The two sides of reporting

I have never handled big things. But for about some years from 1985 with my Photo Education Program, I had operated many photo trips and events for participating secondary schools in Hong Kong.

Basing on these small scale operations, I had experience to say something and I shall assume that my activities were reported by CCTV and local reporters.

If happened once during a photo trip to the Ocean Park. There were about 300 participants. My arrangement was for each school, there would be a maximum of 20 students and one teacher. I had ordered lunch boxes from a fast food company appointed by Ocean Park and requested them to deliver at noon time that day.

There was heavy rain that day all over Hong Kong except the Ocean Park. Therefore that fast food company failed to arrive in time. It was not easy to face about 300 hungry young ones. The assumed CCTV reporter would report that the weather was so bad that the delivery of lunch boxes were not possible to arrive in time; the assumed HK reporter would report that the organizer failed to care for the youngster.

Finally, the lunch boxes arrived about an hour late. I must control the order of distribution and therefore based on the list of participation. That event was operated by me and my wife with assistance from two teachers. So I asked them to hand over to two representatives of each school for the total number that I announced, The assumed CCTV reporter would report that the distribution of lunch boxes to participants was handled orderly; the assumed HK reporter would rush to some students whose school had not been called and asked them what they felt. Certainly, these hungry young ones would complain that the organizer was not care for them.

Facing some hungry students around me, I told them that they would never be the last one to eat. The last one was me and I ordered my wife not to eat until we had distributed to everyone. The students of the last school were awarded with two lunch boxes each.

Just think about distributing food or tents to hundred thousands of disaster victims. There is no way to give simultaneously to every one. It is so easy to motivate some impatient victims to complain or enough them to do bad things just take photos and make news and good enough for the foreign countries to keep it in the 'against China' data record.

One more thing we have to know. There are good and bad guys everywhere. Not all victims are good guys. Bad guys can be victims too.

我未有處理大事的經驗。但在1985年起在我的攝影教育計劃中，我舉辦了不少攝影旅行及活動給參與的香港中學。

根據這些小規模活動，我可以從經驗中說一些話。我將假設我的活動得到中央台及本地新聞記者報導。

在一次是到海洋公園的攝影旅行。參加人數達300個。我的安排是每間學校最多是廿個學生及一個老師。我向海洋公園指定的快餐供應機構訂了飯盒及指明在中午送到。

那天全香港除了海洋公園外都下大雨。因此那間快餐公司不能準時到達。面對近300個肚餓的少年絕不簡單。假設的中央台記者會報導因為天氣太差引致飯盒不能準時到達；假設的香港記者會報導主辦人在照顧少年方面出現失敗。

飯盒終於在約一小時後到達。我需要控制分派的秩序，所以根據報名的名單處理。這個活動的工作人員只有我及我的太太及 一兩位教師協助，所以我安排他們根據我叫的學校名稱及總數派給該校的兩個代表。假設的中央台記者會報導分派飯盒有序進行；假設的香港記者會急急找一些未有輪到的學生，詢問他們的感受。這些飢餓的少年當然認為主辦人沒有照顧他們。

我告訴在附近等候的飢餓學生他們不會是最後的人。我才是最後有飯吃的人，而且我下令我的太太在未分派完畢前不可進食。

想想如果是分派食物或帳蓬等給數十萬人災民。絕對不可能同一時間派給所有人。所以向一些沒有耐性的災民，煽動他們投訴或做破壞的事非常容易，只需可以拍攝一些就可以大事報導，足夠給外國記錄在批評中國的資料庫中。

有一些事不可不知。任何地方都有好人及壞人。災民不會全部都是好人。壞人也會成為災民。