York Chow Yat-ngok (; born 1947, Hong Kong),
GBS,
SBS,
MBE Mbe may refer to:
* Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo
* Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria
* Mbe language, a language of Nigeria
* Mbe' language, language of Cameroon
* ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language
Molal ...
, was the
Secretary for Food and Health
The Secretary for Health () is a ministerial position in the Hong Kong Government, who heads the Health Bureau. The current office holder is Lo Chung-mau.
The position was created on 1 July 2022, following the reshuffle of the principal o ...
of Hong Kong and a member of the
Executive Council. He was appointed as
Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food
A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a wh ...
in 2004. The position has since been renamed to
Secretary for Food and Health
The Secretary for Health () is a ministerial position in the Hong Kong Government, who heads the Health Bureau. The current office holder is Lo Chung-mau.
The position was created on 1 July 2022, following the reshuffle of the principal o ...
from
reshuffling in 2007.
History
Chow is an
orthopaedic
Orthopedic surgery or orthopedics ( alternatively spelt orthopaedics), is the branch of surgery concerned with conditions involving the musculoskeletal system. Orthopedic surgeons use both surgical and nonsurgical means to treat musculoskeletal ...
surgeon by profession. He was appointed Hospital Chief Executive of
Queen Mary Hospital in 2001. Chow was appointed a Vice-President of the
International Paralympic Committee
The International Paralympic Committee (IPC; german: Internationales Paralympisches Komitee) is an international non-profit organisation and the global governing body for the Paralympic Movement. The IPC organizes the Paralympic Games and fun ...
in 1997.
During his studies in the
University of Hong Kong
The University of Hong Kong (HKU) (Chinese: 香港大學) is a public research university in Hong Kong. Founded in 1887 as the Hong Kong College of Medicine for Chinese, it is the oldest tertiary institution in Hong Kong. HKU was also the fi ...
since 1967, he stayed in
St. John's College and has served as the male sports captain in the academic years 1968–1969.
Controversies
2011 June protest
On 25 June 2011, a small protest was held by about ten mothers begging on the street for the attention of Chow regarding the mainland Chinese mothers
birth tourism
Birth tourism is the practice of traveling to another country for the purpose of giving birth in that country. The main reason for birth tourism is to obtain citizenship for the child in a country with birthright citizenship (''jus soli''). Such ...
issues with hospital capacities. These are families that have a mainland mother and a Hong Kong father. Chow did sympathise with these couples, but nothing was done after the protest.
The issue later expanded to the
Early 2012 Hong Kong protests which was also triggered by
Kong Qingdong
Kong Qingdong (born September 22, 1964) is a controversial Chinese academic, author, talk show host, and social commentator. Kong is a prominent Chinese media figure, known for his vulgar and often brusque critiques on political issues and vario ...
's comment.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chow, York
1947 births
Alumni of the University of Hong Kong
Alumni of St. John's College, University of Hong Kong
Government officials of Hong Kong
Hong Kong civil servants
Hong Kong medical doctors
Living people
Members of the Order of the British Empire
Recipients of the Silver Bauhinia Star
Recipients of the Gold Bauhinia Star