sikhism

concept of god
- no clear definition  (talk on 6aug17 arranged by hk sacred spaces)

Khalsa (Punjabi: ਖ਼ਾਲਸਾ; Punjabi: "the pure") refers to both a special group of initiated Sikh warriors, as well as the community that considers Sikhism as its faith. The Khalsa tradition was initiated in 1699 by the last living Guru of Sikhism, Guru Gobind Singh. Its formation was a key event in the history of Sikhism.^[2] The founding of Khalsa is celebrated by Sikhs during the festival of Vaisakhi, the Sikh new year. Guru Gobind Singh started the Khalsa tradition after his father had been beheaded for resisting the religious persecution of non-Muslims during the rule the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb. The Khalsa redefined the Sikh tradition from the start. It formulated an initiation ceremony (amrit pahul, nectar ceremony) and rules of conduct for the Khalsa warriors. It created a new institution for the temporal leadership of the Sikhs, replacing the masands system maintained by the earlier Gurus of Sikhism. Additionally, the Khalsa provided a political and religious vision for the Sikh community. Upon initiation, a Khalsa Sikh was given the titles of Singh (male) and Kaur (female). The rules of life, included behavioral code (Rahit, such as no tobacco, no alcohol, no halal meat), and a dress code (Five Ks). ^[10]:121-126 The initiated Khalsa is also a warrior with a duty to protect the innocent from any form of religious persecution. The Sikhs who revere the teachings of Sikh gurus, but have not undergone the initiation have been called Sahajdhari. A Sahajdhari Sikhs do not accept some or all elements of the dress and behavioral codes of the Khalsa Sikhs.^[11] The Khalsa has been predominantly a male institution in Sikh history, with Khalsa authority in male leaders. In contemporary era, it has become more open to women.

- "Khalsa", according to McLeod, is derived from the Arabic or Persian word "Khalisa" which means "pure". Sikhism emerged in the northwestern part of Indian subcontinent (now parts of Pakistan and India). During the Mughal Empire rule, according to Eleanor Nesbitt, khalsa originally meant the land that was possessed directly by the emperor, which was different from jagir land granted to lords in exchange for a promise of loyalty and annual tribute to the emperor.^[14]Prior to Guru Gobind Singh, the religious organization was organized through the masands or agents. The masands would collect revenue from rural regions for the Sikh cause, much like jagirs would for the Islamic emperor.^[14][15] The khalsa, in Sikhism, came to mean pure loyalty to the Guru, and not to the intermediary masands who were increasingly becoming corrupt, states Nesbitt.

http://www.economist.com/news/asia/21679234-what-sounds-religious-schism-punjab-could-be-cry-better-political-leadership-seekingTHE Sikh religion provides for a gathering of believers, the Sarbat Khalsa, in times of great crisis. It was convened regularly in the 18th century, when the Mughal empire was trying to exterminate the Sikhs. But it was called just twice in the 20th century. The last time was in 1986, as a response to bloodshed that began with the Indian army’s assault on the Sikhs’ Golden Temple in Amritsar to flush out Sikh militants, some calling for their own Khalistan (“land of the pure”). It culminated in the murder of Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards and—in mob revenge—of thousands of innocent Sikhs in Delhi. And so a tremor was felt in the state of Punjab when a Sarbat Khalsa was called for November 10th, to be held on an unassuming patch of ground outside Amritsar. Its topic was blasphemy and the desecration of the Sikhs’ holy book: torn pages had been showing up around the state for weeks. On the day itself the ground shook, when as many as 100,000 people gathered (see picture). The meeting concluded by calling for the ousting of the three high priests of Punjab’s most important temples or gurdwaras. One of the chosen replacements happens to be a pro-Khalistan separatist, in jail for assassinating a chief minister of Punjab in 1995.

Akhand Path (Gurmukhī: ਅਖੰਡ ਪਾਠ, Devanāgarī: अखंड पाठ, Shahmukhi: اکھنڈ پاٹھ) is the common practise of continuous recitation (without any break) of sacred religious texts in Sikhism.The continuous nonstop recitation of all the verses in the Guru Granth Sahib from the beginning to the end, in 31 Ragas as specified, in all 1430 pages, lasting more than 48 hours by a team of readers. This ritual is considered very holy and is said to bring peace and solace to the participants and the passive listeners of the recital. During the reading it is tradition for langar (or communal food) to be available at all times, thus requiring the continual service and dedication of those in whose honour the Akhand Path is being held. The recital - (Path) is undertaken for various reasons. It can be in honour of a particular occasion; to mark a happy or sad occasion within the family; or simply to increase one’s feeling of connection to Waheguru. Some of following may call for an Akhand Path depending on the family's circumstances: a birth, a birthday, recovery from a medical operation, a wedding, a death, a graduation, on achieving a goal like a high school certificate, on passing the driving lesson, an anniversary, a historic occasion, chasing away evil spirits and curses etc. Some Gurdwaras hold a weekly Akhand Path and this gives the congregation (Sadh Sangat) a beautiful opportunity to establish a close relationship with the Guru - the Granth and the communion that provides the chance to carry out volunteer work (Seva) thus obtaining the blessing of the Guru Granth Sahib for the whole of the communion.


festival
- Vaisakhi (Punjabi: ਵਿਸਾਖੀ, IAST: visākhī), also known as Baisakhi, Vaishakhi, or Vasakhi is a historical and religious festival in Sikhism and Hinduism. It is usually celebrated on April 13 or 14 every year. Vaisakhi marks the Sikh new year and commemorates the formation of Khalsa panth of warriors under Guru Gobind Singh in 1699. It is additionally a spring harvest festival for the Sikhs.^[7] Vaisakhi is also an ancient festival of Hindus, marking the Solar New Year and also celebrating the spring harvest. It marks the sacredness of rivers in Hindu culture, it is regionally known by many names, but celebrated in broadly similar ways. Vaisakhi observes major events in the history of Sikhism and the Indian subcontinent that happened in the Punjab region. The significance of Vaisakhi as a major Sikh festival marking the birth of Sikh order started after the persecution and execution of Guru Tegh Bahadur for refusing to convert to Islam under the orders of the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb. This triggered the coronation of the tenth Guru of Sikhism and the historic formation of Khalsa, both on the Vaisakhi day. Vaisakhi was also the day when colonial British empire officials committed the Jallianwala Bagh massacre on a gathering, an event influential to the Indian movement against colonial rule. On Vaisakhi, Gurdwaras are decorated and hold kirtans, Sikhs visit and bathe in lakes or rivers before visiting local Gurdwaras, community fairs and nagar kirtanprocessions are held, and people gather to socialize and share festive foods.^[6][11][16] For many Hindus, the festival is their traditional solar new year, a harvest festival, an occasion to bathe in sacred rivers such as Ganges, Jhelum and Kaveri, visit temples, meet friends and party over festive foods. This festival in Hinduism is known by various regional names.

• in happy valley china daily 1may17

india
- there are 20 million sikhs in india, i.e. 2% of total indian population, most of them involved in the independence movement (talk on 6aug17 arranged by hk sacred spaces)
- https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3008017/they-do-not-want-delhi-interfere-why-punjab-will-be-outlier the group that seemed to be the least supportive of the BJP and Modi was not Muslims but another religious minority group. Some 68 per cent of Sikhs surveyed said they were against voting Modi back into power, compared with 56 per cent of Muslims, and 36 per cent of all respondents. Only 21 per cent of Sikhs – a group which makes up 1.9 per cent of India’s population – said they wanted Modi’s government to return. Sikh dislike of Modi makes the northern state of Punjab – where nearly three in five people are Sikh – an outlier this election.

shanghai
- sikh disapora in shanghai 1885-1945
https://www.facebook.com/FairbankCenter/photos/a.124671167584305/2352473531470713/


HK
- history

• http://www.khalsadiwan.com/index_topic.php?did=246689&didpath=/246689
• [silks in hk by sir guru gobind singh educational trust and khalsa diwan (sikh temple)] in 1869, training schools were formed for teaching them cantonese; in 1870 many sikh constables were transferred to prison guards; during ww2, sikh regiment was in the frontline and there were heavy casualties when more than 100 sikhs sacrificed their lives.  The remaining were captured and imprisoned by japanese at sham shui po. Gurdwara sahib building was damaged in japanese bombing in ww2. One bomb was dropped on the khalsa diwan in dec 1942 damaging most part of the building. Bhai nand singh, head priest at that time was killed; migration from india to hk till 1960 was every easy and resulting in increating population of sikhs; in yeaer 1949, almost all non chinese person were driven out of china. Most of the sikhs settled in shanghai came to hk. 

- in hk since 1840, part of the british army and police (talk on 6aug17 arranged by hk sacred spaces)

• 最早聲稱得知恐怖份子「赤道」所在的人，是一名信奉錫克教的情報商人，他與警察相遇的場所，就是灣仔皇后大道東錫克廟，也是筆者經常帶學生「田野研究」的地方。香港錫克教徒有沒有情報體系，筆者不敢妄言，但歷史上，他們的確和香港安全息息相關。早在19世紀中期，港英政府因為不滿華人警員和孟買水兵貪污成風，刻意在1867年開始，從印度增派了百多名錫克教徒警員，使當時以錫克教徒為主的印度裔警員，佔了香港警隊人數1/3。到了1870年代，香港警隊又引入來自印度的穆斯林搞平行，讓錫克教徒、穆斯林和華人警員共同在白人高層領導下共事。由於錫克教徒有尚武傳統，不少後代留在香港擔任保安人員，亦有經商。目前，在港錫克教徒約有一萬人，成為連接香港與印度的紐帶之一。錫克教徒大多聚居龐遮普邦，希望脫離印度獨立，有自己的激進組織，印度「鐵娘子」甘地夫人就是被錫克教徒暗殺。但這些組織近年已趨向溫和，和中東激進組織表面上也沒有關連，但若要互通資訊，相信必有渠道。當然，要找香港的錫克教情報商人，根本毋需到錫克廟，不過為了實景，也可以理解。https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fsimonshen.blog%2F2016%2F06%2F04%2F%E8%B5%A4%E9%81%93%EF%BC%9A%E9%A6%99%E6%B8%AF%E6%B6%89%E5%A4%96%E9%97%9C%E4%BF%82%E5%A4%A7%E5%AD%97%E5%85%B8%2F&h=AT1q27R8UoKLW__wCumCmbgbNoQO7pA3LXQBjtmpJrDUCAcfcMApkPkpQ51cMfn4T4GLAW4SXXRBvrob-p_Njuuy0koupd73lM8yTK-67J4LmZ8JV80c-oe-sPFdESpWg6agAZZp-_k4ZHayj1-1_n9aMrD9tO1a0hETLWRWrtLZwiFdONayb-5HSInLx-_EMv005vZqFpfivwJFmzogjenWEfHxKFHXzwaVNtfal-auvLWolqb4UuRQV05XXGjGCaLHbva4gd98E8s0XtMbDT67pF6wIM48WSPx9nmx1xA9suVfbLcTtU3J1dFOAMky_pmB45kXsEFpVJTzlnOvxWp_GSY6dK4aCo2ADcJsnb6N-z4rDKho9XWCfVobx9ybYH1-K2riDq7sbtRbAEbNhCpOJRX06JpePZgTJwN0VkHlRN6vzYUg2VDQVTRgQK5Ze5oO1cwfvzAek-yCAg

- there are 15,000 sikhs in hk (talk on 6aug17 arranged by hk sacred spaces)
- Consular staff recently visited the Khalsa Diwan (Sikh Temple) in Happy Valley. Staff enjoyed a fascinating tour of the historic site, and thanked President Santokh Singh Maluwal and Honorary Secretary Jagraj Singh for the Temple’s ongoing partnership with the Consulate to offer support to Brits in distress. https://www.facebook.com/UKandHongKong/videos/1662359620474126/
- company

• Thakral Corporation Ltd. (Chinese: 德加拉集团) is a diversified company listed on the Singapore stock exchange (SGX: T04) involved in manufacturing, logistics and property development in India, China and south-east Asia. Kartar Singh Thakral is the Executive Chairman of the Board — he joined his family's trading business in 1949, which now includes Singapore-listed Thakral Corp. that distributes tech gear such as iPods in China and India, and Australian property group Thakral Holdings. Son Inderbethal helps run the business. Forbes ranked him as the 25th richest person in Singapore in 2006, with a fortune of $175 million. The Company is engaged in the supply chain management in consumer electronics sector, electronic manufacturing services (EMS), creation of technology products, as well as property and equity investments. It has four core activities: supply chain management, marketing and brand building; EMS; property holding division, and others. Its brand portfolio includes Apple, Asus, Canon, Casio, Cisco, Fuji, Kodak, Lenovo, Nikon, Nokia, Olympus, Orion, Panasonic, Pentax, Samsung and Sony. Some of the products distributed under these brands include digital video cameras, digital still cameras, plasma televisions, desktop and notebook computers, personal digital assistants, data projectors, electronic accessories, mobile phones and audio products, including Moving Picture Experts Group layer-3 audio/ Moving Picture Experts Group layer-4 audio/ Moving Picture Experts Group layer-5 audio (MP3/MP4/MP5) players. It also creates and markets consumer products under its own brand name, YES. CAV Thakral Home Entertainment Co, Ltd. (Chinese: 中录德加拉家庭娱乐有限公司) is a Chinese company that distributes DVDs, VCDs and CDs. It has released many DVDs and VCDs with movies from Disney, Warner Bros. Pictures, MGM, 20th Century Fox and Paramount Pictures. It is the largest distributor of Hollywood films on video in China.^[2] In 2006, CAV Thakral was defunct and absorbed into Excel Media.

- people

• kala mohan sakhrani obit scmp 13mar18

• https://www.hongkongcaselaw.com/the-hong-kong-and-shanghai-banking-corporation-v-mohandas-detaram-sakhrani-also-known-as-detaram-sakharani-mohan/

• Ram Issardas Mahtani obit scmp 25apr18

- canada

• The Komagata Maru incident involved the Japanese steamship Komagata Maru, on which a group of citizens of the British Raj attempted to emigrate to Canada in 1914, but were denied entry and forced to return to Calcutta (present-day Kolkata), India. There they were fired upon by Indian Imperial Police, resulting in the deaths of 20 Sikhs. Komagata Maru sailed from British Hong Kong, via Shanghai, China, and Yokohama, Japan, to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, in 1914, carrying 376 passengers from Punjab, British India. Of them, 24 were admitted to Canada, but the other 352 passengers were not allowed to disembark in Canada, and the ship was forced to return to India.^[1] The passengers comprised 337 Sikhs, 27 Muslims and 12 Hindus, all Punjabis and British subjects.^[2] This was one of several incidents in the early 20th century in which exclusion laws in Canada and the United States were used to exclude immigrants of Asian origin.The Canadian government's first attempt to restrict immigration from British India was an Order in Council passed on January 8, 1908, that prohibited immigration of persons who "in the opinion of the Minister of the Interior" did not "come from the country of their birth or citizenship by a continuous journey and or through tickets purchased before leaving their country of their birth or nationality". In practice this continuous journey regulation applied only to ships that began their voyage in India, as the great distance usually necessitated a stopover in Japan or Hawaii. These regulations came at a time when Canada was accepting huge numbers of immigrants, almost all of whom came from Europe. More than 400,000 arrived in 1913, an annual figure that has not been equaled since.The Komagata Maru incident was widely cited at the time by Indian groups to highlight discrepancies in Canadian immigration laws. Further, the inflamed passions in the wake of the incident were widely cultivated by the Indian revolutionary organisation, the Ghadar Party, to rally support for its aims. In a number of meetings ranging from California in 1914 to the Indian diaspora, prominent Ghadarites including Barkatullah, Tarak Nath Das, and Sohan Singh used the incident as a rallying point to recruit members for the Ghadar movement, most notably in support of promulgating plans to coordinate a massive uprising in India. Their efforts failed due to lack of support from the general population.

terms
- sikh means student, learner (talk on 6aug17 arranged by hk sacred spaces)

reference

- http://www.sikhiwiki.org/
- https://www.evernote.com/shard/s221/sh/b85f7fd9-4965-48ab-9bb8-77ec84c3d4fe/9aeb31961753b26c13ccd1ebe7551b9a

retirement

retirement age
- japan

• 有消息指，日本政府打算在二○三○年把現時國家公務員六十歲退休的限期，延遲到六十五歲。新政策將於今年三月提交國會，爭取在今屆會期內通過，並會在下年起的十年內分階段實行，以確保在職人士擁有能工作到七十歲的就業機會，應對社會高齡化。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20200223/00180_010.html

provident fund
- malaysia

• Employees' Provident Fund (Malay: Kumpulan Wang Simpanan Pekerja) commonly known by the acronym EPF (Malay: KWSP) is a federal statutory body under the purview of the Ministry of Finance. It manages the compulsory savings plan and retirement planning for private sector workers in Malaysia. Membership of the EPF is mandatory for Malaysian citizens employed in the private sector, and voluntary for non-Malaysian citizens.The Malaysian EPF was established in 1951 pursuant to the Employees Provident Fund Ordinance 1951, under the National Director of Posts. This law became the EPF Act 1951 in 1982, then the EPF Act 1991 in 1991. The EPF Act 1991 requires employees and their employers to contribute towards their retirement savings, and allows workers to withdraw these savings at retirement or for special purposes before then.

pension
- in a defined benefit pension plan a specific amount of money is set aside each year in a trust fund for the employee by the employer.  The pension payout is calculated on an actuarial basis
- in a defined contribution pension plan, each employee has an individual account to which both the employee and the employer may make contributions.  There may be some options on investment choices.  Final benefits depend on the outcome of the investments.
- ft 18 nov19 the pension house is on fire
- usa

• In the United States, public sector pensions are offered at the federal, state, and local levels of government. They are available to most, but not all, public sector employees. These employer contributions to these plans typically vest after some period of time, e.g. 5 years of service. These plans may be defined-benefit or defined-contribution pension plans, but the former have been most widely used by public agencies in the U.S. throughout the late twentieth century. Some local governments do not offer defined-benefit pensions but may offer a defined contribution plan. In many states, public employee pension plans are known as Public Employee Retirement Systems (PERS). Pension benefits may or may not be changed after an employee is hired, depending on the state and plan, as well as hiring date, years of service, and grandfathering.Public pensions got their start with various promises, informal and legislated, made to veterans of the Revolutionary War and, more extensively, the Civil War. They were expanded greatly, and began to be offered by a number of state and local governments during the early Progressive Era in the late nineteenth century. Federal civilian pensions were offered under the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS), formed in 1920. CSRS provided retirement, disability and survivor benefits for most civilian employees in the federal government, until the creation of a new federal agency, the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS), in 1987. Retired pay for U.S. Armed Forces retirees is, strictly speaking, not a pension but instead is a form of retainer pay. U.S. military retirees do not vest into a retirement system while they are on active duty; eligibility for non-disability retired pay is solely based upon time in service. Unlike other retirees, U.S. military retirees are subject to involuntary recall to active duty at any time, though the likelihood of such a recall is remote, especially after age 60. 

• https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-10-08/white-house-zeroes-in-on-limit-to-chinese-stocks-in-pension-fund The Trump administration is moving ahead with discussions around possible restrictions on portfolio flows into China, with a particular focus on investments made by U.S. government retirement funds, people familiar with the internal deliberations said. The efforts are advancing even after American officials pushed back strongly against a Bloomberg News report late last month that a range of such limits was under review. Trump officials last week held meetings on the issue just hours after White House adviser Peter Navarro dismissed the report as “fake news,” and zeroed in on how to prevent U.S. government retirement funds from financing China’s economic rise, the people said. The Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board in 2017 made a decision that by mid-2020 the international fund offered to workers in the government’s retirement savings plan would mirror the MSCI All Country World Index, which captures emerging markets, including China. The board is scheduled to meet Oct. 21.
• investment

•  !!!!https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3036641/us-lawmakers-introduce-new-bill-ban-federal-pension-fund-investing-china A group of US lawmakers introduced legislation on Wednesday that would block a federal retirement fund from investing in Chinese stocks.
  The group, led by Republican Senator Marco Rubio, say the bill is aimed at reversing a decision to allow federal employees and military service members to invest their retirement savings in a fund that includes China-listed stocks. Amid heightened US-China trade tensions and efforts to limit the flow of US capital to Chinese companies because of security concerns, Rubio and other senators described that move as “short-sighted”, saying it amounts to “effectively funding the Chinese government and Communist Party’s efforts to undermine US economic and national security”.In November 2017, the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board, an independent government agency that oversees the federal retirement plan, decided to shift the index it uses for its international stock investment fund to the broader MSCI All Country World ex-US Investable Market Index.The index represents 99 per cent of the international equity market and is 7.5 per cent weighted to Chinese companies. The plan currently relies on another MSCI index that represents just 58 per cent of the international market, and excludes China. The index shift is expected to take effect in the summer of 2020.The bill attempting to block that move was offered up by a group of Republican and Democratic lawmakers, including Democratic senators Kirsten Gillibrand and Jeanne Shaheen, and Republican senators Rubio and Mitt Romney, who was the Republican Party’s nominee for president in 2012. Representative Mark Meadows, a staunch conservative and ally of President Donald Trump, is offering the same bill in the US House.

• economist 16nov19 "dependants' day" america's public pensions have been underfunded for decades.  The crunch point is coming soon; "state of denial" police officers, teachers and other public workers rely on pension schemes with a multi trillion dollear funding hole.  A reckoning is coming
• economist 18jan2020 "baby steps" the pensions system is slightly less of a mess than it once was
• economist 6jun2020 "counting the cost" with stockmarkets still down on the year, a funding crisis worsens
• ny 公共退休基金

• 美國賭場集團永利度假村始創人史提芬永利去年初捲入性醜聞，令股價貶值。股東在去年二月及十一月入稟法庭，指控公司及董事會漠視史提芬永利被懷疑涉及性騷擾和不當行為。有關的訴訟周三達成庭外和解協議，史提芬永利和負責的保險公司，將分別賠償二千萬美元（約一億五千六百萬港元）和二千一百萬美元（約一億六千三百萬港元）。紐約州的公共退休基金持有價值約二千三百萬美元（約一億八千萬港元）的永利度假村股份，基金負責人、紐約州審計長迪納波利（Thomas Dinapoli）宣布與永利度假村達成和解。作為協議的一部分，永利度假村同意作出改革，包括在法律上將主席和行政總裁的角色分離，並要求主要股東投票選出董事 。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20191129/00180_012.html

• private sector

• https://www.cbsnews.com/news/ge-pension-freeze-general-electric-freezing-pension-plan-20000-us-employees/ General Electric announced it will freeze the pensions of 20,000 U.S. salaried workers, a measure designed to reduce its pension deficit and trim debt. The move will shave GE's pension deficit by as much as $8 billion and its net debt by as much as $6 billion. As part of the pension freeze, the industrial conglomerate said it will freeze supplementary pension benefits for approximately 700 employees who became executives before 2011. Supplemental pension plans are typically designed for higher-ranking employees and offer benefits beyond the typical pension plan.

- costa rica

• https://www.atlasnetwork.org/news/article/costa-rica-ends-its-luxury-pension-scheme The Costa Rican Legislature recently approved a bill that will cut luxury pensions to over 4,000 retirees. The bill takes aim at a group of pensioners dubbed “Ticos Con Coronas,” (Costa Ricans with Crowns) who receive an average monthly pension of US$4,495, with some receiving more than US$24,000 per month. 

- brazil

• A nationwide strike called by Brazil's trade unions disrupted public transport and triggered road blocks in parts of the country Friday, ahead of protests against far-right President Jair Bolsonaro's pension reform. Hours before the opening match of the Copa America in Sao Paulo, some metro lines in the country's biggest city were paralyzed as professors and students also prepared to take to the streets over the government's planned education spending cuts. https://www.france24.com/en/20190614-brazil-strike-disrupts-transport-ahead-copa-america
• ft 8aug19 https://www.ft.com/content/4711af16-b848-11e9-8a88-aa6628ac896c
  Brazil’s lower house of the National Congress passed a much-vaunted pension reform early on Wednesdayin what is seen as a big step towards shoring up government finances and restoring growth in Latin America’s largest economy. The reform, various forms of which have been in the works for 20 years, is now closer than it has ever been to being approved, passing its second and final vote in the usually fractious lower house by a large margin of 370 votes to 124, comfortably above the threshold of 308 votes it needed.  Analysts saw the two rounds of votes as the most critical in the congressional approval process for the reform. The base text of the bill will now undergo a review in the lower house, then a senatorial commission, and two votes before full sessions of the Senate for final approval. Senior lawmakers have told the Financial Times they expect the final approval of the legislation in September, although analysts said it could stretch into October. By raising the retirement age of many Brazilians and reining in pensions payment obligations, the legislation seeks to tackle the Brazilian state’s precarious fiscal position with savings of about $230bn over the next decade.
• https://www.ft.com/content/a636a336-e9fb-11e9-a240-3b065ef5fc55 Brazil’s senate approved a much-anticipated pension reform on Tuesday, a victory for President Jair Bolsonaro that paves the way for his economics team to pursue further sweeping changes. Decades in the works, the reform was hailed as “historic” by politicians across the spectrum. It is aimed at restoring domestic and international confidence in Latin America’s largest economy by tackling the nation’s woeful fiscal position. By raising the retirement age for men to 65 and women to 62, the new legislation is forecast to save the state some R$800bn ($196bn) over 10 years. The overhaul was passed following a second vote in the senate, Brazil’s upper house of parliament and although it could still be tweaked, it is expected to be formally enacted in the coming weeks.

- chile

• economist 8jun19 "will you still feed me?"
• *******https://www.ft.com/content/4f8107f8-0fd4-11ea-a7e6-62bf4f9e548aTen years after retiring, Patricia Azagra considers herself to be one of Chile’s lucky ones. Unlike many, she held a steady job for almost her entire working life and made regular contributions to her pension for more than 30 years. Even so, her monthly pension of about $600 is scarcely one-third of her final salary, and about half what she was promised when she first started paying into Chile’s pioneering pensions system in the 1980s. Getting by without help from her children was “impossible”, she said. “Thank God I also have my health,” said the 75-year-old former municipal social worker, who fears having to rely on Chile’s expensive privatised health system. “Of course I can’t afford holidays or anything but the most basic costs. If the slightest thing happens to me — bang! — I will fall into poverty.”  Her situation, precarious though it is, is at least better than that of the 80 per cent of Chilean pensioners who receive less than the minimum wage of about $400.* As Chileans of all ages take to the streets in protest at persistent poverty and social injustices, the irony for many is that the pensions system they want President Sebastián Piñera to overhaul was once globally hailed as an engine for economic prosperity — the “Mercedes-Benz” of retirement provision. Chile was the first country in the world to privatise its pensions system. Established almost 40 years ago during General Augusto Pinochet’s military dictatorship, the defined contribution model was widely praised by institutions such as the World Bank and seen as a key part of the Chilean economic success story. Reliant solely on a mandatory 10 per cent contribution from employees, it was copied by more than 30 countries across Latin America, south-east Asia and eastern Europe. Buoyed by regular payments, the Chilean pensions system grew and the country’s embryonic capital market roared to life: pension funds now exceed $200bn, or 80 per cent of gross domestic product. This played a crucial role in turning Chile into the richest country in the region, lifting millions out of poverty.  But the system is designed to benefit those who remain in formal employment for much of their working lives and are thus able to make regular payments. Chile’s large informal sector — as many as one-third of the population are in irregular employment — means that many people pay little or nothing over their lives. “It’s a system that doesn’t work for the reality of Latin America,” said Andras Uthoff, a pensions expert in Santiago. The privatised system “works fine for about a fifth of the population, but not for the vast majority. They were forgotten about,” he added.

- uk

• ft 21oct19 stanchart chief plans to take pay cut in push to end pensions allowance dispute

- france

• 法國現行有42個退休保障計劃，每個的供款及保障方案都不同。計劃的退休金計算方法於私人市場及公務員亦有不同，私人市場以工人最賺錢的25年為基準，公務員則以退休前最後6個月為準。馬克龍提出設立較公平簡單、由政府統一負責的退休金計分制，把工人每日工作的積分計入未來的退休保障。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20191207/00180_010.html
• 法國政府推行退休改革，擬將退休年齡由六十二延遲至六十四歲，引起不少人反對。總統馬克龍上周四派糖承諾，日後國民退休金每月最少有一千歐元（約八千六百港元）。金額相當於法定最低月薪的85%。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20191007/00180_030.html
• 法國就改革退休金制度的爭議由來已久，在 1995年前總 統希拉克任內，總理朱佩為鋪路採用歐元，推動平衡政府 收支，宣佈進行社會保障改革，將多項退休金系統融合， 結束公共部門人員享有的「特別體系」，但計劃引起工人 不滿，觸發約 200萬人上街抗議及罷工，政府最終在抗議 行動持續 3周後，放棄有關計劃，希拉克領導的右翼政府 雖保住政權，但因民心盡失，右翼陣營在兩年後的國會大 選失勢，自此歷屆政府再不敢對退休金制度出手。 分析指出，政府有多項理據支持推動改革，例如要為不 同行業設立各項退休金制度，會令制度變得複雜，成為在 職人士轉行時的「噩夢」，而已婚婦女、自僱人士及農民 等群體的退休金收益亦欠佳。此外，由於法國法定退休年 齡為 62 歲，令當地工作時數較經濟合作與發展組織 (OECD)其他成員國為短，影響企業產能，因此需作出改 革。 不過統一制度意味部分行業享有的福利消失，例如鐵路 工人將無法再於 52歲退休，而律師、醫生、護士等高薪專 業人士，亦要求保留現時高收益退休金計劃，憂慮若與其 他計劃統一，收益將會減少。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2019/12/06/a20-1206.pdf

- netherlands

• ft 3jun19 "clock ticks on dutch pension crisis"

- japan

• economist 6jul19 "sumo-sized challenge" pensions in japan
•   https://www.reuters.com/article/us-japan-gpif/worlds-largest-pension-fund-halts-stock-lending-to-short-sellers-idUSKBN1Y71F6 Japan’s Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF), the world’s largest pension fund, has suspended stock lending for short selling, calling the practice inconsistent with its responsibilities as a long-term investor. The move, announced by the GPIF on Tuesday, is a blow for short sellers, who rely on securities lending to bet against companies and who are facing renewed moves in a number of countries to curb their activities. “The current stock lending scheme lacks transparency in terms of who is the ultimate borrower and for what purpose they are borrowing,” the GPIF said on its website.The move by the fund will affect shares in its 42.5 trillion yen ($391.20 billion) foreign equities portfolio.Japanese and overseas shares account for half of the GPIF’s 160 trillion yen worth of assets. It said it will continue to lend debt securities and may reconsider the halt to foreign stock lending if it sees an improvement in transparency. It does not lend its holdings of domestic shares.

- china

• default?

• 社交網站Twitter流傳影片指，廣東吳川市政府因未能準時發放養老金，觸發大批市民包圍市政府大樓，多人手持「吳川社保局，還我養老金」的標語，高叫口號抗議。有網民指，吳川社保養老金被人虧空，當地市民繳納了多年的錢存放在金庫內，到他們滿六十歲後，政府再透過社保基金的形式每月退還，但今次卻未能發放。隨內地人口老齡化，養老金對政府構成的財政壓力也愈重，有研究機構在今年四月發表報告指，二○三五年中國養老保險金將會耗盡。人社部當時否認說法，稱政府完全能夠保證養老金長期、按時足額發放，保證制度的健康平穩運行。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20190919/00178_007.html

- "ever growing balloon and no one knows when it will burst"

• https://www.ft.com/content/a83fdac4-326e-11ea-9703-eea0cae3f0de Voya Financial has explored selling itself and held discussions with a number of companies potentially interested in buying the US retirement plan provider, according to people briefed on the matter. Voya held talks late last year with insurer AIG, asset manager Principal Financial Group and life insurance and retirement plan provider Prudential Financial, among others. The talks did not lead to a deal, although the Voya board remains open to a sale and may explore the matter again this year, the people said. A takeover could value Voya at $10bn or more, above its current $8bn market capitalisation, one of the people added. Voya said it did not comment on rumour or speculation. AIG, Principal and Prudential declined to comment. While the Voya brand — drawn from the word voyage — was only created in the past decade, the company’s roots date back to the 1970s when ING Group predecessor Nationale-Nederlanden expanded into the US life insurance market. The Dutch banking and insurance group made a string of US acquisitions before being devastated by the financial crisis. ING required a €10bn bailout in 2008 and was subsequently forced by the European Commission to offload assets. Voya was listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 2013 as part of those divestitures. Voya has changed dramatically since then under Rodney Martin, chief executive, who joined in 2011 from AIG. Like other life insurers, Voya has spent the past few years ridding itself of capital-intensive businesses, many of which involved offering financial guarantees to customers. Two years ago Voya sold its annuity business to a consortium led by private equity group Apollo. And in December it sold another $1.25bn block of life insurance business to Resolution, a company led by insurance entrepreneur Clive Cowdery. Goldman Sachs advised Voya on the sale of that unit.

retirement village, house
- legal

• https://www.eldernet.co.nz/gazette/rights-to-occupy-some-questions-answered/ In New Zealand retirement villages, there are several ways in which a resident can hold title, with the most common being a licence to occupy (LTO).  An LTO gives you the right to live in a unit and have access to the village facilities and services, without giving you ownership of the unit.  The offer of these rights must be made in an occupation right agreement (ORA).  The ORA is your contract and it covers your payment obligations, the village manager’s duties, procedures relating to meetings and consultation, termination rights and the complaints and disputes resolution process. The Retirement Villages Act 2003 sets out in very specific terms what must be included in the ORA.

- usa

• 美國南加州的橘郡有個 「 樂 谷 納 森 林 之 村 」 （ Laguna Woods Village）， 是非常著名的銀髮族社區， 一九六四年開放入住，規定 一戶至少需有一位五十五歲 以上長者。經過半個世紀， 現有一萬兩千多戶，居民一 萬八千多人，平均年齡七十八歲。社區坐 落在鞍峰山峽谷，佔地約兩千一百英畝， 圍牆環村而建，共設十七個大門，方便住 戶就近出入。 朋友夫妻在此住了八多年，他們的房 子屬於較早期的平房建築，三戶連接成類 似三合院的結構，但中間的廣場是後院， 每家的門和庭院各自獨立，向外開往不同 方向。兩座三合院房舍相連，六戶合成一 個長方形小區塊，中間的後院形成一個大 天井。碧綠的草坪緊緊環住長方形的外圍 ，那是每家的前院和側院，草地上錯落着 大小、高矮不一的樹叢，巧妙地維護每家 的私密性。朋友說，六戶人家有時在後院 齊聚一堂烤肉同歡，交換養生秘訣，彼此 鼓勵，也是一大樂事。 社區住屋總共有九十四種房型，有獨 門獨院的豪宅、雙拼兩層樓房，也有三層 或四層樓公寓，還有集合式住宅大樓。合 群而居有大眾小眾之別，偏愛獨立自處的 人可選擇戶數少的房型，喜歡廣結善緣的 人則可選擇公寓大樓。http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20191021/PDF/b4_screen.pdf
• cobble hill health centre

• Now listed with 55 deaths it can only assume were caused by COVID-19, among the most of any such facility in the country, Cobble Hill Health Center has become yet another glaring example of the nation’s struggle to control the rapid spread of the coronavirus in nursing homes that care for the most frail and vulnerable. Cobble Hill’s grim toll surpasses not only Kirkland’s but the 49 deaths at a home outside of Richmond, Virginia, 48 dead at a veteran’s home in Holyoke, Mass., and five other homes in outer boroughs of New York City that have at least 40 deaths each.https://time.com/5824169/brooklyn-nursing-home-coronavirus/

• parker jewish institute

• The Institute was established by a group of benefactors as a shelter for homeless older people. From a single room in a private house in East Harlem, the group, incorporated as the Harlem House of the Daughters of Israel in 1914, moved to a three-story brownstone at 32 East 119th Street, and then, in 1925, to an eight-story building at 1260 Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. Enlarged facilities enabled Parker’s forerunner to care for increasing numbers of immigrants and other New Yorkers who sought assistance.https://parkerinstitute.org/about-parker/our-history/
•  https://www.thejc.com/news/world/up-to-57-dead-in-one-jewish-nursing-home-1.499049&

- canada

• 護老院是加國養老體系的一部分，至少有40萬長者入住，平均年齡為82歲。他們大多患有多種疾病，有的人每天要服用10種左右藥物，且近七成患有痴呆症，其中大多數人需要全天候護理。http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20200422/PDF/a23_screen.pdf
• 加拿大連鎖老人院公司Retirement Concepts前年被中國安邦保險集團收購，旗下三間位於卑詩省的老人院因服務未達衞生及安全要求，威脅住客健康、安全和尊嚴，先後被當局接手管理。最新一間老人院名為Selkirk Seniors Village，近日被卑詩省政府接手。當局日前發表報告指，儘管當局已多次干預，並提供額外職員，但該老人院的管理仍然未能達標。違規行為包括忽略，沒有滿足洗澡、傷口護理、舒適和監督的需要。根據違規行為的次數和性質，最終決定採取行動。公司管理層發聲明回應指，正努力增加職員低於水平的薪金，以解決人手短缺的挑戰。代表該公司不少職員的工會亦指，公司支付的工資比同行更少，加劇勞動力短缺的問題。Retirement Concepts另外兩間分別位於納奈莫（Nanaimo）和歌摩士谷（Comox Valley）的老人院，今年早前同樣被政府接管。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20191218/00180_026.html
• Chartwell Retirement Residences is the largest participant in the Canadian seniors housingsector, with 181 locations and 25 172 units (March 31, 2018) across Quebec, Ontario, Alberta, and British Columbia. Chartwell offers independent living (IL), independent supported living (ISL), assisted living (AL), memory care (MC), and long-term care (LTC) across Canada.The company was founded in 2003 through the merger of JBG Management Inc., Alert Care Corporation, and Chartwell Care Corporation forming the new entity Chartwell Seniors Housing Real Estate Investment Trust. The company was rebranded as Chartwell Retirement Residences in 2012.

• CHSLD Herron, also known as Résidence Herron (English: Herron Residence), is a CHSLD^{[NB 2]} long-term care nursing home for seniors, located on Ch. Herron in Dorval, Quebec, Canada; a suburb of Montreal; near Lake Saint Louis.^[1][2] The property was acquired by Katasa Groupe in 2015.The facility opened in 1988.The facility was previously known as Maison Herron (English: Herron House), and was owned by Chartwell Inc.

• 加拿大多倫多中區華埠孟嘗安老院近日爆發新冠肺炎疫情，截至前日累積有16名院友確診、4人死亡，相當於105名院友的一成多，另有兩名駐院醫護染病，院方尚未發現感染源頭。

• 一九六四年，因應社會發展及華人社區對長期護理服務的需求，多倫多中華基督教長老會簡永堅牧師遂與一班熱心華人共同成立孟嘗會。孟嘗會乃秉承公元前三百年孟嘗君樂善好施的精神而命名，希望在華人社區推廣及實踐中國優良的傳統美德。一九六五年，安省政府發出許可證，繼而於一九六七年發出慈善團體註冊號碼，令孟嘗會成為安省首間註冊的華人慈善服務機構。一九六七年再獲聯邦政府批准成為華人首創慈善社團。孟嘗會董事局由十多位來自不同背景的慈善家組成，包括有商界領袖、醫學界及其他專業人士。任安省省督The Honourable Elizabeth Dowdeswell及前任省督皆是孟嘗會榮譽贊助人。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2020/04/10/a23-0410.pdf

- uk

• Hamberley Care Homes https://www.hamberleycarehomes.co.uk

• Seven residents of an east London care home have died with coronavirus.Another 21 residents are displaying Covid-19 symptoms at the Hawthorn Green home in Stepney - which houses 48 people.A dozen staff members are also off work, either self-isolating or shielding, the care home said.https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-london-52216646

- ireland

• 愛爾蘭護老院是歐洲少有的成功例子，阿斯基頓一間院舍為應對疫情，自3月初起收緊訪客入內，但訪客可以在外面隔着玻璃探望家人。護老院為控制院內的疫情，亦安排職員義務留在護老院內的隔離病房居住，專門照顧疑似患者，最終成功將該護老院的病例控制在兩宗，兩名患者亦已經康復。經營這間護老院的Windmill Healthcare表示，他們關注到有職員怕在不知情下感染家人，所以已向職員提供宿舍。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2020/05/01/a17-0501.pdf

- south africa

• http://hibiscusretirementvillages.co.za Hibiscus Retirement Villages was established in 1962 in the beautiful coastal town of Margate. A registered non profit organisation, Hibiscus Retirement Villages became the first retirement society in the country to use the “Life Rights” basis.

- japan

• 熊本縣球磨村的養老院「千壽園」亦遭洪水淹沒，通訊受阻，院內一度有六、七十人被困。陸上自衞隊趕到後，發現多人死亡https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20200705/00180_018.html

- china

• 湖南長沙今年有多間高檔老人院接連爆煲，逾萬長者受害，涉額逾十億元（人民幣‧下同）。其中名為愛之心的老人院因經營不善、投資失利，公司被控非法吸收公眾存款，令一眾曾是達官貴人、知識分子的長者院內生活受阻，花下的住金如同白付。截至周二（26日），愛之心一案的涉案金額已逾五億元（約五億六千萬港元），受害人數逼近四千人。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20191130/00178_013.html

- hk

• 鄧耀昇接受專訪時指，會擴大以養老為主題的服務式住宅業務，選址西貢康定路幾幢物業，總投資約30億元。他指，該物業群總樓面逾30萬方呎，總值逾20億元，預計需另投放10億元裝修，料可住一千名老人家。鄧氏又稱，香港政府投放很多資源於養老市場，加上公司與松齡護老集團合作的首個養老服務式住宅九龍城蔚盈軒，已開業逾一年，暫見成績理想，故加強擴充養老業務之決心。上址目前正忙於改規劃用途、補地價及入則等前期工作。可是他沒有透露會否再與松齡合作，但聲稱會是一個「全新的營運平台」，主打中高檔服務，集養老村、養老酒店的概念於一身。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/finance/20191104/00202_002.html

estate, inheritance

- n america

• https://business.financialpost.com/personal-finance/baby-boomers-are-thriving-on-an-unprecedented-9-trillion-inheritance