Vaccinations with Some Benefits

Perhaps more people will get the jab with shorter quarantines?

Many things happened today. Here is a quick summary:

Former Democratic Party chairman Wu Chi-wai was granted urgent bail on Friday morning to attend his father's funeral, but was a no-show tonight at the memorial service at the funeral hall in Diamond Hill.

It is believed he will be attending the funeral ceremony tomorrow at an undisclosed location and time.

Wu smiled when his bail application was approved.

An entire block in Quarry Bay was quarantined

"Thank you, everyone", he said, to shouts of encouragement from supporters as he was escorted out of the dock by officers. 

On the Covid-19 front, the government has finally realized it needs to create incentives for people to get vaccinated. It has relented to allow those who are fully vaccinated (plus 14 days) and are close contacts of someone infected with a mutated virus can now just do two weeks in the camp, and another seven days at home.

If someone is fully vaccinated and is a close contact of someone infected with a non-mutant strain will stay in the camp for only seven days instead of 14 days.

It's a bit of an improvement.

There are three residential buildings in Quarry Bay, Pokfulam and Tsuen Wan currently under mandatory quarantine because each one was found to have someone with a mutant virus. Originally every single resident in those affected buildings had to be sent to quarantine, but after a massive uproar that included two online petitions to Secretary of Health Sophia Chan Siu-chee, the government backtracked.

In Tsuen Wan people were escorted to quarantine

Now only close contacts to the infected person must undergo quarantine, as long as the others not deemed close contacts have tested negative four times during a self-monitoring period.

Meanwhile for those coming into Hong Kong and have been double vaccinated, there is a bit of hope in terms of shorter hotel quarantines -- but it depends on where they are coming from.

People with two does of vaccines coming in from low-risk countries, such as Australia, New Zealand and Singapore will just have to quarantine in a hotel for 14 days instead of 21, but they must have Covid-19 tests on two separate days afterwards.

For medium-risk countries, such as Canada, Belgium, Egypt, Germany, Romania, Russia, Switzerland and the United States, fully vaccinated people can have a 14-day stay in hotel quarantine, otherwise it's the full 21 days.

However for extremely high-risk places like Brazil, India, Nepal, the Philippines and South Africa, the 21-day hotel quarantine is a must for them. 

Currently almost 14 percent of Hong Kong's population has had at least one jab, but only over 8 percent are fully vaccinated. 

Some coming to HK can shorten quarantine stays

Will this latest news help boost the city's vaccination drive? We hope so. Who wants to be stuck in a government quarantine camp with crappy food, spotty wifi and uncomfortable beds for 21 days, let alone 14 days?

I managed to persuade a relative to get his jab which he did over a week ago, and he in turn persuaded some colleagues to do the same.

However, after news broke about the mutated virus in Hong Kong, the Health Commission of Guangdong Province ruled yesterday with immediate effect that Hong Kong residents must spend 14 days in hotel quarantine, and another seven days confined in their homes or other forms of accommodation.

In effect, it's 21 days in quarantine.

This latest development has dashed hopes that the border between Hong Kong and Guangdong will be lifted anytime soon.

"It is unimaginable when the border will be restored," said Danny Lau Tat-pong, honorary chairman of the Hong Kong Small and Medium Enterprises, 1,700-member chamber.

"Business owners and operators including myself have waited for more than a year and are still waiting."

HK travelers to Shenzhen now 21-day quarantine

Lau said cross-border businesses have been significantly disrupted, forcing Hong Kong operators to either be stuck in the mainland and not be reunited with their families, or they are forced to manage their factories remotely, and business meetings with clients can only be contacted online.

He has not been able to visit his factory in Dalang, which produces aluminum curtain walls, since January last year.

Chinese Manufacturers' Association honorary president Dennis Ng Wang-pun urged mainland authorities to relax the 21-day quarantine requirement for Hongkongers who have been inoculated.

"Businesses cannot operate remotely forever, we still have to meet clients and visit factories in person," he said.

"The border reopening will be crucial to Hong Kong's economic recovery, and will directly throw a lifeline to tourism, retail and food and beverage sectors."

Given that China's own vaccination rates are low, surely it should give Hongkongers -- aren't they Chinese too? -- a break.

Perhaps this is something Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor should be lobbying the Guangdong authorities? Or is she too busy telling people to go to Hainan Island instead?

Hong Kong Shocked by Shooting

The 44-year-old suspect being led away by police in Quarry Bay

Hong Kong got a big shock this afternoon when a woman shot four seniors in Quarry Bay Park on the east side of Hong Kong Island.

One woman died after being shot in the head, one man is in a coma from a shot in the back of his head, and the other two sustained minor injuries after being shot in the shoulder and hand.

It turns out all five people were related -- the seniors, ranging in ages from 60 to 80, were aunts and uncles to the assailant, a 44-year-old security guard.

Police search for spent cartridges in the park

She arranged to meet them in the park to settle a dispute over her grandmother's inheritance, the oldest of the siblings, who had passed away.

However, when the meeting broke up with no agreement, the seniors were getting ready to leave and that's when the woman pulled out a semi-automatic Beretta 950 handgun and shot the four people at close range before calmly walking away.

Officers from the Counter Terrorism Response Unit were on patrol nearby and rushed over to the scene and arrested the woman, who was still carrying the gun and 40 rounds of ammunition.

It is believed she fired four shots.

According to the chief inspector, the suspect was calm when arrested and did not have mental issues, but he didn't say if she had a criminal record.

The handgun was found on the suspect when she was arrested

While police have stated this is not a "random shooting", it still has shocked people in Hong Kong. Shootings are very rare and if they occur they happen around robberies.

There will be questions in the coming days of this woman's access to a weapon and 40 rounds of ammunition which seems like a lot. Hopefully this is an isolated incident. Hong Kong is considered a very safe place and this shooting has jolted many of us into wondering what is going on.

This case will eventually wind its way through the justice system and we will find out why this tragic incident happened. We already have a good idea -- it's money-related...

Wildly Popular Disturbing Art

A man taking a selfie with a gun. Did he get the shot?

This afternoon I went to a preview of an edgy show by Spanish comic strip artist Joan Cornella.

The paintings and prints are so absurd you can't help but laugh or be disturbed by the images, showing people with generic happy faces being destructive, or having violent acts being done to them.

Four years ago Cornella decided to change his style of art by doing these comic strips and posting them on Facebook to see what the reaction would be.

A Hong Kong family with a selfie stick...

The verdict was unanimous within a short period of time -- keep doing it!

Interestingly his biggest fan base is in Hong Kong, followed by Brazil.

When I asked him why Hong Kong people love his work so much, Cornella didn't have an explanation.

Perhaps Hong Kong people feel like society or the world they live in is two-faced -- that they have to give the impression that everything is fine or perfect, but in reality it's the complete opposite. Or maybe these are "happy" people fantasizing about what they could do to their boss, or people they hate!

The show, which is on at Space 27 in Quarry Bay from May 6-21, features 38 works, and some of them were inspired by Hong Kong. One of them shows a guy in a cage home, sticking out a selfie stick so he can take a picture of himself.

Maybe because of this work Hong Kong will get more attention on the world stage for its ever increasing widening gap between the rich and poor, and how young people can only afford shoebox-sized flats.

Another painting shows a father, mother and daughter, the latter two wearing face masks, and the father holds up a selfie stick, but there's a gun pointing at them. Wonder who gets that shot?

A man in a caged home looking happy...

The best of the lot is called Two Girls, featuring the poster of the Kwong Sang Hong Two Girls, and painted over their faces are Cornella's signature generic smiley faces, one wearing a face mask and holding up a selfie stick with a gun at the end, and a modern landscape of skyscraper behind them.

 A woman with the gallery told us a family from Taiwan recently gave Cornella their family photo for him to paint over. We can only say this family is really unconventional and brave because we don't know what the artist will do to their faces and bodies!

Joan Cornella: A Hong Kong Themed Solo Exhibition

May 6-21

11am-9pm

Space 27

10/F, Block AB, Tung Chong Factory Building

653-659 King's Road

Quarry Bayd

Picture of the Day: Ominous Clouds?

After seeing this picture would you believe it would pour a few hours later?

This morning was yet another beautiful day, slightly warmer temperatures making it perfect T-shirt weather.

I had a late start to the day and eventually left the flat around 2pm for a swim and then had to rush to Quarry Bay for an appointment.

Short on time I took a taxi there and managed to catch this shot why passing by Tin Hau/Fortress Hill.

I left Quarry Bay around 5.30pm and wondered if I should go shopping for some home ware, but then decided to try to beat the rush home.

At Central I got on the 18P bus to Kennedy Town and soon after the bus left the bus stop the sky suddenly became dark and it started to rain! How could the weather turn so differently from the afternoon? I was so surprised to see it pouring, and many bus passengers like me were caught without umbrellas.

By the time I arrived back in Kennedy Town the rain still refused to go away and I used a bag I was carrying as my impromptu umbrella (not really). I was pretty soaked by the time I got home.

And soon after I came home? It stopped raining.

For the past week I didn't checked the weather forecast because it was pretty much the same everyday. But now I'll have to go back to diligently looking at the website and putting an umbrella in my bag...