DDB and Government round on HK 4As

HONG KONG: DDB and the Government have rounded up on the 4As, which has been widely condemned for the racially-derogatory entry kit it developed for the Creative Awards. DDB, Hong Kong's second-largest agency, threatened to pull out of the 4As unless it offered a public apology on the matter. At the same time, the Home Affairs Bureau took the association to task, saying the incident could not have happened at a worse time. Hong Kong is due to send a delegation to Geneva next week to discuss human rights and racial discrimination issues with the UN. DDB's Greater China president and CEO Aaron Lau kept up the pressure: "We are proud of our diversity and we won't tolerate any gesture that sets one group against another." The controversy erupted when the 4As sent out its entries pack under the headline, "Exorcise the Gwei. Let the Chinese light shine." Gwei or ghost is an insulting term for westerner. The 4As pulled the kits but added fuel to the fire when it accused its critics of lacking a sense of humour. Its chairman Jeffrey Yu of Bates Asia also stopped short of an apology. Craig Davis, Saatchi & Saatchi regional ECD, who handled the creative, added: "It could never be construed as racist; everything was so over the top." See leader, p17.

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