Chan Kam-lam, GBS, JP (; born 22 January 1949) is a former member of the

Legislative Council of Hong Kong The Legislative Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, colloquially known as LegCo, is the Unicameralism, unicameral legislature of Hong Kong. It sits under People's Republic of China, China's "one country, two systems" c ...

representing the Kowloon East constituency. He is also a core member of the

Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong The Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB) is a Pro-Beijing camp (Hong Kong), pro-Beijing political party registered since 1992 in Hong Kong. Chaired by Gary Chan and holding 19 Legislative Council of Hong Kong ...

(DAB), the largest pro-Beijing party in Hong Kong.

Early life and education

Chan was born in Chaoyang,

Guangzhou Guangzhou, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Canton or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, southern China. Located on the Pearl River about nor ...

, China on 22 January 1949. He moved to Hong Kong with his parents when he was around 8 or 9 and lived in a squatter area in his childhood before they were assigned to a resettlement estate in

Kwun Tong Kwun Tong is an area in the Kwun Tong District of Hong Kong, situated at the eastern part of the Kowloon Peninsula, and its boundary stretches from Lion Rock in the north to Lei Yue Mun in the south, and from the winding paths of Kowloon P ...

. He attended an English school in

Kowloon City Kowloon City is an area in New Kowloon, Hong Kong. It is part of Kowloon City District. Compared with the council area of Kowloon City District, the Kowloon City area is History As early as in the Qin dynasty (221–206 BCE), Kowloon ...

and became a sailor, a desk officer on a ship, for six years after his graduation. He later attended the Hong Kong Technical College, the predecessor of today's

Hong Kong Polytechnic University The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU or HKPU) is a public research university in Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong. The university is one of the eight government-funded degree-granting tertiary institutions in Hong Kong. Founded in 1937 a ...

, and graduated in 1971.

Political career

Chan has been a long-time leading figure of the pro-Beijing grassroots organisation

Kwun Tong Residents Association The Kwun Tong Residents Association (, KTRA) is a long established Kaifong association rooted in Kwun Tong. It was established in 1974 and gained its status as non-profit organisation in 1999. It was seen as a traditional pro-PRC leftist group. Th ...

. He began his career in politics when he was elected to the Kwun Tong District Board from

Ngau Tau Kok Ngau Tau Kok () is an area of eastern Kowloon in Hong Kong, in the north of Kwun Tong District east to Kowloon Bay. Largely residential, Ngau Tau Kok has a population in excess of 210,000. Geography In Chinese, Ngau Tau Kok translates to ...

in 1988. For his local influence, he was invited to join the

Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong The Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB) is a pro-Beijing political party registered since 1992 in Hong Kong. Chaired by Gary Chan and holding 19 Legislative Council seats, it is currently the largest party ...

(DAB), the flagship pro-Beijing party established in 1992. In 1995, he ran for the

Urban Council The Urban Council (UrbCo) was a municipal council in Hong Kong responsible for municipal services on Hong Kong Island and in Kowloon (including New Kowloon). These services were provided by the council's executive arm, the Urban Services ...

but was defeated by Au Yuk-har, a

pro-democracy Democratization, or democratisation, is the structural government transition from an authoritarian government to a more democratic political regime, including substantive political changes moving in a democratic direction. Whether and to what ...

candidate. He was appointed to the Beijing-controlled

Provisional Legislative Council The Provisional Legislative Council (PLC) was the interim legislature of Hong Kong that operated from 1997 to 1998. The legislature was founded in Guangzhou and sat in Shenzhen from 1996 (with offices in Hong Kong), until the 1997 handover whe ...

on the eve of the

handover In cellular telecommunications, handover, or handoff, is the process of transferring an ongoing call or data session from one channel connected to the core network to another channel. In satellite communications it is the process of transf ...

in 1996. He was one of the ten members of the Election Committee constituency from 1998 to 2000 in the first

. Chan has represented the Kowloon East constituency since 2000 when he partnered with

Chan Yuen-han Chan Yuen-han, SBS, JP (; born 16 November 1946 in Baoan, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China) is a former member of Hong Kong Legislative Council and a noted Hong Kong female trade unionist. She is the vice-chairperson of the Hong Kong Federation ...

. He is considered to be the hardliner in the pro-Beijing camp. In 2003, he followed the party line in support of the

Hong Kong Basic Law Article 23 Article 23 is an article of the Hong Kong Basic Law. It states that Hong Kong "shall enact laws on its own to prohibit any act of treason, secession, sedition, subversion against the Central People's Government, or theft of state secrets, to pr ...

legislation, which sparked a

protest A protest (also called a demonstration, remonstration, or remonstrance) is a public act of objection, disapproval or dissent against political advantage. Protests can be thought of as acts of cooperation in which numerous people cooperate ...

of more than 500,000 people on 1 July 2003, adding to controversy by remarking that the protesters had been "misled". He was the subject of criticism in 2013 for not having asked a single question for more than four months during the 2012–13 legislative session. On 11 March 2016, as acting chairman, he presided over the meeting of the Finance Committee at which HK$19.6 billion in additional funding for the controversial

Guangzhou–Shenzhen–Hong Kong Express Rail Link The Guangzhou–Shenzhen–Hong Kong Express Rail Link (XRL), also known as the Guangshengang XRL, is a high-speed railway line that connects Guangzhou and Hong Kong (Kowloon) via Shenzhen. Three types of rolling stock that operate along the X ...

(XRL) project was approved in a sudden vote in the face of fierce protest and filibustering attempts from democratic camp legislators. Chan had facilitated the outcome by approving only 36 of 1,262 motions filed by 19 democrats. He is also a

Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference The Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) is a political advisory body in the People's Republic of China and a central part of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)'s United front (China), united front system. Its members adv ...

(CPPCC) National Committee member. The

HKSAR Government The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (commonly known as the Hong Kong Government or HKSAR Government) is the executive authorities of Hong Kong. It was established on 1 July 1997, following the handover of Hong Kong. ...

awarded Chan the

Silver Bauhinia Star The Silver Bauhinia Star (, SBS) is the second rank of the Order of the Bauhinia Star under the honours system of Hong Kong, awarded to people who have taken a leading part in public affairs or voluntary work over a long period. The award was ...

(SBS) in 2005.

Family

He is married to Tsang Wai-ming, an indigenous inhabitant, and has three children. His eldest son, Chan Chun-kit is a Kwun Tong District Councillor.

Public positions

* Chairman of the Housing Panel of the Legislative Council (2000–01, 2002–03, 2004–05) * Vice-Chairman of the Housing Panel of the Legislative Council (2001–02, 2003–04) * Members of the

Hong Kong Housing Authority The Hong Kong Housing Authority (HA) is the main provider of public housing in Hong Kong. It was established in April 1973 under the Housing Ordinance and is an government agency, agency of the Government of Hong Kong. In the same year, the R ...

* Member of the board of directors of the

Urban Renewal Authority The Urban Renewal Authority (URA) is a quasi-governmental, profit-making statutory body in Hong Kong responsible for accelerating urban redevelopment. History The authority's predecessor, the Land Development Corporation (土地發展� ...

* Director of the Hong Kong Mortgage Corporation * Non-Executive Director of the

Securities and Futures Commission The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) of Hong Kong is the independent statutory body charged with regulating the securities and futures markets in Hong Kong. The SFC is responsible for fostering an orderly securities and futures markets ...

* Member of the Economic and Employment Council * Member of the Council of the

Chinese University of Hong Kong The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) is a public university, public research university in Sha Tin, New Territories, Hong Kong. Established in 1963 as a federation of three university college, collegesChung Chi College, New Asia Coll ...

* President of the

* Member of the Central and Standing Committees and the

* Vice-President of the Kowloon Federation of Associations * Executive Director of the Kowloon East Association * Vice-Chairman of the Finance Committee of the Legislative Council (1998–2000) * Chairman of the Trade and Industry Panel of the Legislative Council (1998–2000) * Chairman of the Manpower Panel of the Provisional Legislative Council (1997–1998) * Vice-Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee of the Provisional Legislative Council (1997–1998) * Member of the Bilingual Laws Advisory Committee (1995−1997)

References

External links

Biography

Kam Lam Chan's Blog
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chan, Kam-lam 1949 births Living people Alumni of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University District councillors of Kwun Tong District Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions People from Chaoyang District, Shantou Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong politicians Politicians from Shantou Members of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Members of the Provisional Legislative Council HK LegCo Members 1995–1997 HK LegCo Members 1998–2000 HK LegCo Members 2000–2004 HK LegCo Members 2004–2008 HK LegCo Members 2008–2012 HK LegCo Members 2012–2016 Members of the Election Committee of Hong Kong, 2017–2021 Members of the Election Committee of Hong Kong, 2021–2026 Recipients of the Gold Bauhinia Star Recipients of the Silver Bauhinia Star 20th-century Chinese politicians 21st-century Chinese politicians 20th-century Hong Kong politicians