Government guidelines issued this year to encourage mediation have led to a wave of people seeking training, fuelling a boom in such classes. Church leaders, police officers, teachers and office administrators have signed up for courses, some hoping to switch careers.
Hong Kong does not require specialist knowledge, except in family and victim-offender cases, Law Society president Wong Kwai-huen says.
'Of course ... if a mediator is familiar with the technical aspects and common practice in a particular industry, it can save a lot of time in understanding the underlying concerns of the parties.'
Solicitor and veteran mediation trainer Norris Yang estimates that the number of people enrolling for courses has risen at least 10 times compared to last year, many of them legal practitioners. 'There were maybe 300 to 400 accredited general mediators before, and there must be at least hundreds more newly accredited or waiting to be accredited.'
About a dozen institutions provide training, including several universities (often in conjunction with the Mediation Centre), Britain's Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution, the Institute of Surveyors, Bar Association, Law Society and the International Arbitration Centre (which runs the Mediation Council). The city 'has no single body authorised by law to accredit mediators', Oscar Tan of the Law Society says.
Most offer a 40-hour course in general mediation. The Mediation Centre programme, for example, covers building rapport, questioning skills, active listening, reframing, negotiation skills and dealing with deadlock. Fees range from HK$8,000 to HK$50,000.
