Picture of the Day: Fan Power

Keung To fans spend money to broadcast his birthday

I'm walking around a shopping mall in downtown Vancouver called Pacific Centre and I see not one but two large screens showing a video compilation of Keung To, one of the more popular singers from the Hong Kong boy band Mirror!

It turns out it's his birthday on April 30, and his fans here have enough $$$ to rent space on a digital billboard in a major shopping mall to display their love for him!

Back in the 1980s fans of Cantopop stars like Leslie Cheung Kwok-wing, Anita Mui Yim-fong and Jacky Cheung Hok-yau would buy ginormous bouquets of flowers to give them personally at their concerts.

Now in 2022 and fans have gone all digital with massive billboards and way more money involved.

It's the same kind of fervent dedication, but with deeper pockets thanks to crowdfunding...

PS: Here is the link link to my new blog: https://goodbyehkhelloyvr.blogspot.com/

HK Journalists Recognised in Japan

Chan accepting the Japanese award on behalf of HK journalists

A day after the Foreign Correspondents' Club in Hong Kong suspended its Human rights Press Awards citing the national security law, its sister club in Japan have named Hong Kong journalists as winners of its Freedom of the Press Asia Award.

Freelance journalist Ilgin Yorulmaz, co-chair of The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan's press freedom committee, said the award recognised journalists and media organisations who fight for free speech, for the free exchange of information, and against censorship.

The award was accepted by Hong Kong Journalists Association chair Ronson Chan Ron-sing.

He said it was an honour to receive the prize. 

FCC suspended the Human Rights Press Awards

"Hong Kong journalists are kind, passionate and tenacious... although the environment changed, most of us have remained in our position and try our best to find the truth for the Hong Kong community."

Meanwhile another person has abruptly left Hong Kong, a political cartoonist known as Ah To. 

In a social media post, he explained he would face "great mental stress" if he were to continue to produce political cartoons in the city.

On Tuesday he shared a picture of one of his characters in what looked like a backdrop of London and said he left because he "wanted to continue creating for Hong Kong".

Ah To said he thought about changing the theme of his work last year, but felt Hong Kong "needed political cartoons", and said he wanted to "persist" by remotely creating cartoons for his home city.

"I was worried that my future work would not be down to earth... but staying in Hong Kong to produce political cartoon [causes] great mental stress. [I] have no alternative but to leave," he wrote on Facebook, without stating his destination.

Ah To's character in what looks like London

He is known for being critical of Beijing and the Hong Kong government, and has produced work on controversial issues like the national security law, the election overhaul, and the 2019 protests.

Last July pro-Beijing newspaper Ta Kung Pao criticised Ah To for sharing cartoons that "vilified the SAR government" and "incited hatred against the police".

His work was published in Ming Pao Weekly and Yahoo News, but both columns were cancelled in June 2020 just before the implementation of the national security law on June 30 that year.

In Tuesday's post, Ah To said he had made the decision to leave Hong Kong in a hurry and would not have time to bid farewell to his friends. He felt "guilty" about his departure, adding he would "speak up for the voiceless" and hoped Hong Kong's history would not be left with "silence" in the future.

Ah To's take on Carrie Lam

"Thinking about my family members in Hong Kong who I may not see again, my comrades who are in jail or pending trial, the readers who have been supporting me and my wife who was forced to flee with me... I feel very guilty," Ah To said.

"May good-natured people take care and preserve kindness in different ways," he added.

Ah To is not the only artist to leave recently. Manga artist Tony Lu and performance artist Kacey Wong Kwok-choi both left for Taiwan last year, citing the national security law for the reason behind their move.

PS: Here is the link to my new blog: https://goodbyehkhelloyvr.blogspot.com/

Self-Censorship Suspends Press Awards

The FCC decided at the last minute to suspend the HRPA

There is a lot of fury and disappointment over the Foreign Correspondents' Club in Hong Kong for suspending its Human Rights Press Freedom Awards that would have been held on May 3, Press Freedom Day, at the last minute. 

The club's president Keith Richburg, said the decision was made after the board had a lengthy discussion about it on Saturday.

"Over the last two years, journalists in Hong Kong have been operating under new 'red lines' on what is and is not permissible, but there remain significant areas of uncertainty and we do not wish unintentionally to violate the law," he said.

Richburg said suspending awards was unusual

Richburg described the suspension as an unusual step to take just weeks before the winners were to be announced on May 3, acknowledging that it is likely deeply disappointing to the candidates, the judges and everyone else who took part.

He added suspending the awards was a very tough decision to reach, and that it "in now way reflects the FCC Board's view of the content of any of the entries or the work of the independent judges."

Nevertheless, Richburg said the FCC will continue to promote press freedom in Hong Kong, though "recent developments" -- without citing which -- might require changes to the club's approach.

In response, some of the FCC's press freedom committee members resigned, including journalists Shibani Mahtani, Timothy McLaughlin, and Mary Hui. Five other committee members have also reportedly resigned.

"As a former winner and judge of the HRPA, I feel nothing but the deepest regret and do not stand by this decision," said Mahtani, who is the SouthEast Asia and Hong Kong bureau chief for the Washington Post.

Many of the events and talks are held here

"It is an award that meant something not only to Hong Kong, but journalists across Asia who covered some of the most consequential developments in the region last year," she said.

"It is emblematic too of the self-censorship many institutions feel forced to subject themselves to in today's Hong Kong, whether with or without their merits."

It would have been the club's 26th year in handing out awards, and many of them would have been won by Stand News, a pro-democracy news outlet that shuttered late last year.

What is also interesting to note is that the HRPA are traditionally co-hosted by Amnesty International and the Hong Kong Journalists' Association. Amnesty has left Hong Kong, while the HKJA is meeting to discuss whether it should disband or not.

These are the times we live in, but as the Foreign Correspondents' Club, it has an obligation to stand up for press freedom and other human rights, and yet it has cowered from this mandate, choosing instead to stay silent probably in the hopes of being able to renew the lease on the property on Ice House Street.

Mahtani resigned in protest

What is the club good for these days? They hold a few guest speaker talks, but it is mainly run by non-journalists now, and serves cheap drinks (and good curries I heard).

The least the club could do is continue to speak out about press freedom when people like Apple Daily founder Jimmy Lai Chee-ying is in jail along with his senior editors, editors at Stand News are languishing in jail, and most recently journalist Allan Au who was arrested two weeks ago.

But it seems the club is more concerned about preserving itself than taking advantage of its unique position and speaking out on behalf of local journalists, as well as the HKJA, where its leaders, currently Ronson Chan, and previously Chris Yeung, risked its position to speak out as much as possible.

Many feel the FCC chickened out and has lost all credibility with the journalism community in Hong Kong -- or what's left of it.

It's no wonder that local journalists never had an interest in joining this club in the first place, which hardly represented them.

Lam says press freedom is protected in Basic Law

Ironically today Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor pronounced that press freedom, which is enshrined in the Basic Law, has been safeguarded and upheld in the SAR since the handover, meaning almost 25 years.

When asked about the FCC suspending its HRPA and political scientist Chung Kim-wah fleeing to the UK, Lam claimed they were isolated incidents.

"So I would say that the two examples you have given are those isolated incidents, which might have given people that impression, especially people who tended to misunderstand the constitutional safeguards for press freedom, and that is one has to observe the law in exercising your freedom," she said.

But journalists are observing the law, and yet they are caught in the crossfire, Mrs Lam... for whatever charges the national security police wish to prosecute them... surely that is the erosion of press freedom...

Another Academic Hastily Flees Hong Kong

Chung wrote he was "reluctantly" leaving Hong Kong

It was disheartening to see another academic leave Hong Kong after he had been visited by the national security police. Political scientist Chung Kim-wah wrote a long post on his Facebook page with pictures of the empty departure area of Hong Kong International Airport.

He said he has to "reluctantly" leave Hong Kong for the UK, but didn't go into details. Instead he wrote about feeling bad about having to leave older parents behind and apologised for not being able to properly say goodbye to people.

"After balancing different factors and considerations, I have no choice but to make this decision," he wrote, and added he would live abroad f\or "a period of time".

Chung's picture of an empty departure area

Chung is the deputy CEO of the Hong Kong Public Opinion Research Institute, and was assistant professor of the Department of Applied Sciences until January 2020.

In his Facebook post, he said he initially did not think of migrating:

"I was born and raised in Hong Kong. A vast majority of my loved ones are in Hong Kong. I view Hong Kong as the place that cultivated me, and since I was young, I made it my ambition to contribute to Hong Kong and improve society," he wrote.

"Now I can only hope that the skies will be broader, the air fresher... and that I don't have to think about whether the red lines that move arbitrarily will one day target me."

In an article published in Ming Pao on Sunday night, Chung said that he had met national security police but did not elaborate. When asked by the newspaper if this was the reason why he left Hong Kong, he referred to his Facebook post describing his departure as "fleeing the chaos of the Qin dynasty" -- an expression alluding to the turmoil of China's first empire.

Harris was another high profile person who left

Chung's announcement comes two days after he publicly appeared at a PORI news conference about a poll on the public awareness of cannabis products in Hong Kong. 

It seems the national security police are still busy visiting people despite the pandemic. In early March the former head of the Hong Kong Bar Association Paul Harris had a chat with the national security police in Wan Chai earlier and given a warning over an alleged breach of the national security law. Harris would only confirm to Reuters that he had left the city to visit his mother in England.

Harris is a prominent human rights lawyer who was representing two former lawmakers charged in organising the primaries in 2020, and he has been the subject of attacks over the past year.

He expressed concern about the city's rule of law and said the national security law, which was implemented on June 30, 2020, was inconsistent with the Basic Law.

"I am not against the principle of having national security laws, which most countries have for legitimate reasons," he wrote in an article on the Bar Association's website at the time.

"But the Hong Kong NSL excludes certain officials from all legal challenge for their actions."

Beijing claimed Harris was "cheering for independence advocates", and said he was unfit to chair the Bar Association.

National Security Job Creation

The second National Security Education Day was last week

Did you learn anything from last week's National Security Education Day on April 15?

Aside from stickers on the backs of bus seats advertising it as well as giant billboards across Hong Kong, there wasn't specifically anything new to learn unless you went onto the website to take a look.

Two former law enforcement chiefs don't think people know enough about national education and are proposing a position in the upcoming administration to promote it further.

People were encouraged to go on the website

Former security chief Lai Tung-kwok is calling for a new post of "national security education commissioner", as the public don't know enough about the issue, and that the annual National Security Education Day is far from sufficient.

During a radio program on RTHK, he said the city needs to work harder to educate people about national security, as it encompasses everything from finance to food.

So how does national security affect food, unless he is referring to ecological security, which is about ecological damage and environmental pollution?

Lai, who is also a New People's Party legislator, said if people had a better understanding of national security, it would be easier to get them to make sacrifices to ensure it is upheld.

Tang (left) and Lai want a NSL commissioner 

With rights and freedoms further eroding because of national security, not many would agree to make sacrifices -- they have no choice really and have to accept that almost everything is for national security reasons.

Meanwhile, former police commissioner Tang King-shing said the public have misunderstood what national security is all about, adding that an ageing population and gender equality issues could also undermine safety and stability.

These two enjoy stirring more fear into the pot with reasons that have zero logic.

How does having an increasingly elderly population and the fight for gender equality undermine safety and stability?

Lai and Tang both seem keen on being this "national security commissioner", if the new Chief Executive decides to create the post.

How do these elderly impact national security?

There is talk that sole candidate John Lee Ka-chiu is looking to expand his administration, and perhaps one of them will be national security education, considering security seems to be a top priority.

A quick scan of the National Security Education website does not mention the elderly or gender equality issues either, so maybe Lai and Tang should study the website first before making these ominous proclamations that are hardly credible?

Controversial Art Taken Down at M+

Comparison of Leung's photo with Wang's work

Still jet lagged and haven't thought of a new blog yet so we will continue on here!

Two disappointing things have happened recently that demonstrate the ongoing deteriorating situation in Hong Kong.

Vidler's firm stops operations on June 3 this year

First is that well known law firm Vidler & Co which handled many human rights cases as well as the 2019 protests, will cease operations from June 3. The announcement was made by the Law Society of Hong Kong, notifying its members of the firm's imminent closure after 19 years.

Senior partner Michael Vidler has not commented publicly about the announcement.

The firm has represented such activists as Joshua Wong Chi-fung, and worked on cases like Indonesian journalist Veby Mega Indah, who lost an eye after a police projectile allegedly hit her on September 29, 2019. While Vidler & Co filed an application in the High Court in December that year to reveal the identity of the shooter, Vidler told Ming Pao in February the following year that the firm did not represent her anymore.

Vidler represented Veby Mega Indah in 2019

Another case the firm worked on was a woman who was allegedly raped in the Tsuen Wan Police Station. Then police chief Chris Tang Ping-keung claimed the case was an attempt to "mislead the police", alleging the claim was not consistent with the video evidence.

Legal representatives of Vidler & Co hit back, claiming Tang was trying to "publicly discredit" the woman.  

The firm is also known for being involved in LGBTQ cases.

Interesting to note Vidler & Co will be closing the day before the 33rd anniversary of June 4... coincidence?

Also along the same vein, contemporary art museum M+ has reopened, months after the fifth wave began in late December. The new head of M+, Bernard Chan toured the museum on April 21 and notably three works were replaced that were related to Tiananmen.

Wang Guangyi's portrait of Mao

One is Wang Xingwei's New Beijing, painted in 2001 showing two injured penguins on the back of a makeshift tricycle flatbed. It is a riff off of photographer Leung Heung-shing's photograph of a man trying to cycle as fast as he can to take two victims to the hospital.

Another piece is Wang Guangyi's Mao Zedong: Red Grid No. 2 (1989), showing a painted portrait of the Great Helmsman, though with a red grid painted on top as if the leader is in a cage.

Finally, Zhou Tie-hai's Press Conference III (1996) refers to the Cold War. These works are now probably stuck in the museum's gulag, never to be seen in person again, though they can be found online on the M+ website.

M+ response?

"It has always been M+'s plan to rotate over 200 artworks in the first year after its opening," a statement read. "Nine out of over 200 have been rotated before reopening, in particular those which are in greater need for conservation."

Controversial artist Ai Weiwei's work Whitewash, featuring old jars that have been repainted is still there, though the black and white photograph of him giving the middle finger to the Gate of Heavenly Peace across from Tiananmen Square is not available...

This Ai Weiwei photo is not shown at M+

In any event, we can't help but be amused that pro-Beijing stalwarts who are staunchly behind chief executive candidate John Lee Ka-chiu, are angry that their star nominee cannot post his campaign videos on the YouTube video-sharing platform because the company needs to comply with US sanctions against him.

Lee called the sanctions "unreasonable",  a "bullying act" and a means to "exert pressure to make him have hesitations" regarding the upcoming election.

"Any country's official should strive for the best to defend their country's national security," he said. "Their unreasonable act will just strengthen my belief that what I am doing is right."

We hope Lee knows what he is doing because he is also getting a lot of ridicule for the copywriting on his campaign materials. A social media group has criticised the choice of words and grammar in Chinese and English, pointing them out much like a teacher does with a nasty red pen.

Perhaps even more entertaining is that Lee's campaign team actually follow many of these correction suggestions.

All for the greater good, right?

Lasting Memories

Having fun kayaking in Hoi Ha Wan in Sai Kung

Friends asked me if I had a bucket list to complete before leaving Hong Kong, but I didn't and instead they took me to their favourite places.

One took me on my first kayaking adventure in Hoi Ha Wan, a marine reserve at the north of Sai Kung Peninsula. We went on an overcast weekday to avoid the crowds, but ironically I still got sunburnt on my arms.

The amazing sunset we saw at Devil's Peak

It was practically just us there for most of the day. My friend gave me a quick lesson in how to kayak and we set off to explore the area. It was amazing to see sea creatures underneath us, from small fish and crab to sea urchin and sea cucumber. I did touch a sea cucumber which felt soft and springy. 

But overall it was so nice to be out in nature, with no one else around except us, the water and nature. After we came home I could still hear the whoosh of the water from paddling in my ears hours later.

On another day she took me up to Devil's Peak where we watched a stunning sunset over Hong Kong. Where we stood we could see both Hong Kong Island and Kowloon close together and the sun setting in between. 

Even though we went on a weekday it was popular that day with locals all wanting that perfect Instagram shot. So when we decided to leave, we were pleasantly surprised to find other fantastic views of the sunse with hardly anyone around. 

Looking down on Repulse Bay

Another friend took me to one of her favourite restaurants, Uehara for an omakase lunch. There were only eight diners and the chef gave us interesting dishes, like chopped up firefly squid that had a very intense flavour, scallop topped with ponzu jelly, and various sushi, like ebi, striped jack, sea bream, and otoro.

She also took me hiking from Tai Tam to Stanley. It was a nice easy walk, not too hot as it was mostly shaded by trees. By the end we worked up an appetite and had a quasi Reuben sandwich (no sauerkraut but caramelised onions) each with fries and a Caesar salad. Afterwards we took in the sunset which we couldn't see directly, but a soft pink glow in the sky.

When an acquaintance heard I was leaving he insisted on taking me to Japanese yakitori place Toritama. The last time I was there was when it opened, so it seemed like coming full circle. There were so many different skewers to try, including cock's comb -- literally the comb, five or six of them grilled together. Literally nothing was wasted! 

Chopped firefly squid with a mayonnaise sauce

Eating at this pace as items were being cooked was a great way to have a conversation that was not rushed and enjoyable. We also ate sancho peppers, grilled brussels sprouts, cheese melted on a stick, and soy sauce ice cream for dessert.

Yet another Japanese meal with another acquaintance was had at Nagamoto restaurant, where chef Nagamoto heard I was leaving and one of the courses was presented a boat (as a metaphor for my departure) and wrote in Japanese calligraphy that he wished me well on my journey! 

If that wasn't enough, at the end of our meal my chopsticks were presented back to me in a special wooden case to take back home as a souvenir! 

I also went to Mui Wo twice to catch up with two different friends. One took me on a walk around Pui O which was also a nice change from the urban landscape, where we visited a deserted rundown temple by the water. My other friend finally introduced me to his one and a half year old dog Cookie, a mutt he had fostered as a puppy and later decided to adopt. 

A non government beach at Pui O

Cookie needs a bit more obedience training, but after her initial excitement of seeing her owner, she calmed down and at one point put her front paws on my lap. My friend and his wife were so surprised to see this as Cookie has not done this with any of their other friends. They had to take a photo as evidence.

A colleague also wanted to cook for me before I left, and brought over some homestyle dishes from Wuhan, but luckily the spice level was turned way down for me. One was a chopped chicken stir-fried with peppers and lotus root, the other sliced beef with celtuce. 

More food was supplied by another ex-colleague who brought fried rice, vegetables and a very spicy chicken dish I didn't dare touch! We had a good time reminiscing and talking about our experiences and how this shaped our work.

I also managed to squeeze in time to find the block of flats where my dad grew up in Kowloon. Many decades later it is still there, in very good condition.

But perhaps the most important thing for me was visiting my grandparents' graves.

Cookie was excited to see us!

Last year I had already visited my paternal grandfather's grave and his younger sister, but needed to go see my maternal grandparents in Chai Wan.

The over two years of the pandemic has made my relatives terrified of the virus and even though they are triple jabbed and had promised to take me to the cemetery, they were very scared of venturing out. So I asked them for the addresses of the graves and luckily a friend offered to take me there.

It was a very hot day and it was a sweaty ordeal walking around in the heat trying to find my maternal grandmother's grave. We were in the right section, but I could not find her and despaired, but not before we walked further up the terraced hill and finally found her. 

As for my grandfather's grave I completely forgot how far apart they were -- we had to take a taxi to get there, and soon after we arrived we were able to locate him. 

The block of flats where my dad grew up

I placed flowers on the grave, bowed to him and felt relieved that this mission completed, and that I could now go home.

How to Exit Hong Kong

Some pointers to make it easier to leave Hong Kong these days

Here's a quick rundown on how to exit Hong Kong...

Pay your tax before you leave

Come here to do all your tax paperwork

When you resign from your workplace, be sure to get a letter from the HR department about your termination of employment due to departing Hong Kong, along with the requisite IR56G, the notification form from your employer to inform the Inland Revenue Department that you will depart from Hong Kong.

Do not leave this to the last minute before you leave. Take these two pieces of paper and your HKID to the 1/F of  Inland Revenue and it's best to go before it opens at 9am. You will get a ticket and when your number is called, tell the person at the counter you are leaving and show them these letters from your company.

They will tell you to go to the 26/F, where again you queue up and get the requisite green tax form to fill out (hence the IR56G form is handy). Be sure to bring any receipts that you may have made for charitable donations to declare in this form as well.

Hand in the green form and the person may tell you come back in the afternoon.

You will need to fill out this green tax form

At that time they will give your tax bill, which you pay by going back down to Hong Kong Post on the 1/F. There will be several people in front of you with the same white piece of paper with red ink. You cannot pay by credit, only cash or debit.

When this is processed, go back up to the 7/F to get your release letter. This is important to have in order to apply to withdraw your mandatory provident fund (MPF) if you are a foreign passport holder.

All the above can be completed in one day.

Withdraw MPF

You need to say an oath that is witnessed by the Home Affairs office before you can apply to withdraw your MPF, along with the release letter.

Because of the fifth wave, this oath could only be done by appointment only. Best to go to your closest Home Affairs office and get the phone number to make the appointment -- no walk-ins allowed. It's a very antiquated way of doing this, as you cannot book online. Just press redial on your phone 30, 40 times until you get through. 

In my case the oath service was only available Monday, Wednesday and Friday at select times. You might be lucky and get the next day booking or next week. They will ask for your name and contact phone number.

On the appointed day arrive a few minutes early (there will be a queue). A person will check each person against their appointment list (hence no walk-ins allowed). Your request is processed and then an appointed person will witness you reading out a statement in English or Chinese. It is a basically a run-on sentence in legalese saying that you abide by the Oath and Declarations Ordinance, that everything you have declared in your forms are true. While I was waiting for my turn, I was given the Oath and Declarations Ordinance to read...

Oath office is around the corner on O'Brien Road

Once you have read out the oath, the witness will sign and stamp a chop on a letter saying you have completed the oath. Send this original copy to the MPF provider along with the application to withdraw your MPF from either your provider or the MPF website. 

It will ask for information about where you are moving to, your contact details and which bank account the money should be sent to.

Your MPF provider may contact you for further information; in my case it was my tax number in the country I will reside in, and I filled that in online. 

From there it should take about a month for it to be processed.

Others have told me they received two tax refund cheques from Inland Revenue.

Packing up

Purging can be a tough exercise, but when it comes down to it, try to be as ruthless as possible. Give away as much as you can to friends and family, or to charities that could use clothing, stationary, tableware, kitchenware, and so on. 

Mail as much as you can ahead of time

If you don't have any furniture, best to send back things via Hong Kong Post via ship as the cheapest option. Either find a sturdy cardboard box or use the ones sold at the post office and make sure they are secured well with packing tape. 

When you fill out the form, you will need to itemise everything in the box and put a total value on them, so best to make a list as you pack the box -- once it's sealed it's hard to remember what exactly what was in there! Around 10kg is over HK$600 which will arrive in about three months' time. So best to ship off what you don't need first.

Before I left, SpeedPost was available -- packages under 2kg could be sent in two weeks. To make sure I was under 2kg, I brought the unsealed box to weigh it before using the packing tape. The staff don't mind you weighing the box as long as they aren't busy, hence going in the morning is a good time.

You cannot mail any electronics, liquid like perfume, but something like hand cream is OK. Obviously no batteries, lighters or hand sanitiser (anything with alcohol in it). Here's the list.

Miscellaneous

If you are renting, be sure to inform providers for electricity, gas, water, etc that you are leaving and to pay up the bills. They will return the deposits to you via cheque. Same goes for settling mobile phone and internet, gym memberships and so on.

Most people will keep their bank accounts active to either receive the MPF withdrawal or to keep paying mobile phone fees while abroad to retain their Hong Kong numbers. I have heard it is harder to open bank accounts in Hong Kong now, so if you can keep a basic one open, that could be handy.

Try to complete your "bucket list" if you have one. In my case because of the social-distancing measures during the pandemic, and time was ticking fast, I was just happy to see whoever wanted to meet up. 

Departure

Check once, twice, three times to make sure you are clear of the Covid-19 requirements for your destination, as they can change suddenly. In my case from the time I booked my flight to departure rules had changed so that there was no need for a PCR test in both the transit city or the final destination.

Some countries may require you to download a specific app to input all your flight and passport information.

Even though it's all digital, be old school and print out everything. Wifi doesn't work all the time.

Hong Kong International Airport is a ghost town when it comes to services and shops. Practically all of them were closed in the check-in area, and nothing was open past security and immigration except for washrooms and free water. Bring snacks if you want to nibble on something before your flight, or eat a big meal beforehand.

If you are flying economy, be sure to get there at least three hours beforehand as there will be a big queue to check-in, otherwise those in business and first class won't have much of a wait. Be sure to pack all your electronics in your hand carry luggage, not check-in suitcases for inspection.

OK One more post tomorrow on a few of the final things I did in Hong Kong!

The Final Farewell

Hong Kong's skyline is so famous, yet it has changed so much

After 836 days I am finally back home. The coronavirus pandemic prevented me from visiting -- or rather I should say it was the Hong Kong government's strict measures, from 21 days' hotel quarantine to a battery of tests after arriving, as well as the threat of flight bans that stopped me from flying.

But now I am home for good -- at least I think I am -- and sadly am relieved to be out of Hong Kong, the city I love so much.

Since the national security law was implemented on June 30, 2020, Hong Kong has irrevocably changed so much that it is hard to fathom the sweeping changes that happen almost on a daily basis. At one point people were being arrested daily. 

This is not normal.

A friend asked how Hong Kong was different from China. On the mainland you know where the red lines are, whereas in Hong Kong, they are constantly changing; what was something normal or done with regularity is suddenly banned and it's hard to anticipate what is next, or if you will be implicated because of where the red line is drawn.

So I have joined the tens of thousands of others in the mass exodus, saying goodbye to people I have known for years professionally and personally, for them feeling another pang of emptiness as yet another friend or relative leaves.

For me I didn't realise how much I had impacted their lives personally and professionally. They reminded me of the things I had done for them or experiences we had together that affected them so profoundly. It was good to hear I had made a meaningful contribution to their lives.

I also didn't realise how much stuff I had -- even though I had moved into a serviced apartment for the last few months, I still had bags and boxes of things I gave away to friends, charities, recycling and so on. I even dug out an old iPhone 3 and iPhone7 and took them to the nearby recycling centre. The security guard was so excited to see my iPhone7 that he claimed it right away and turned it on to make sure it worked. 

Hong Kong is the city where I started my career when I was a fresh graduate, unsure of what path I was going to take, but only knew that I was willing to work hard and see where I could go. I returned again in 2010 with an even greater appreciation for the city and what it offered.

But after 2014 and even more so after 2019, and the events that followed, this place will never be the same again, and many others feel the same way.

Hong Kong was known as a city of refuge from war and revolution, but now it is the place people are fleeing from to seek safety elsewhere.

I will continue to watch Hong Kong's developments from afar, but it is still close to my heart.

A friend has asked me to write a to-do list on how to exit Hong Kong, but after that, The Fragrant Harbour will end, and I will start another blog and will add the link.

Thanks for reading!

PS: Here is the new link: https://goodbyehkhelloyvr.blogspot.com/

Police Continue to Punish Businesses

Char siu pork ribs on the far right, pork shoulder on far left

Late this afternoon I met up with a restaurateur who insisted that I try his latest creation -- char siu pork ribs for an early dinner before his eatery closes at 6pm.

And they are delicious -- why hasn't anyone else thought of this before? Why just use the pork shoulder to make char siu when the ribs are just as good?

We asked him if he was excited to finally have dinner service back on April 21, but he shook his head.

Police in casual clothes out to fine people in TST

Then he told us that he was upset to find that his two restaurants (next door to each other) were recently fined when the police descended on them and checked everyone's LeaveHomeSafe app to see if they had scanned the restaurants' QR codes.

It turns out one diner did not scan the LeaveHomeSafe app, and both restaurants -- which are under one license -- are banned from operating for the next two weeks.

Now he has lost the opportunity to not only make money back from months of just serving lunch, and what is he going to do with kitchen and wait staff having nothing to do for two weeks. 

So please -- everyone -- scan your LeaveHomeSafe app in restaurants and other establishments if you want to support these businesses! A fine is a minor financial hit compared to being banned from running a business for two weeks.

In addition, anyone who has been out of work for 30 days can apply for HK$10,000 compensation from the government, but since hairdressers were out of work for 28 days, they are not eligible for this money. 

So basically the government looks like it is helping people, but when looking at the fine print, it really doesn't.

Use your LHS app when supporting a business!

The same goes for the police raking in some HK$90 million from fines, some from jumping in the bushes to ambush runners on trails who aren't wearing masks, to making domestic helpers pay HK$5,000 -- more than their monthly salary -- for being in what may look like groups of more than two.

There is talk that the sixth wave could come in a few months -- how much more financial punishment can people take?

While the restaurateur I saw today has accepted the financial hit of the punishment, he found out he is not the only one who was caught with not every guest scanning the LeaveHomeSafe app. 

After over two years of being hit hard by the pandemic, how are businesses in Hong Kong supposed to get back on their feet again when they are constantly being knocked down?

Picture of the Day: New Old Coins

Lots of old coins, never used, in a tin box

My relatives have been busy doing some serious spring cleaning in their flat.

They are cleaning out really old magazines, books, clothes and anything else that they don't need; at the moment these items are all stacked up in the living room waiting to be taken away, as they live in a walk-up so they are saving this for the garbage man to manually collect day by day, or to take down themselves to a nearby recycling area or the local garbage dump.

They also found lots of money! Over HK$2,000 in coins! 

Before the Octopus card came out in 1997, people had to have exact change when boarding public transport, from buses to trams and ferries.

So their mother, who passed away several years ago, had gotten coins from the bank to ensure she always had enough change and after the Octopus card came out, the coins were forgotten and so much was amassed that my relatives hauled them to the bank to be counted. They even returned coins with the Queen's head on them (issued before 1997). 

Apparently no one is interested in buying these coins online.

She had also collected stamps and my relatives managed to sell a stamp book or two on an online buying and selling platform called Carousell for about HK$10 each. Who collects stamps these days?

Not only that, she also collected a lot of fresh bills, dating back to the 1970s, all of them from HSBC in a special booklet, and also coins too.

Some date back to 1960 which is quite amazing. They are all rolled up neatly in paper and labelled very clearly. I should also add she used to be a teacher, hence the clean hand writing.

In any event my relatives hope to find a buyer for these coins and bills and I hope they do. One man's junk is another man's treasure!

HK Covid-19 Cases Drop to Below 1,000

Children can soon finally play on playgrounds from April 21

Hong Kong reached a new milestone today -- 946 cases were recorded, the first time in over two months that the number has dropped to below 1,000.

Of the total, 471 cases were detected from PCR tests, 475 from rapid antigen tests, and 11 imported.

There were also 67 people who died, of which 36 passed away in the past 24 hours.

Chuang urges people to remain vigilant at Easter

While the infection number is lower than what it was a few weeks ago, Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan of the Centre for Health Protection advised people to continue to be vigilant by wearing masks and washing their hands regularly, especially now during the Easter holiday with more people going out there is a chance of cases rebounding.

Nevertheless the drop of cases to three figures also means the end of Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor hosting her daily press conferences.

At times she was combative with the media when it comes to their questions, either asking them to be more understanding about how tough her job was, to blaming them for not bringing up the correct facts in a question (where she was factually wrong). 

Lam ends her daily press briefings on Covid-19

Yesterday when a reporter asked Lam that since the numbers have dropped significantly, when would the government conduct mandatory testing and she side stepped the question completely. 

Inquiring minds want to know, Carrie! It's a legitimate question to ask.

Hopefully the downward trend continues, though there is word the sixth wave could come as early as June...

HK to Fiinally Relax Some Measures April 21

Restaurants are excited to have dinner service next week

Finally the news everyone was waiting for -- DINNER IS BACK ON!

Today Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor confirmed that social-distancing measures will be further relaxed on April 21, with dinner available until 10pm and four to a table, while gyms, beauty salons, religious venues and cinemas will be reopened. The ban on no more than two households meeting together will be lifted too.

However, swimming pools, beaches and barbecue sites will have to wait for the next phase together with bars and pubs...

Lam proudly showing she's got her fourth jab

Interestingly anyone seeing a movie in the cinema or be employed there will also have to be triple jabbed.

"At this point in time and into the near term, Hong Kong is much, much better prepared to handle another wave," Lam said during the daily press conference. "Nobody wants a sixth wave, but if a sixth wave hits us, we are now much, much better prepared, she said, pointing to the sufficient treatment facilities, quarantine centres and ample supply of Covid vaccines.

"With this greater capacity, it will be very, very unreasonable and perhaps unacceptable to the majority of Hong Kong people to continue to close all these premises and allow people no chance to lead a normal life."

Interesting she says this now after howls of complaints and multinational companies fleeing Hong Kong, but perhaps she can now that she's leaving office.

Anyone interested in living in isolation cells?

And yes there are plentiful quarantine -- or rather isolation units, shipping container units converted into cells that Chinese state media like to call "mobile hospital units", when in fact they are just a bare room with four beds. Toilets and showers are elsewhere...

This is what the next phase of Covid-19 will look like in Hong Kong. Any takers?

Activist Jailed for Unlawful Assembly

Commuters were attacked by men in white shirts July 21, 2019

Many Hongkongers will forever remember the Yuen Long attacks on the evening of July 21, 2019, when some 100 men in white shirts with sticks and rods beat people in the MTR station, not only on the concourse but in the train carriage as well.

It was such a shocking incident that people watched the events unfold live, and one journalist, Gwyneth Ho Kwai-lam filmed herself being assaulted by a middle-aged man. Forty-five people were injured, including lawmaker Lam Cheuk-ting.

Attackers went into MTR trains to assault people

Only seven people were convicted and sentenced for the assaults.

A week after the horrific incident, activist Max Chung Kin-ping organised a "Reclaim Yuen Long" march on July 27, 2019.

However, the police filed a Letter of Objection, saying the protest may cause traffic disruptions. 

While Chung suggested he would march alone, and urged people not to follow him, some 288,000 people showed up that day to show support for the district, and by 5pm the police started firing tear gas at the protesters.

Today Chung was jailed for 16 months after he pleaded guilty to organising an unauthorised assembly.

District Judge Amanda Woodcock described the atmosphere in Yuen Long in the days after the mob attack as a "tinderbox situation", and the banned demonstration was a potential source of violence.

Chung pleaded guilty to unauthorised assembly

She did not believe Chung did not see emotions were running high and that violence could have erupted easily.

Woodcock noted the defendant used "provocative and inflammatory" language and "covertly" asked people to participate in the unauthorised procession.

"[Chung] made a conscious decision to break the law... actions have consequences for everyone...," she said.

In addition Woodcock disagreed with the defence's argument that the court should not blame him for violent acts that took place adjacent to the demonstration route he proposed.

The court also dismissed the defendant's plea that it was "unfair" for Chung to be prosecuted more than two years after the demonstration took place. The prosecution said it had taken time to look into a high volume of evidence, and Woodcock said relevant parties faced a heavy workload.

"Two years was not a very long time... there was no intentional delay. More importantly, I see no prejudice...," the judge said.

Some 288,000 came to Yuen Long on July 27, 2019

Chung was originally sentenced to 24 months in prison, which was then reduced to 16 months for submitting a guilty plea. 

He was arrested the day of the protest but he was not charged. Chung was later apprehended last August and remanded in custody since.