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2017年10月24日星期二

Made in Myanmar


秋風起,添置衣物。在 H&M 購入一雙售價 $99.9(港幣)的女裝平底鞋,又在九龍城區的出口成衣店買了一件 $39 (港幣)的連帽風衣 (Wind-breaker),共通點:Made in Myanmar。亦即是說,緬甸已經成為勞動密集加工業的外判基地,製造廉價的成衣和鞋子。成衣店由鄉音未改的大陸女人打理,中國的角色,不難想像。對,我是慳妹(提示:大時代+周慧敏)。潮州人的美德,是節儉。

回家之後,研究標籤。連帽風衣的品牌代理註冊地點是法國,產品說明有葡萄牙文、西班牙文、簡體和繁體中文、日文等幾個版本,也有標明巴西、墨西哥和中國的適用尺碼,出口市場是那裡,已經很清楚了。還有一句:primarily intended for ages 13+,原來我是西方世界的 Teenager (Age: 13-19) 尺碼。哈哈,證明 Auntie 保養得宜,青春常駐,很好。女裝平底鞋有標明美國和歐洲尺碼,下面還有兩行字:Fabrique En Birmanie (In French: Factory in Burma) 和 Hecho En Union De Myanmar (In Spanish: Made in Union of Myanmar)。括號內是 Google translate 提供的英文翻譯,至於 Burma 和 Myanmar 的分別,請參考<延伸閱讀>部份所提供的資料。

換言之,緬甸已經融入西方主導的國際經濟秩序,正處於食物鏈的底層,即是被剝削的勞動人民。香港和中國也經歷過這個階段。我讀小學的上世紀七十年代,香港還有製造業(例如:製衣、電子、玩具)。到八十年代初,香港的製造業生產線北移,大部份遷入華南地區,小部份日後再轉移至越南,也有廠佬(製造業老闆)選擇轉型(例如:759 阿信屋)或退休,令華南地區性都東莞的色情事業一落千丈,港男的東莞常平夜遊「包膠」(普通話「報告」的粵語諧音)成為絕唱,曾經令港男靈魂出竅的雲南楊采妮相信已經回鄉(出處:一路向西)。

尋找窮人的遊戲

這是一個尋找窮人,讓他們為發達國家服務的遊戲。某國的生產成本上升?立即把生產線轉移至另一個更窮的國家,只要窮人還沒有死盡,剝削窮人的遊戲就可以繼續,廉價的快速成衣 (Fast fashion) 供應源源不絕,多到可以送去回收箱,部份再回歸第三世界,今次據說是非洲國家。人與物資,不斷輪迴。背後的動力,是跨國的資本流動以及物流管理。西方資本是游牧民族的領袖,而曾經被西方制裁的國家(例如:緬甸、古巴、北韓)是未經開發的處女地,第三世界的人口紅利於是落入西方世界的口袋。亞洲國家的窮孩子以為讀書就可以脫貧或遠離工廠,結果發現讀完大學也不過是服務業的奴隸。不敢生育?輸入外勞!遊戲繼續。

長遠來說,緬甸是否會踏上香港或中國的舊路(被西方資本用完即棄),自己想。大部份的老百姓還沒有脫貧,宗教和種族矛盾已經爆發(提示:羅興亞人 Rohingya),令鄰國孟加拉承受巨大的壓力,掌權不久的國務資政昂山素姬 (Aung San Suu Kyi) 因而備受指責。昂山素姬曾經備受西方世界的嘉許(證據:1991 年的諾貝爾和平獎),但是國母光環很快退色。七十年前,她的父親帶領緬甸脫離英國獨立,在緬甸獨立建國之前的六個月被刺殺,當時昂山素姬只有兩歲,但是她繼承了他的政治遺產。她的母親是緬甸派駐印度的外交官,昂山素姬在當地的基督教學校讀書(網上的資料說她本人是佛教徒),然後到英國唸牛津大學,跟英國同學結婚生子,成為家庭主婦,直至 1988 年回國照顧病重的母親。之後的故事,如果你不知道,請上網,又或者參考楊紫瓊演昂山素姬的那部電影。昂山父女跟英國的關係非常複雜,恩怨糾纏,三言兩語說不清。英語傳媒筆下的昂山將軍是牆頭草,請參考<延伸閱讀>部份所提供的資料。

網上的資料說,昂山素姬的母親誕下兩子一女,但是兩個兒子沒有繼承父業。其中一位未成年死於意外,另外一位移居美國。是性格不適合從政,還是覺得政治太可怕?都有可能。南韓的朴槿惠也是類似的情況,她是長女,弟弟沒有繼承父親朴正熙的事業,而是選擇遠離政治,讓姊姊獨力面對兇險的政治波濤,直至沒頂。其他繼承父親政治事業的長女,還有南亞大陸的貝娜齊爾 (Benazir Bhutto) 和甘地夫人 (Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi),兩位都是遇刺身亡。繼承父業要賠上性命,可見政治有多兇險。而剛剛出走的泰國女總理英祿 (Yingluck Shinawatra) 則一直被視作兄長他信 (Thaksin Shinawatra) 的扯線木偶,最後也同樣走上流亡之路。他信下台之後,曾經多次在香港的高級場所出現,請參考另一篇文章<離岸中心>(三),日期是 2009 年 1 月 11 日。

代夫代父代兄出征的亞洲女人

亞洲地區的女性國家元首,好像一直生活於父權的陰影之下。她們上位,並不代表女權抬頭。主流傳媒提到她們的時候,總會提及她們的父親(例如:昂山素姬、朴槿惠、貝娜齊爾、甘地夫人)或兄長(例如:英祿)或丈夫(例如:阿基諾夫人),好像她們都是靠男人上位,又或者是男人的替代品。好像她們是代夫代父代兄出征的楊門女將,代替男人執行保衛國家的職責,是次選而非首選。換言之,女人始終是男人的附屬品,而非獨立自主的個體。思想傳統的亞洲男人更覺得牝雞司晨(女人掌權)是兇兆,國運走下坡,是時候沽股票或賣樓了。

她們都是孝順的女兒,繼承了高風險的家族事業,部份人因此犧牲了自己的家庭(例如:昂山素姬),有人獨身(例如:朴槿惠),也有人選擇未婚生子(例如:英祿)。亞洲國家,思想傳統,奉行集體主義,要求個人為家族的利益服務,所以孩子從小被訓練要服從父母。原生家庭的拉力強大,有時足以摧毀孩子婚後所建立的初生家庭(例如:昂山素姬)。如果是從事政治或金融的家族,需要幾代人合力建立和守護所累積的無形資產(權力或金錢),在爭權奪利以及面對時代轉變的過程中,少不免有家族成員要作出犧牲。萬一兒子不願意挑起重擔又或者出了事(例如:三星太子爺李在鎔),只好由女兒頂上(例如:三星長公主李富真)。當國家或企業面臨重大的危機,男兒退縮或出缺,才輪到女兒出征掌帥印。但是女人掌權的日子不會太長,危機過去之後,權力會重歸男人的手中。(例如:朴槿惠、英祿)這套西方商學院理論,叫「玻璃懸崖」(Glass Cliff),請參考 2015 年 10 月 30 日的文章。昂山素姬是否會成為過渡人物,有待觀察。

結論

要改變現有的制度或遊戲規則,非常困難。背後牽涉權力和財富的分配,既得利益者不會輕易讓步。他們害怕自己死後,兒孫會向下流動,又或者被仇家追殺,甚至是被滅門。東方人社會,惡人當道,習慣株九族,有時甚至株十族(連目標人物的老師、同學、學生和朋友都一併幹掉)。至於西方世界的嘉許,既可以是死亡之吻,亦可以是「捧殺」的前奏:先把你捧上半天高,然後讓你狠狠地摔下來。(出處:魯迅+罵殺與捧殺)繼昂山素姬之後,我開始擔心馬拉拉 (Malala Yousafzai),那位 18 歲就獲得諾貝爾和平獎(2014 年)的巴基斯坦少女。她替 BBC 寫博客成名,因為爭取女孩受教育的權利,幾乎被本國的極端宗教信徒所槍殺,是英國人救她脫離險境,送她入醫院動手術,康復之後,又讓她留在英國讀書,然後入讀牛津大學。英國人有份捧紅她,這個女孩也具備從政的條件,日後是否會成為另一位昂山素姬,有待觀察。獨立自主之路,從來不好走,沿途佈滿地雷和陷阱,一不小心可以粉身碎骨。前殖民地如是,亞洲女人亦如是。

插圖來源:
http://cusonlo.blogspot.hk/2012/03/blog-post_6947.html

說明:香港漫畫家 Cuson Lo 筆下的 Aung San Suu Kyi(香港譯名:昂山素姬,大陸譯名:昂山素季,台灣譯名:翁山蘇姬。)

YouTube 精選:

The Lady (2012) – Trailer (2:30)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkvVJ-nVp8Q
背景資料:The Lady is the extraordinary true story of Aung San Suu Kyi(Michelle Yeoh 楊紫瓊), the woman who is at the core of Burma’s democracy movement, and her husband, Michael Aris (David Thewlis).

延伸閱讀/參考資料:

Pressure mounts on retailers to reform throwaway clothing culture
The Guardian (Aug 10, 2016)
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/aug/10/pressure-mounts-on-retailers-to-reform-throwaway-clothing-culture
Extract: Fast-growing, fast-fashion retailer H&M, which has more than 4,000 stores in 62 countries, sold $24.5 bn worth of T-shirts, pants, jackets, and dresses last year. It also took 12,000 tons of clothes back. In a glossy, celebrity-studded video, H&M says: “There are no rules in fashion but one: Recycle your clothes.” Recycling has become a rallying cry in the apparel industry, with H&M as its most vocal evangelist.

That H&M is leading the charge for the circular economy is no small irony. The company’s low-cost clothes – it sells women’s T-shirts for $5.99 and boys’ jeans for $9.99 – are one reason why the apparel industry is growing so fast and drawing fire from environmental activists. Eileen Fisher, the founder of the apparel company that bears her name, has called the clothing industry “the second largest polluter in the world, second only to oil,” a claim that can’t be verified because reliable data on fashion’s global footprint is scarce. In places where environmental regulation is lax, chemicals are routinely discharged into rivers and streams without treatment. The textile industry has long been one of China’s biggest polluters, and it has fouled rivers and ruined farmland in India, Cambodia, and Bangladesh, as well.

Should it be Burma or Myanmar?
BBC (26 September 2007)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/7013943.stm
Extract: The ruling military junta changed its name from Burma to Myanmar in 1989, a year after thousands were killed in the suppression of a popular uprising. Rangoon also became Yangon. The Adaptation of Expression Law also introduced English language names for other towns, some of which were not ethnically Burmese. The change was recognised by the United Nations, and by countries such as France and Japan, but not by the United States and the UK. A statement by the Foreign Office says: "Burma's democracy movement prefers the form 'Burma' because they do not accept the legitimacy of the unelected military regime to change the official name of the country. Internationally, both names are recognised."

It's general practice at the BBC to refer to the country as Burma, and the BBC News website says this is because most of its audience is familiar with that name rather than Myanmar. The same goes for Rangoon, people in general are more familiar with this name than Yangon. The two words mean the same thing and one is derived from the other. Burmah, as it was spelt in the 19th Century, is a local corruption of the word Myanmar. They have both been used within Burma for a long time, says anthropologist Gustaaf Houtman, who has written extensively about Burmese politics.

The Economist explains - Should you say Myanmar or Burma?
And how much does it matter anymore?
Dec 20, 2016
https://www.economist.com/blogs/economist-explains/2016/12/economist-explains-19
Latest updates: So which should be used? For years that depended on the speaker’s (or writer’s) politics. Miss Suu Kyi and those sympathetic to her cause conspicuously refused to call the country “Myanmar”, because doing so would lend legitimacy to the junta’s choice of nomenclature, and hence to the junta itself. So countries sympathetic to her cause, mainly in Europe and America, followed suit. But since taking office as an MP four years ago — and certainly since assuming leadership of her country last March — her objections to the new name have softened. In her first speech to the UN as her country’s leader, she mainly referred to it as “Myanmar”.

Your correspondent finds himself in the country every six weeks or so. In print he hews rigorously to the style book, and calls the country “Myanmar”. In conversation he uses both names, asystematically. Aside from the occasional white-bearded, hyper-punctilious European tourist, nobody has ever corrected him. The battle over the name stems from the days when Myanmar/Burma was more cause than country — when simply choosing to say “Burma” was a declaration of being on the right side of a fight for freedom and justice. Those days are over. The country’s problems today are far more complex: not how to convince an authoritarian regime to recognise popular will, but how to lift tens of millions out of desperate poverty as quickly as possible, and how to quell multiple decades-long civil wars and create a just, functional state whose writ extends across its entire territory. Those problems become no less thorny whichever name you use.

Profile: Aung San Suu Kyi
BBC (5 Dec 2016)
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-pacific-11685977
Extract: Aung San Suu Kyi led the National League for Democracy (NLD) to a majority win in Myanmar's first openly contested election in 25 years in November 2015. The win came five years to the day since she was released from 15 years of house arrest. Although the Myanmar constitution forbids her from becoming president because she has children who are foreign nationals, Ms Suu Kyi is widely seen as de facto leader. Her official title is state counsellor. The president, Htin Kyaw, is a close confidante.

The 70-year-old spent much of her time between 1989 and 2010 in some form of detention because of her efforts to bring democracy to then military-ruled Myanmar (also known as Burma) - a fact that made her an international symbol of peaceful resistance in the face of oppression. In 1991, "The Lady" as she's known, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize and the committee chairman called her "an outstanding example of the power of the powerless".

However, after her release and subsequent political career, Ms Suu Kyi has come in for criticism by some rights groups for what they say has been a failure to speak up for Myanmar's minority groups during a time of ethnic violence in parts of the country. Hundreds of thousands of people - including the Muslim Rohingya minority, who are not recognised as citizens - were denied voting rights. Since taking power, the NLD, and Ms Suu Kyi in particular, have faced international criticism for ignoring abuses against the Rohingya in western Rakhine state.

A Name and a Destiny
The Washington Post (Oct 12, 2003)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&contentId=A18107-2003Oct12¬Found=true
Extract: Perhaps he knew it would make a difference. In Burma, where parents almost never name their children after themselves, Gen. Aung San, the country's founding father, broke with all tradition. Not only did he name his first two sons after himself, Aung San Oo and Aung San Lin, he gave his name to his only daughter. Aung San is a muscular name, one that means victory. To add softness and balance, he drew from his mother's name, Suu, and from his wife's name, Kyi. Strung together like pearls, the name, Aung San Suu Kyi (pronounced "Ong Sahn Soo Chee"), is an unusual name, meaning a bright collection of strange victories.

There is a striking reverse symmetry in the lives of the father and the daughter. The youngest of six children, Gen. Aung San was born of rural gentry, and though late to speak and with an awkward, even prickly, personality, he grew into a student leader and committed nationalist. Even as a child, he dreamed of driving the British out of his country, colonized in the 19th century. He would go on to form the Burma Independence Army, to become one of the legendary Thirty Comrades trained secretly by the Japanese. They reentered Burma with the Japanese invasion to oust the British in early 1942, then turned around in March 1945 and helped the British end Japanese occupation. But this grand hero's service to the Burmese people was cut sorrowfully short: A jealous rival had him gunned down in 1947 -- just six months before Burma declared its independence. He was only 32. Suu Kyi was 2.

As she grew, the daughter, whose brisk gestures, direct speech and bright eyes made her a "female replica" of the general, would become obsessed with knowing more about the father she had lost. When she was a young mother, living in Oxford, England, she'd occasionally meet former British colonials who had served in Burma at the end of the war. Did they know Gen. Aung San? What was he like? What did he look like? "One of them said, 'He did look a little like Yul Brynner,' which she liked quite a lot," recalled Peter Carey, a close friend and a Southeast Asia historian at Oxford. "I think she always had this incredible sort of daughter's hero worship for her father, considering the father he was." As fate would have it, she would pick up where he left off decades later, when she was 43, forming a party, the National League for Democracy, with two of his former comrades in arms. During her long, often lonely struggle, she has said, "I always think, 'I may be alone, but I know I have your backing.' "

安裕:再成囚徒的昂山素姬
蘋果日報 2017 年 9 月 15 日
http://hk.apple.nextmedia.com/news/art/20170915/20153335
節錄:然而,昂山素姬將缺席今年的第 72 屆聯合國大會,官方的解說是她有「更加逼切事情要處理」;有外國傳媒猜測,這是免得昂山素姬在聯合國因為羅興亞人被緬甸軍隊追殺而尷尬。多年來不懈追求人權與民主的昂山素姬,這次因為上台執政後緬甸國內人權問題備受批評,去年在聯合國講台上說的「我們無懼國際監察」(we do not fear international scrutiny)變成最具諷刺的實例展示。從歡迎國際監察,到為了免於被指種族清洗卻步聯合國,一直對昂山素姬抱持正面態度的歐美自由派媒體狠批她躲避質疑,甚至有人建議褫奪她的諾貝爾和平獎。今年又見秋風起,只不過一年光景便落得如此,時間對昂山素姬實在太過殘酷了一些。

緬甸式的半吊子民主/專制政權並不罕見,不同的只是以各種形式留在世上。尤其亞洲非洲拉丁美洲一些國家及地區,這種模式甚為盛行:做生意時是經濟自由化,對付異見則威權盛行;也有是民族主義當頭,經濟政策迹近無為,一手硬一手軟、一手緊抓一手寬鬆,類似的政治高壓、經濟自由的新權威主義,近 40 年成為遍及各地的政治風土病。至於緬甸更加不幸,政治仍受軍方牽絆,經濟遠未至於起飛,如此爛攤子千頭萬緒,昂山素姬雖是和平獎得主,但在槍桿子依然是政權主要結構之時,個人榮譽無法喚回軍人扣在機關槍扳機上的指頭,這是昂山素姬面對的現實。

Wikipedia - Malala Yousafzai (1997-)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malala_Yousafzai

Wikipedia - Benazir Bhutto (1953-2007)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benazir_Bhutto

Wikipedia - Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi (1917-1984)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indira_Gandhi

Yahoo 香港:知識:成語:牝雞司晨的典故及意思
https://hk.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20090331000016KK09440
【釋義】:母雞報曉。舊時比喻婦女竊權亂政。婦奪夫權,婦人專權。【出處】:《尚書.牧誓》:「牝雞無晨。牝雞之晨,惟家之索。」

魯迅:罵殺與捧殺(發表於 1934 年,原載:中華日報)
http://www.millionbook.net/mj/l/luxun/hbwx/31.htm
節錄:現在有些不滿於文學批評的,總說近幾年的所謂批評,不外乎捧與罵。 其實所謂捧與罵者,不過是將稱贊與攻擊,換了兩個不好看的字眼。指英雄為英雄,說娼婦是娼婦,表面上雖像捧與罵,實則說得剛剛合式,不能責備批評家的。批評家的錯處,是在亂罵與亂捧,例如說英雄是娼婦,舉娼婦為英雄。批評的失了威力,由於「亂」,甚而至於「亂」到和事實相反,這底細一被大家看出,那效果有時也就相反了。所以現在被罵殺的少,被捧殺的卻多。

相關的文章:

炮灰
2007 年 9 月 28 日
http://xiaoshousha.blogspot.hk/2007/09/blog-post.html
節錄:徐四民的自傳中有將軍的親筆簽名,他說「我景仰和懷念這位為緬甸獨立戰鬥至死的民族英雄」。昂山將軍在一九四七年七月和六位戰友一起遇害,死時年方三十二,當時昂山素姬只有兩歲。六十年前,徐四民有可能在昂山將軍的家中見過昂山素姬,他未必想像到這個小女孩的將來,但是日後故人之女為百姓請命,遭獨裁者軟禁,他沒有為她說過半句公道說話。

草船借箭
2015 年 6 月 5 日
http://xiaoshousha.blogspot.hk/2015/06/blog-post.html
節錄:過去兩、三年,中國的 FDI (Foreign Direct Investment) 和 ODI (Overseas Direct Investment) 的金額接近持平。外資大行經濟師的看法:前者降,後者升,趨勢持續的話,幾年之後 ODI 將會超越 FDI ,走出去的會超過引進來的。對西方國家的跨國企業來說,中國的實體經濟早已不再吸引,下一輪的投資熱點可能是跟美國關係改善的緬甸或古巴。因應形勢轉變,偉大祖國試圖透過香港,引導外資進入金融市場,透過另一管道,讓洋鬼子繼續為中國的經濟增長提供動力。

填房的危機管理
2010 年 6 月 2 日
http://xiaoshousha.blogspot.hk/2010/06/blog-post.html
節錄:表面上,男人是「頭家」(台語:老闆),他在大陸管理的工人數目(八十萬),比得上一個歐洲小國。但是在跨國企業客戶的眼中,他不過是個中間人、小工頭或者遠東買辦 (Comprador),是資本主義供應鏈 (Supply Chain) 中的低層執行者,必要時可以放棄,甚至已經有後備在場邊熱身,準備取而代之。

秋恨
2008 年 10 月 8 日
http://xiaoshousha.blogspot.hk/2008/10/blog-post_8.html
節錄:十二少的父親陳老爺做實業,在東莞開加工廠,本來日子還過得去,可惜近年人民幣升值,成本價格飛漲,早已轉營為虧。陳老爺想過搬廠到越南,請教行家,他們說大陸有的問題越南也有。幾番思量,陳老爺決定結束生意,把家產分給兒孫。他老人家妻妾成群,十二少分得的微薄家財,只夠他北上光顧骨場,不夠錢買名牌時裝和手袋,如花見十二少的檔次越來越低,把他撇了。

瓣數多(三)
2014 年 9 月 18 日
http://xiaoshousha.blogspot.hk/2014/09/blog-post_18.html
節錄:759 阿信屋的另一個危機,是轉型零售之後,不斷跨界,直至踩入某個行業,被該行業的競爭對手作出有力的反擊,又或者是被負責發牌的官府玩殘,技術性被擊倒,又或者是嚴重虧蝕,最後止蝕離場。輕微一點的後果,是進入瓶頸期。創業成功的中年男人通常自信十足,容易高估自己。貪勝不知輸的結果,是一舖清袋甚至輸突。過去兩年,759 阿信屋的母公司 CEC 國際的股價已經累積了一定的升幅。家常小炒,大家睇路。

玻璃懸崖
2015 年 10 月 30 日
http://xiaoshousha.blogspot.hk/2015/10/blog-post_30.html
節錄:「玻璃懸崖」(Glass Cliff) 是指女性在突破「玻璃天花」(Glass Ceiling)之後,卻發現自己身處險境,有如站立於懸崖邊,稍有差錯便粉身碎骨。原因?只有當企業或組織面臨重大危機的時候,「玻璃天花」才會短暫打開,讓女性接受高風險以及容易失敗的任務。然而,當企業或組織渡過難關之後,「玻璃天花」又會重新關閉,再度由男性掌握大權。換言之,鐵娘子成為過渡性的領導人物。這種潛規則,在男性主導的行業很常見。

登上懸崖峭壁的女子
2017 年 3 月 29 日
http://xiaoshousha.blogspot.hk/2017/03/blog-post_29.html
節錄:工作上,林鄭月娥面對一大群紅色背景的毒男(狠毒男人)。在經濟層面,林鄭月娥同樣面對紅色勢力所帶來的挑戰。英資裁員(例如:匯豐、渣打、國泰),外資金融機構的後勤部門遷移到東九龍,把中環的甲級商廈讓給中資。人傻錢多的中資繼續高價搶地,令麵粉(地價)貴過麵包(樓價),華資地產商見狀讓路。中資進駐資產市場所帶來的扭曲,普羅大眾都感受得到。

陷阱
2015 年 2 月 23 日
http://xiaoshousha.blogspot.hk/2015/02/blog-post_23.html
節錄:處身於男性主導行業的女人,要跟身邊的男士們建立起信任和默契,又或者建立起自己的收風渠道,絕非易事。有些思想傳統的大男人,根本不容許女人打入男人的小圈子,新界鄉事派不乏這種人。男人不說的事情很多,那些重要那些不重要,女人要用智慧來區分。有些重要的事情,男人不會告訴你,而你又笨到不去打聽的話,結果便是失禮於人前。更嚴重的後果,是被男人們合力擺佈或出賣,成為他們的棋子或替死鬼。

女人勿近(二)
2012 年 5 月 23 日
http://xiaoshousha.blogspot.hk/2012/05/blog-post_23.html
節錄:女性要在男性主導的行業中立足或者向上爬,要面對不少困難。首先是欠缺支援。這些行業中,具備知識、經驗、人脈和權力的,通常都是已婚的中老年男人,為了避免性騷擾指控,不想惹上師生戀嫌疑,又或者怕家中老妻不高興,他們通常不會刻意栽培女弟子。挑選接班人的時候,會傾向選個男的。這些行業的女性,由於得不到男高層的指點與提拔,事業發展很容易行人止步。

賢內助(四)
2015 年 5 月 7 日
http://xiaoshousha.blogspot.hk/2015/05/blog-post_7.html
節錄:不少女生爬到企業金字塔的中層便止步或流失。這種現象,說明香港女生依然受制於傳統思想,也說明了在現實世界和商業社會中,女人要向上爬絕不容易。單靠讀書,作用有限。還是股民的看法最實際:女人想發達?一係識投胎,一係就嫁個有錢人!原因?能夠打入富豪榜的香港女性,不是富家女便是豪門闊太,靠創業發達的女商人只得一兩位。

寫女人(三)
2014 年 7 月 29 日
http://xiaoshousha.blogspot.hk/2014/07/blog-post_29.html
節錄:中國的西施和花木蘭更偉大,為了實踐父權社會所認同的價值觀(即:忠君愛國、孝順父母),她們不惜出賣肉體,或甘冒生命危險,執行非常危險的任務。而事成之後,她們不要求任何的獎賞,跟所愛的人引退(西施),或者是歸於平淡(花木蘭)。她們樂於犧牲自己成就男人,絕對是中國式父權份子的幻想。見識過慘烈的宮廷鬥爭,經歷過血腥的殺戮戰場,還可以保持純潔善良的本質?別傻了。

庶女奪權(二)
2014 年 11 月 21 日
http://xiaoshousha.blogspot.hk/2014/11/blog-post_21.html
節錄:這類「庶女興家」的故事,通常以民國時代或現代社會為背景,原因不難理解:西風東漸,封建勢力減弱,女孩子也有機會讀書。讀過書,才有能力接管家族事業。故事大綱:庶女和生母長期在外面生活,跟父親、元配及其子女保持適當的距離。後來客觀環境起了變化,家族事業出現問題(例如:父親病逝或入獄,公司周轉不靈),而元配所生的子女又缺乏領導能力(否則輪不到庶女)。面對重大危機,庶女排除萬難,頂住壓力,沉著應戰。

事業集團
2011 年 2 月 11 日
http://xiaoshousha.blogspot.hk/2011/02/blog-post.html
節錄:中國人家庭,特別多錢債糾紛。究其原因,中國人的家庭,本質上是一盤生意,是一個多功能的事業集團。其存在意義,並非為家庭成員提供精神上的支援又或者情感交流的空間(就算有此功能亦屬次要)。其首要任務,是提高家族成員的生存機會,以及提升整個事業集團的競爭優勢。

英吉利快勞
2007 年 7 月 23 日
http://xiaoshousha.blogspot.hk/2007/07/blog-post_23.html
節錄:前大英帝國殖民地盛產「英吉利快勞」。講儀態,排隊搶購<哈利波特>的小朋友當然比不上安坐書房中,執筆指點江山、月旦人物的陶傑或者董橋。後者是資深的「英吉利快勞」,曾經在英倫陰雨中螫伏多年,見識過英夷醜惡的一面,只是下筆的時候懂得避重就輕。因為大家都明白,行走江湖,需要一個得體的標籤,好讓自己被歸入「正確」的等級,得到較好的待遇,有較高的議價能力。這個道理,排隊買書的小朋友也許不懂,但是替他們付鈔的父母一定懂。

離岸中心(三)
2009 年 1 月 11 日
http://xiaoshousha.blogspot.hk/2009/01/blog-post_11.html
節錄:透過英國或者歐洲的金融體系匿藏和調動資產的,當然不止前蘇聯的共產黨官僚,還有來自世界各地的貪官和政客。而香港作為國際金融體系的一份子,又跟大英帝國有深厚淵源,在資金的流轉過程中,也扮演了一定的角色。近期的例子,有泰國前總理他信 (Thaksin Shinawatra)。下台之後,他信也間中在香港的高級場所出現。據報導,08 年年底他信的女兒動用 4500 萬港元,在香港購入豪宅(何文田京士柏山 19 號屋,京士柏山的發展商是恒基地產)。

地雷、狗屎、界外效應
2010 年 6 月 11 日
http://xiaoshousha.blogspot.hk/2010/06/blog-post_11.html
節錄:埋地雷的典範,是末代港督彭定康 (Chris Patten, 1944-)。肥彭任內 (1992-1997) 把香港的幾間專上院校通通升格為大學,又委任董建華為行政局成員。今天看來,人數倍增又缺乏向上流動機會的失業大學生,以及禍港七年、成功殲滅中產、把香港還原到資本主義初級階段的老董,都是大殺傷力秘密武器。肥彭實在高招,而香港人還要歡迎他回來吃蛋撻呢。

24/10/2017

For the third comment: 「株連」是正寫,「誅連」是俗寫。查過香港出版的朗文中文字典和國產的新華字典,說法一樣:

「株」是樹木外露的根部,「株連」指一人得罪而牽連其他人,有斬草除根和砍伐樹木的意思,而「誅」是指把有罪的人殺死,亦可解作譴責或責罰。意義有重複之處,於是「株連」和「誅連」兩種寫法都有人用。

出處:《新唐書.卷二0九.酷吏傳.吉溫傳》:「於是慎矜兄弟皆賜死,株連數十族。」 《文明小史.第六回》:「宵小工讒,太守因而解任;貪橫成性,多士復被株連。」

2017年10月10日星期二

戰狼避稅


表面上,男主角(吳京)是遠征非洲的退役解放軍,為了保衛國家的財產(中資工廠)和員工而血戰連場。這部狼奶滿瀉的愛國大片,據說大陸票房破了紀錄,勁收五十億(人民幣),稍後更加會代表中國,競逐奧斯卡的最佳外語電影獎。

背後的故事,原來是參與這部電影的六間製作公司,當中有三間在新疆霍爾果斯經濟發展區 (Khorgos Economic Development Zone) 註冊成立,利用了當地的稅務優惠,根據大陸的稅務專家估計,省下稅款兩億三千六百萬(人民幣)。霍爾果斯在那裡?接近中國跟哈薩克斯坦 (Kazakhstan) 的邊境,網上的資料說那裡是沙漠地帶,位處古代的「絲綢之路」或今日的「一帶一路」,請上網研究中亞地圖。曾經去上海招商的地方官員接受訪問時表示,該市是「一帶一路」概念。

換言之,戰狼背後有高人代為理財以及籌謀,你估真係靠舖牛力打生打死就得咩!愛國?拍戲咋(電影是幻象),唔係真架(不是真的),傻豬!又或者可以這樣說:國家透過稅務優惠資助了戰狼的製作費,畢竟電影是一盤生意,明白未?

這篇報導來自大陸的英文網媒 Sixth Tone,自稱是 the State-funded Shanghai United Media Group 的附屬公司。然後被一個總部設於英國,專門研究避稅天堂 (tax havens) 以及相關問題的非牟利組織 (www.taxjustice.net) 所轉發,在 Newsletter 之內轉載,新疆霍爾果斯經濟發展區因此被形容為「中國的開曼群島」(the “Cayman of China”)。先天條件較差的地區,靠稅務優惠吸引投資者,很常見。

中國特色的陰謀論:是否狼奶電影太受歡迎,有人眼紅分得少或沒有機會參與,於是發放黑材料(避稅?),玩出口轉內銷?還是電影已經被捲入中共的派系鬥爭?稍為正面一點的思維:也許官府不過是抽水,借機宣傳習包子的「一帶一路」偉大藍圖,試圖鼓勵中國的創意產業上山下鄉,跑到偏遠的中亞邊境城市註冊開公司,然後享受稅務優惠。犯我中華者,雖遠必誅?只要你走得夠遠,合法避稅!中國戰士,東方之狼,原來出自「絲綢之路」或「一帶一路」。跟十九大即將召開(十月十八日)有沒有關係,自己想。推銷狼奶的電影,本來就是宣傳片。

插圖來源:
https://images-news.now.com/newsimage/NewsImage/235234_3.jpg

YouTube 精選:

3 週破 50 億稱霸影史冠軍【戰狼 2】HD 中文正式電影預告 (2:01)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmJFp1-AvV4
劇情:退役解放軍悍戰非洲。吳京是動作演員,曾經參演港產片。

Kitaro(喜多郎)- Silk Road【HD】(7:49)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BddSN2jNS9E
如果你認得這首<絲綢之路>,請不要扮年輕。

The top 10 most secretive tax havens | Guardian Explainers (2:42)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nOFTuUkYOQY
排名:Singapore No. 4, US No. 3, HK No. 2, Switzerland No. 1。

Simpleshow explains tax havens (3:07)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyDupx9g584
大學生也看得懂的英語短片,用簡單的圖像和文字解釋避稅天堂如何運作。

參考資料/延伸閱讀:

特稿:<戰狼 2>票房衝 50 億 吳京身家暴漲
(香港)文匯報 2017-08-19
http://paper.wenweipo.com/2017/08/19/FI1708190015.htm
節錄: 43 歲的吳京,剛憑借<戰狼 2>站上了事業高峰。由他擔任投資人、導演和編劇的影片<戰狼 2>上映 12 天,就打破了<美人魚>在 2016 年創下的 33.9 億元(人民幣,下同)的中國內地電影票房紀錄。截至昨晚 7 時,據內地電影票房統計網站「猫眼專業板」數據,<戰狼 2>票房已經超過 49.24 億元。由於放映期被延長至 9 月底,<戰狼 2>肯定可以突破 50 億元票房。

避税!范冰冰楊幂等 20 餘明星新疆開皮包公司(簡體字)
中華網 2017-03-01
http://news.china.com/yule/11184455/20170301/30290967_all.html
節錄:經常看電影的觀眾可能會留意到,這兩年的電影片頭出品方,不時冒出「霍爾果斯 XX 公司」。之後幾年,這類霍爾果斯註冊公司參與的電影還會越來越多。

The “Cayman of China” attracts movie stars looking for a break
The Offshore Wrapper - Sunday (8 October 2017)
http://www.taxjustice.net/2017/10/08/offshore-wrapper-8-october/
Extract: Sixth Tone reports that a remote town on the Chinese-Kazakh border is attracting a wealth of movie stars and film companies due to its generous tax breaks. The Khorgos / Horgos Free Trade Zone(霍爾果斯自由貿易區)is one of the most remote places in the world, in the middle of the Saryesik-Atyrau desert and not far from Eurasian pole of inaccessibility, the geographical point which marks the furthest distance from an ocean on earth. In 2014, a new city was founded which now has 87,000 inhabitants.

To encourage growth the city became China’s first ‘free economic zone’ with highly preferential tax rates, leading it to its nickname, the Cayman of China. One industry which has become a particularly heavy user of the zone is China’s film industry, with 1,500 media companies now registered in the zone. Of course, as with any tax haven, the film companies are not actually based in this zone, they simply go there to sign some papers and collect a massive tax break. The report shows how three companies who invested in China’s summer blockbuster “Wolf Man 2” (戰狼 2) have saved tens of millions of dollars by registering there.

Taxjustice.net
http://www.taxjustice.net/
Extract: We are an independent international network launched in 2003. We conduct high-level research, analysis and advocacy on international tax; on the international aspects of financial regulation; on the role of tax in society; and on the impacts of tax evasion, tax avoidance, tax 'competition' and tax havens. We seek to create understanding and debate, and to promote reform, especially in poorer countries. We are not aligned to any political party.(Auntie 的推介:這個網站有不少文章探討避稅天堂以及相關的問題,適合會計師、稅務顧問、資產管理專家和銀行的內部合規人員,有免費的 Newsletter 可供 Subscribe,裡面的文章間中會提到香港。)

Desert Tax Haven Draws Moviemakers to China’s Far West
Generous tax holidays bring film and media companies to remote border city.
By Lin Qiqing
Sixth Tone (Sep 30, 2017)
http://www.sixthtone.com/news/1000933/desert-tax-haven-draws-moviemakers-to-chinas-far-west
Extract: A small Chinese city on the border with Kazakhstan has surprisingly shot to stardom among Chinese moviemakers. Dubbed China’s Cayman Islands, Khorgos (霍爾果斯)Economic Development Zone has become home to nearly 1,500 film and media companies drawn to the city by its generous tax breaks.

Corporate tax in China is usually 25 percent. However, companies registered in Khorgos enjoy a corporate tax holiday for the initial five years. During the subsequent five years, they have to pay tax to the central government, but they continue to be exempted from the local proportion of corporate tax, which accounts for 40 percent of total amount. In addition, under normal circumstances, movie companies in China pay 6 percent value-added tax (VAT) on final revenues, half of which is collected by local governments. But in Khorgos, the local government returns part of this levy to the companies, provided that the company’s local VAT payments exceed 1 million yuan.

Summer blockbuster “Wolf Warrior 2,” (戰狼 2)released in July, is an example of a film that saved on tax thanks to its close ties to Khorgos. Three out of the film’s six major production companies are registered in the city: Khorgos Spring Era Film, Horgos Orange Image Media, and Khorgos Dengfeng International Culture Communications. The film has so far taken more than 5 billion yuan at the box office, the highest-grossing Chinese film of all time. The three companies, whose total revenues from “Wolf Warrrior 2” (戰狼 2)stand at around 1.1 billion yuan, could have saved 236 million yuan in tax because of the policy, according to estimates from Hejun Consulting, a Beijing-based consultancy firm.

Sixth Tone
http://www.sixthtone.com/about-us
Extract: Sixth Tone covers issues from the perspectives of those most intimately involved to highlight the nuances and complexities of today’s China. We are a team of writers, editors, and researchers from within China and abroad. We belong to the state-funded Shanghai United Media Group, and share our offices with our sister publication, The Paper.(Auntie 的評語:這個網站的文章似乎是海歸派風格)

China plans new economic zones in Xinjiang border towns
Reuters (Oct 8, 2011)
http://www.reuters.com/article/china-xinjiang-policy-idAFL3E7L803420111008
Extract: China announced on Saturday plans to use subsidies and tax incentives to build two new economic zones in the far western region of Xinjiang(新疆), to open up the landlocked west and boost trade with central and south Asian neighbours. In a detailed policy outline posted on the central government’s website (www.gov.cn), the State Council, or cabinet, aims to “basically complete” infrastructure for economic development zones (EDZ) at Kashgar(喀什)and Khorgos(霍爾果斯). Xinjiang is strategically vital to China, accounting for one-sixth of the country’s land mass and rich in oil, gas, coal and other mineral resources. It borders Russia, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Mongolia, Kyrgystan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan and India, and is a politically sensitive region as many Uighurs, a Turkic-speaking Muslim people native to Xinjiang, resent Chinese controls on religion, culture and language.

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