Chan Kam-lam, GBS, JP (; born 22 January 1949) is a former member of the

Legislative Council of Hong Kong The Legislative Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (LegCo) is the unicameral legislature of Hong Kong. It sits under China's " one country, two systems" constitutional arrangement, and is the power centre of Hong Kong ...

representing the Kowloon East constituency. He is also a core member of the

Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong The Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB) is a pro-Beijing conservative political party in Hong Kong. Chaired by Starry Lee and holding 13 Legislative Council seats, it is currently the largest party in the ...

(DAB), the largest pro-Beijing party in Hong Kong.

Early life and education

Chan was born in Chaoyang,

Guangzhou Guangzhou (, ; ; or ; ), also known as Canton () and alternatively romanized as Kwongchow or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of Guangdong province in southern China. Located on the Pearl River about north-northwest of Hong Kon ...

, China on 22 January 1949. He moved to Hong Kong with his parents when he was around 8 or 9 and lived in a squatter area in his childhood before they were assigned to a resettlement estate in Kwun Tong. He attended an English school in

Kowloon City Kowloon City is an neighbourhood, area in New Kowloon, Hong Kong. It is part of Kowloon City District. Compared with the council area of Kowloon City District, the Kowloon City area is History As early as in the Qin dynasty (221 BCE ...

and became a sailor, a desk officer on a ship, for six years after his graduation. He later attended the Hong Kong Technical College, the predecessor of today's Hong Kong Polytechnic University, and graduated in 1971.

Political career

Chan has been a long-time leading figure of the pro-Beijing grassroots organisation Kwun Tong Residents Association. He began his career in politics when he was elected to the

Kwun Tong District Board The Kwun Tong District Council () is the district council for the Kwun Tong District in Hong Kong. It is one of 18 such councils. The Kwun Tong District Council consists of 40 members since January 2020, of which the district is divided into 40 ...

from

Ngau Tau Kok Ngau Tau Kok is an area of eastern Kowloon in Hong Kong, in the north of Kwun Tong District east to Kowloon Bay. Largely residential, Ngau Tau Kok has a population in excess of 210,000. Geography In Chinese, Ngau Tau Kok means ''ox horn'' ...

in 1988. For his local influence, he was invited to join the

Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong The Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB) is a pro-Beijing conservative political party in Hong Kong. Chaired by Starry Lee and holding 13 Legislative Council seats, it is currently the largest party in the l ...

(DAB), the flagship pro-Beijing party established in 1992. In 1995, he ran for the

Urban Council The Urban Council (UrbCo) was a municipal council in Hong Kong responsible for municipal services on Hong Kong Island and in Kowloon (including New Kowloon). These services were provided by the council's executive arm, the Urban Servic ...

but was defeated by Au Yuk-har, a

pro-democracy Democratization, or democratisation, is the transition to a more democratic political regime, including substantive political changes moving in a democratic direction. It may be a hybrid regime in transition from an authoritarian regime to a full ...

candidate. He was appointed to the Beijing-controlled

Provisional Legislative Council The Provisional Legislative Council (PLC) was the interim legislature of Hong Kong that operated from 1997 to 1998. The legislature was founded in Guangzhou and sat in Shenzhen from 1996 (with offices in Hong Kong) until the handover in 1997 an ...

on the eve of the

handover In cellular telecommunications, handover, or handoff, is the process of transferring an ongoing call or data session from one channel connected to the core network to another channel. In satellite communications it is the process of transfe ...

in 1996 and was one of the ten members of the Election Committee constituency from 1998 to 2000 in the first

. Chan has represented the

Kowloon East Kowloon East is the eastern part of Kowloon, covering the Wong Tai Sin District, Wong Tai Sin and Kwun Tong District, with Kowloon City District occasionally included. History The boundary of Kowloon East is not strictly defined and hence varies ...

constituency since 2000 when he partnered with

Chan Yuen-han Chan Yuen-han, SBS, JP (; born 16 November 1946 in Baoan, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China) is a former member of Hong Kong Legislative Council and a noted Hong Kong female trade unionist. She is the vice-chairperson of the Hong Kong Federation ...

. He is considered to be the hardliner in the pro-Beijing camp. In 2003, he followed the party line in support of the

Hong Kong Basic Law Article 23 Hong Kong Basic Law Article 23 () is an article in the Basic Law, the constitution of Hong Kong. It states that Hong Kong "shall enact laws on its own to prohibit any act of treason, secession, sedition, subversion against the Central Peop ...

legislation, which sparked a

protest A protest (also called a demonstration, remonstration or remonstrance) is a public expression of objection, disapproval or dissent towards an idea or action, typically a political one. Protests can be thought of as acts of cooper ...

of more than 500,000 people on 1 July 2003, adding to controversy by remarking that the protesters had been "misled". He was the subject of criticism in 2013 for not having asked a single question for more than four months during the 2012–13 legislative session. On 11 March 2016, as acting chairman, he presided over the meeting of the Finance Committee at which HK$19.6 billion in additional funding for the controversial

Guangzhou–Shenzhen–Hong Kong Express Rail Link Guangzhou–Shenzhen–Hong Kong Express Rail Link (XRL), also known as “Guangshengang XRL” (officially Beijing–Guangzhou–Shenzhen–Hong Kong high-speed railway, Guangzhou–Shenzhen–Hong Kong section), is a high-speed railway line tha ...

(XRL) project was approved in a sudden vote in the face of fierce protest and filibustering attempts from democratic camp legislators. Chan had facilitated the outcome by approving only 36 of 1,262 motions filed by 19 democrats. He is also a member of the

Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference The Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC, zh, 中国人民政治协商会议), also known as the People's PCC (, ) or simply the PCC (), is a political advisory body in the People's Republic of China and a central part of ...

(CPPCC) National Committee. The HKSAR Government awarded Chan the

Silver Bauhinia Star The Silver Bauhinia Star (, SBS) is the second Bauhinia Star rank in the honours system of Hong Kong, awarded to people who have taken a leading part in public affairs or voluntary work over a long period. The award was created in 1997 to repla ...

(SBS) in 2005.

Family

He is married to Tsang Wai-ming, an indigenous inhabitant, and has three children. His eldest son, Chan Chun-kit is a Kwun Tong District Councillor.

Public positions

* Chairman of the Housing Panel of the Legislative Council (2000–01, 2002–03, 2004–05) * Vice-Chairman of the Housing Panel of the Legislative Council (2001–02, 2003–04) * Members of the Hong Kong Housing Authority * Member of the Board of Directors of the

Urban Renewal Authority The Urban Renewal Authority (URA) is a quasi-governmental, profit-making statutory body in Hong Kong responsible for accelerating urban redevelopment. History The authority's predecessor, the Land Development Corporation (土地發展� ...

* Director of the Hong Kong Mortgage Corporation * Non-Executive Director of the Securities and Futures Commission * Member of the Economic and Employment Council * Member of the Council of the

Chinese University of Hong Kong The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) is a public research university in Ma Liu Shui, Hong Kong, formally established in 1963 by a charter granted by the Legislative Council of Hong Kong. It is the territory's second-oldest university and ...

* President of the Kwun Tong Residents Association * Member of the Central and Standing Committees and the

* Vice-President of the Kowloon Federation of Associations * Executive Director of the Kowloon East Association * Vice-Chairman of the Finance Committee of the Legislative Council (1998–2000) * Chairman of the Trade and Industry Panel of the Legislative Council (1998–2000) * Chairman of the Manpower Panel of the Provisional Legislative Council (1997–1998) * Vice-Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee of the Provisional Legislative Council (1997–1998) * Member of the Bilingual Laws Advisory Committee (1995−1997)

References

External links

Biography

Kam Lam Chan's Blog
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chan, Kam-lam 1949 births Living people Alumni of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University District councillors of Kwun Tong District Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions People from Chaoyang District, Shantou Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong politicians Politicians from Shantou Members of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Members of the Provisional Legislative Council HK LegCo Members 1995–1997 HK LegCo Members 1998–2000 HK LegCo Members 2000–2004 HK LegCo Members 2004–2008 HK LegCo Members 2008–2012 HK LegCo Members 2012–2016 Members of the Election Committee of Hong Kong, 2017–2021 Members of the Election Committee of Hong Kong, 2021–2026 Recipients of the Gold Bauhinia Star Recipients of the Silver Bauhinia Star 20th-century Chinese politicians 21st-century Chinese politicians 20th-century Hong Kong people 21st-century Hong Kong people