IOMed settles Malaysian dispute on first anniversary

More than 300 meetings have been held at the International Organization for Mediation (IOMed) in the past year, as the central and SAR governments pledged to continue promoting Hong Kong as a global mediation hub. On its first anniversary on Tuesday, IOMed also successfully mediated a construction dispute in Malaysia. "The case was brought by the offeror who made an offer to mediate in the absence of a prior agreement to mediation," IOMed Secretary-General Teresa Cheng told guests at a ceremony at its headquarters in Wan Chai. "This case showcased IOMed's institutional value in facilitating mediation and settlement, even where the parties had no pre-existing mediation agreement. I sometimes described it as we conducting pre-mediation mediation." Cheng said the case was completed in one day at its headquarters, while another one was being handled online. Speaking to the press afterwards, she said the body was now handling dozens of enquiries, while it would reach out to more countries to persuade them to become signatory states. At the same ceremony, Chief Executive John Lee said dedicated policies were in the pipeline to give IOMed a boost. "Building on the government's 'mediate first' policy, we will include IOMed mediation as a dispute resolution option in government contracts and agreements...