They survived almost four decades after the program ended, thanks to the perseverance of the program's last coordinator, Chan Robbins, a retired wildlife biologist.

CNN: Ninety years of birdwatchers' notes going online

Undurraga is particularly concerned about the NARMS findings because it means the consumption of meat is adding to what the director-general of the World Health Organization, Dr. Margaret Chan, last year called a "post-antibiotic era" in which antibiotics will no longer work to fight disease because too many bacteria have developed resistance to it.

CNN: What government tests found in your meat

Undurraga is particularly concerned about the NARMS findings because it means the consumption of meat is adding to what the director of the World Health Organization, Dr. Margaret Chan, last year called a "post-antibiotic era, " or an era in which antibiotics will no longer work to fight disease because too many bacteria have developed resistance to it.

CNN: What government tests found in your meat

Towards the end of last year, say Mr Chan and Jabez Lam, a Chinese civil-rights activist, immigration officials stepped-up their spot-checks of restaurants and takeaways, heavily fining proprietors who use illegal workers.

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"Over the last couple of years, there has definitely been an upswing, " said Deborah Chan, programme manager of Wild Asia, a Malaysia-based NGO dedicated to promoting responsible tourism throughout Asia.

BBC: Sustainable travel in Malaysia

One reason why Anson Chan, Hong Kong's chief secretary, or senior civil servant, left her job in April last year was her belief (though never stated publicly) that the proposed ministerial system would lead to the politicisation of the civil service.

ECONOMIST: Five years in China | The