Errors in Hong Kong Tai Po blaze hearing transcript raise transparency concerns

Errors have been found in the official hearing transcripts into Hong Kong’s deadly Tai Po blaze.

Photo: Jelly Tse The official transcript of a public hearing into Hong Kong’s deadliest blaze in decades has wrongly recorded several key details, the South China Morning Post has found, prompting an academic to urge that future proceedings be live-streamed to strengthen transparency and public trust.

The errors included incorrect figures for the number of residents who escaped using lifts and the percentage of flats suffering severe damage, according to the SCMP’s review of the committee hearing investigating the Tai Po fire last November, which claimed 168 lives.

In response to the SCMP’s inquiry, the committee’s secretariat said the transcripts had been produced with help from a “professional live transcription service provider”, adding that it would correct any mistakes or discrepancies and upload the amended version to its website. “The secretariat is fully aware that the transcripts are an important tool to help the community to better understand and keep track of the hearing,” it said. “We have been actively following up and will continue to work closely with the service provider to ensure that the transcripts will be available in a timely and appropriate manner.” It noted that an errata sheet would also be uploaded to the website.

Following the SCMP’s inquiry on Wednesday, the committee’s website labelled the transcripts as “draft”, but the incorrect information had still not been amended by Saturday morning, more than a week after they were uploaded.

The hearing, conducted in Chinese, began on March 19.

Four sessions have been held so far, each with 360 seats for public observation and open to media coverage.

However, they are not live-streamed, and journalists are not permitted to record or film the proceedings.

The transcripts, available in both Chinese and English and released within a day of each hearing, serve as the main official channel for members of the public unable to attend in person to follow the investigation.

The SCMP identified at least 10 errors in the transcripts, including several key figures mentioned in the opening statement by the committee’s lead counsel, Victor Dawes.

Dawes stated during the hearing that residents from 250 households escaped the fire using lifts, but the Chinese transcript recorded 220.

He also said that three of the eight blocks had most of their flats seriously damaged, including Wang Sun House, whe

原文链接: 南华早报