John Lee slams Cathay for hurting the feelings of HK and Chinese residents

Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu slammed Cathay Pacific over the discrimination incident and said the acts had damaged the relationship between Hong Kong and mainland Chinese residents.  

Three flight attendants were fired by Hong Kong's flag carrier yesterday after a passenger accused them of bias against non-English speakers.   

Lee on Wednesday said the discrimination incident was serious and expressed his disappointment and strong indignation towards the disrespectful acts.  

"The words and deeds of the flight attendants hurt the feelings of compatriots in Hong Kong and the mainland and destroyed Hong Kong's traditional culture and values of respect and courtesy," he said.   

Lee added that he had told the airline CEO Ronald Lam Siu-por the incident could not be repeated and urged Cathay to review the training and service quality.  

The Secretary for Transport and Logistics, Lam Sai-hung, also expressed his deep concern to Cathay and demanded that management immediately improve the company's services.  

"I am very distressed by the inappropriate comments made by some of the Cathay Pacific cabin crew members," he said in a statement. "The incident is a serious breach of Hong Kong's reputation for service excellence, long-standing values, and ethical standards.  

He hoped that the review in light of the incident conducted by the airline would be completed as soon as possible and that fundamental improvements would be made to the company's mechanisms and staff attitudes to live up to Hong Kong's reputation as an international aviation hub and a welcoming city.

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