in our opinion poll on HKIDs and Government. If you haven't yet voted, your e-mail and PIN are at the top of this newsletter. Meanwhile, for those interested in the difference between a long-stay hotel suite and an apartment, we'll be on RTHK3 Backchat tomorrow morning at 08:33.

NEW ARTICLE
Response to HK's Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data
Last week's very public intervention by the Government's Privacy Commissioner regarding the Webb-site Who's Who database raises important implications for the freedom in Hong Kong to compile, publish, and even access compilations of public domain data on individuals. Having raised these issues, the PCPD must now clarify where we all stand. (20-Feb-2013)

RECENTLY ON WEBB-SITE
HKID index suspended: A special message from our Founder
(15-Feb-2013)

HKIDs and Government secrecy
Webb-site calls on Government to abandon plans to restrict access to HKIDs, and instead to promote their use as unique identifiers of individuals and eliminate their misuse as authenticators. A media exemption would imply media controls. We launch an index of HKIDs which are already on the web. The Companies Registry and Land Registry should tear down the pay-wall and provide open online access to all documents. (12-Feb-2013)

Submission to HK Ombudsman on access to information and records management
Webb-site calls for a Freedom of Information Ordinance, to include provisions on government record-keeping. There should be an online freely accessible archive of records, and pay-walls on registries should be demolished. Government claims to copyright should also be scrapped - we have already paid for what they produce, and it should not be commercial anyway. (12-Feb-2013)

BSD and SSD 2.0 - submission to LegCo
We dissect the proposed Buyer's Stamp Duty and increase and expansion of Special Stamp Duty on residential properties in HK. Government replies to Webb-site reveal that they don't actually have data to support the discrimination between Permanent Residents and Non-PRs, even if the duty were constitutional, which it is not. (5-Feb-2013)

Pass it on!
This free newsletter goes to over 20,000 practitioners, issuers, regulators and investors in Hong Kong's markets. If you enjoy Webb-site, then please invite a friend to find out what they are missing and subscribe! Visit our archives, and do your homework before you invest.

Remember that, apart from our occasional articles, you can follow our daily updates on HK events via RSS, Twitter, or Facebook.