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/

HK Protest Documentary Wins Golden Horse

A still from Chow's Revolution of Our Times documentary

Tonight the Golden Horse Awards, the Chinese-speaking world's equivalent of the Oscars was held tonight and the Hong Kong documentary on the 2019 protests was named Best Documentary.

When the film Revolution of Our Times was announced as the winner, it prompted a long round of applause and shouts of support for Hong Kong from the audience in Taipei.

Director Kiwi Chow sent a pre-recorded message from Hong Kong. He expressed thanks for the award, dedicated the film to Hong Kong people, saying he hoped it would bring them some comfort.

Chow speaking via a recorded message in HK

"I cried a lot when I produced this film; several times I comforted myself with this film, to express my anger, hatred, to face my fear and trauma," he said, his voice cracking with emotion.

The 152-minute documentary follows several protesters and documents their clashes with police in the 2019 anti-government protests. 

Revolution of Our Times was a last-minute addition to the Cannes Film Festival lineup in July, but it will never be shown in Hong Kong because of the national security law which prohibits any hint of secession, subversion, terrorism or collusion with foreign forces.

As a result those in the arts and culture fields are worried about work being misconstrued as contravening the national security law. Most recently the opening of M+ contemporary art museum resulted in photographs by dissident artist Ai Weiwei not being displayed even though they are part of a collection donated by well-known Swiss collector Uli Sigg.

This big win for the documentary comes days after the second anniversary of the District Council elections where 71 percent of registered voters turned the city's electoral map yellow except for one district. It was an unprecedented win for the pro-democrats, but the victory was short lived, again because of the national security law.

A poster of the documentary

Since then the city's institutions are being dismantled from the district councillors themselves to grassroots organisations and unions, as well as a pro-democracy newspaper, Apple Daily.

Chow's film is a reminder of what happened and to never forget.

M+ Finally but Cautiously Opens

M+ is designed by Herzog & de Meuron, at least HK$760M

A few days ago M+ finally opened on Friday, though with cautious fanfare.

First some impressive stats. The Museum of visual culture is designed like an upside down T, nearly twice the size of the Tate Modern with 17,000 square metres (183,000 sq ft) of space in which to display 1,500 works from its 6,413 pieces. M+ cost at least HK$760 million to build, and several years behind schedule, which resulted in bad timing.

Before M+ opened its doors, the national security law was implemented, coupled with numerous pro-democracy activists thrown in jail, a liberal newspaper shut down, and the city's electoral system completely revamped so that only "patriots" can run. As a result the contemporary art museum is treading on dangerous territory.

Tang said the art must comply with the law

Art is supposed to be an extension of freedom of expression... is it not?

"We will uphold and encourage the freedom of artistic expression and creativity. But on the other hand, our dedicated curatorial team will ensure the exhibitions comply with the law, including the Basic Law, the national security law, and all other laws in Hong Kong. The opening of M+ does not mean artistic expression is above the law. It is not," said West Kowloon Cultural District chairman Henry Tang Ying-yen.

So yes, by all means be expressive with art -- as long as it complies with the law.

Passive aggressive with legal characteristics.

Ai's Whitewash is displayed prominently

In March, pro-Beijing lawmaker Eunice Yung Hoi-yan tried to score patriotic brownie points by accusing the M+ collection of spreading "hatred" against China, using the example of Ai Weiwei's photograph of him raising his middle finger at Tiananmen Square.

However, did she realize that Ai also has a series of photographs called Studies of Perspectives, pointing his middle finger at other government buildings and famous landmarks around the world too, including the Eiffel Tower, Hong Kong island, St Mark's Square, the Sydney Opera House, and the White House?

Nevertheless, M+ removed Ai's photograph from its online archive, citing a legal review, though his other work called Whitewash (1995-2000) is on show, featuring 126 ancient jars neatly arranged some painted in white, as if to whitewash history.

Wang's painting refers to Tiananmen Square

And then there is a reference to June 4, 1989 with Wang Xinwei's New Beijing. It's a painting of a photograph reminiscent of a man pushing his bicycle with a makeshift board that should be carrying two bloodied people but instead there is a pair of penguins wounded in the chest.

It's also interesting it has featured the works of local artist Kacey Wong, including photographs and sculpture, including his floating apartment idea as a way to tackle Hong Kong's housing crisis. Wong recently went into self-imposed exile to Taiwan, worried about continuing to live in Hong Kong. He wrote on Twitter how cool it was to be able to see his work in the museum through smartphone technology.

Wong's floating home is on show at M+

Many people I know have already had a preview of M+, posting pictures all over social media so I feel like I've already seen half the museum already. But of course it's not the same as being there and interacting with the art in person which I hope to do soon.

But the hopes that M+ was going to display art that couldn't be in China are dashed. Going forward it's going to be a perilous journey for the museum when it comes to art and politics,
whether it likes it or not.

Lithuania Advises Throwing Away Chinese Phones

 

Lithuania found Xiaomi phones have censorship capabilities

Lithuania has an adverse reaction to Chinese phones, so much so it could erupt into a diplomatic row after its defence ministry has advised residents to avoid buying Chinese phones or even throwing away the ones they have now after a government report found the devices have built-in censorship capabilities.

Xiaomi phones have a built-in ability to detect and censor terms such as "Free Tibet", "Long live Taiwan independence" or "democracy movement", according to Lithuania's state-run cybersecurity body on Tuesday.

Abukevicius advised throwing out Chinese phones

While the capability of Xiaomi's Mi 10T 5G phone software has been turned off for the "European Union region", it can be turned on remotely at anytime, the defence ministry's National Cyber Security Centre said in the report.

"Our recommendation is not to buy new Chinese phones, and to get rid of those already purchased as fast as reasonably possible," said Defence Deputy Minister Margiris Abukevicius when introducing the report.

Xiaomi did not respond to Lithuania's allegations.

The report said the list of terms which could be censored by the Xiaomi phone's system apps, including the default internet browser, currently includes 449 terms in Chinese and is continuously updated. 

"This is important not only to Lithuania, but to all countries which use Xiaomi equipment," the centre said in the report.

The report warns against using any Xiaomi gadgets

Relations soured between Lithuania and China recently after Taiwan announced its mission in Lithuania would be called the Taiwanese Representative Office, causing China to demand Lithuania withdraw its ambassador in Beijing, and said it would recall its envoy to Vilnius.

Usually Taiwanese missions in Europe and the United States use the name of the city Taipei to avoid referencing the island itself, which China regards is its own.

Following Lithuania's report, how many other countries will take heed to its warnings regarding Xiaomi phones?

It will be interesting to find out...

Zen Moment with Lui Shou-kwan

Lui's Zen Painting (1971) with lively strokes

 

After looking at the disturbing art work at the Surrealism exhibit as documented in my previous post, my friend and I were relieved to see the perfect counterpoint on the same floor -- "When Form Matters: Following the Path of Lui Shou-kwan to Zen Painting".

Lui (1919-1975) was born in Guangzhou, and his father Lui Canming was also a painter. Lui junior studied economics at Guangzhou University then moved to Hong Kong in 1948. His day job was an inspector for the Hongkong and Yaumatei Ferry Company until 1966.

Lui could paint traditional Chinese paintings

But Lui was very involved in art and could paint traditional style paintings as evident in a few works shown in the exhibition (After Ni Zan's Riverside pavilion by mountains is an example), but he was also keen to experiment with ink and composition, which resulted in him being a leading figure in the New Ink Art Movement in Hong Kong.

This resulted in his Zen painting series, creating a new style of painting that was refreshing, minimalist, and encapsulated aesthetics of East and West through modulating his brush and ink.

And his Zen paintings really are fantastic works of abstraction created with powerful brushstrokes that are deliberate with texture and depth. They are minimalist in composition, but bring up many possibilities of the meanings behind them.

Tablet shows how Shek O, Hong Kong was painted

However, I do prefer his not so abstract paintings of Hong Kong. There's a horizontal landscape painting called Shek O, Hong Kong (1964), depicting the district as a quaint small village by the water that looks frothy and white in contrast to the dark hills in the background. 

Lui also painted scenes of places like Rennie's Mill, Kowloon typhoon shelter, and Kellet Island. These works show life a generation ago that seems nostalgic and slow, and feature lots of water that surrounds Hong Kong.

I also enjoyed looking at Cliffs of Ali Shan, Taiwan (1971), an ink painting that almost looks like a black and white photograph. Does the far right show a waterfall? Or where the cliff disappears into the water? It's hard to tell, but Lui seems to paint it as a beautiful idyllic place to take in the scenery.

Cliffs of Ali Shan, Taiwan painted in 1971

One irritating thing about the exhibition is its use of technology to make the art seem cool when it already is cool. 

In some of the works, visitors are invited to use a special tablet to scan the painting and it will automatically pretend to paint the work for you. How is this interesting or make the work more comprehensible?

At the end of the exhibition, visitors are invited to scan a QR code for Lui's abstract butterfly to fly around on the smartphone screen. How does this enhance the viewer's visit to the show? Not at all except it is a sad gimmick. Lui did not paint the work to have more than one butterfly flying around!

The museum seems to rely too much on computer animation to make the shows more interesting when it should be up to the curators and how they present the works to make it worthwhile to see the shows. Children's attention spans may be short, but animating paintings is not going to inspire them.

Computer animation is an unwelcome gimmick

When Form Matters: Following the Path of Lui Shou-kwan to Zen Painting

Until April 10

Hong Kong Museum of Art

10 Salisbury Road

Tsim Sha Tsui

 

 

 

Singapore's Opening -- Any Takers?

The Lion City is welcoming visitors from HK and Macau

 

Just as the travel bubble or corridor between Hong Kong and Singapore was officially dead, the Lion City announced it would receive visitors from Hong Kong and Macau without quarantine from August 26.

It is part of a months-old scheme Singapore has with China, Taiwan and New Zealand.

Iswaran says two cities have different strategies

Singapore residents, permanent residents and long-term pass holders arriving from Hong Kong and Macau can go back home as early as Saturday. 

Travelers from Hong Kong and Macau don't even need to be vaccinated, and only need to have a negative result from a polymerase chain reaction test. However, they would still need to quarantine upon their return to their respective cities.

The travel bubble was pronounced dead according to Singapore transport minister S. Iswaran, as both cities' pandemic strategies differed, "with Singapore now taking steps towards becoming a Covid-resilient nation".

Meanwhile Hong Kong, following Beijing's lead, is trying to keep it at zero Covid-19 cases, which many, including the international business community in Hong Kong are clamouring is unrealistic and makes it another reason to move operations elsewhere.

Can HK really reach zero Covid-19 cases?

So... anyone in Hong Kong rushing to buy tickets to go to Singapore?

Didn't think so...

The Exodus Continues

This is a common and sad scene at the airport these days

This morning there was news of not another arrest, but of more people and groups leaving Hong Kong.

One well known columnist, editor, author and businessman, Steve Vines wrote an email to friends and ex-colleagues that he had left for the UK, as it had become unsafe for him to continue living in the city.

"The white terror sweeping through Hong Kong is far from over and the near-term prospects of things getting better are simply non-existent," he wrote.

Vines revealed he had already arrived in the UK

"Hong Kong is now in a very dark place as the Chinese dictatorship has slashed and burned its way through the tattered remains of the One Country, Two Systems concept."

Last month public broadcaster RTHK axed his show, "The Pulse", and in April he was dropped as a regular contributor to an RTHK morning radio show. Several months ago he also stopped writing regular columns for the South China Morning Post.

Vines left Hong Kong after living here for 35 years with a "heavy heart and a mixture of enormous regret and relief". He was the founding editor and publisher of three newspapers and magazines, including the long ago defunct Eastern Express.

What made Vines leave was apparently a warning he received through a third party from pro-Beijing figures in the city.

"[The person] said quite aggressively... 'you better watch your step, we're coming for you'."

Another well known person is artist Kacey Wong, who revealed on social media that he had settled in Taiwan where he could enjoy "100 percent freedom".

Wong was known for his protest performance art

"When you received this letter, I have already left. Leaving is not easy, staying is also difficult. 

"We have known each other for 51 years, I will not forget you. Let's treasure each other, goodbye Hong Kong," he wrote on Facebook. 

"We'll meet again. Don't know where, don't know when," he sang a rendition of the song by Vera Lynn that was popular during World War II.

Wong, 51, an architecture graduate from Cornell University, was a fixture at the annual July 1 protests. Along the route he did performance art, like playing the accordion in a cage, a giant menacing cardboard robot, and riding in a giant pink army tank.

He is also known for his art that is social commentary, particularly around the housing wealth gap and thinking of creative (and absurd) ways people have to put a roof over their heads.

Then it's not just individuals leaving, but even a news organization.

Digital news outlet Initium Media published a letter to its readers today explaining it will move its operations to Singapore. 

Digital news outlet said it will move to Singapore

Initium's executive director, Susie Wu said, "the road to freedom" had become more and more difficult over the past six years since the outlet's launch, with the world becoming more divided, and Hong Kong's global press freedom ranking plummeting.

She said the media organization will make use of online and decentralized methods to produce content, and continue to provide in-depth reporting on Greater China and global developments.

"Do not despair in hardships, do not give up exploring and changing, because the heart is free, and the values you and I believe in will not be easily broken," Wu told readers.

The news outlet started in 2015 and provides in-depth news, opinion and lifestyle to 60,000 readers in more than 200 countries and regions.

But now Initium needs to implement its plan B and like people emigrating to other countries, the news organization is following suit...

RTHK Becomes Mainlandized, as Lam Promises Rosy Future

RTHK staff must abide by the one-China policy on Taiwan

 

Radio Television Hong Kong is becoming like Chinese state media with rules imposed on how it will report on Taiwan.

In a circular distributed today to staff at the government broadcaster, they are not allowed to use "inappropriate" terms such as "Taiwan's president" or "Taiwan's government" in all radio, television and online content, to comply with the one-China principle.

Taiwan cannot be described as a country

"Inappropriate terminology such as 'country', 'Republic of China', 'ROC'... must not be used when referring to Taiwan. Under no circumstances should Taiwan be referred to as a sovereign state or perceived as one," it said.

The circular instructed staff to refer to "the most senior leader of Taiwan" as 'Taiwan leader' rather than 'Taiwan president', and 'Taiwan authorities' should be used rather than 'Taiwan government'.

An RTHK spokesman reiterated that as a public broadcaster and a government department, its programmes and content it releases must all abide by the one-China principle.

This circular may have come about after Federation of Trade Union lawmaker Luk Chung-hung inquired in the Legislative Council last week why RTHK used the word "president" to refer to the island's leader. Luk submitted a written question to Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Edward Yau Tang-wah in Legco, suggesting the broadcaster may have breached the one-China principle.

Tsai now "Taiwan leader" not "Taiwan president"

Yau did not indicate that any policy change was in the works, but only said that all along the government has handled Taiwan-related matters in accordance with the Basic Law, the one-China principle, and the central government's policies towards the island. 

He added that RTHK would "continue to abide by the charter, duly meet its obligations as a public broadcaster, and uphold the highest professional standards of journalism."

When will RTHK describe Taiwan as a "renegade province", and will other media outlets will get this memo as well?

Meanwhile the reports of tens of thousands of people leaving Hong Kong for the UK has unfazed Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor.

In today's media briefing, Lam said the government did not hold an official position on the matter, but said: "Every now and then in the history of Hong Kong, there are such emigration trends.

Lam pitching Greater Bay Area back in 2018

"But if you really ask me to say something to those who are seeking to emigrate or have already emigrated, I would tell them Hong Kong has a prosperous future."

She pointed out Hong Kong's role in the Greater Bay Area, which will link the city along with Macau and nine cities in Guangdong together in a bid to become an economic and business powerhouse.

"For those who feel a sense of belonging to Hong Kong and are willing to toil away here, this is the best time. But if they choose to leave, this is a personal decision."

"Toil" is an interesting choice of word...

 

Lam says Wave of Departures a "Negative Image"

Lam says people are driven away from HK. Wonder why...

 

Today Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor complained that people were being driven away from the city and that it needs to fix its "negative image".

You don't say, Carrie!

"In the past few years, there have been people in Hong Kong who are actually driving away visitors from Hong Kong. There were people who wanted to come to Hong Kong for travel or business, but then they had very poor impression of Hong Kong when they came here," Lam said.

Daily scenes at airport departures area

"So if we want to strive for more policy support from the Central People's Government in helping our tourism and retail sector, we must first improve our own image. We want to change the negative perception mainland people have about Hong Kong."

Lam said this during a question and answer session in the Legislative Council, and lawmakers kept asking Lam when the border between China and Hong Kong will be lifted. But she replied that the conditions weren't right yet and that more people needed to be vaccinated first.

But how is she going to fix Hong Kong's "negative image" when she and then security chief, now Chief Secretary John Lee Ka-chiu were the ones who started it in the first place by using the case of a man who allegedly killed his pregnant girlfriend in Taiwan as the reason to pass the extradition bill?

And that man, Chan Tong-kai, who has finished serving his sentence for laundering money in Hong Kong is now free and living under police protection (paid by taxpayers) in a safe house, but has yet to give himself up to Taiwan to face murder charges there and still hasn't done so two years later?

The extradition bill was hinged on the Chan case

The Hong Kong government is not pushing him to do so, and neither is the Taiwanese side because of political differences.

Imagine -- if Chan had not allegedly killed his girlfriend in Taiwan, where would Hong Kong be today?

Jackie Chan Wants CCP Membership

Jackie Chan is a member of the CPPCC but not the CCP

 

This may be shocking to discover, but action superstar Jackie Chan is not a card-carrying Communist Party member.

He revealed his interest in joining the Party during a symposium organized by the China Film Association last Thursday in Beijing. Chan, 67, told the attendees that when he's abroad, he often says that he's "proud of being Chinese".

Chan sang in the Bird's Nest on July 1

"I also envy that you are Communist Party members, I think the Communist Party is just great, what the Communist Party says, what they promised, will always be delivered within a few decades," he said.

"I want to be a Communist Party member, thank you," he added, to thunderous applause.

However, many people online mocked Chan's wish, saying he was unworthy of party membership.

They referred to his extramarital affair with Hong Kong actress Elaine Ng in 1999, with whom he had a daughter, Etta Ng Chok-lam. Ng raised the daughter on her own in China, but then disowned her when Etta came out as lesbian when she was 17 years old. She married her partner in 2018 in Canada.

Jaycee Chan was jailed in 2014 for marijuana

And then Chan's son, Jaycee was arrested and jailed in 2014 for possession and distribution of marijuana during a drug bust in his apartment in Beijing.

He was sentenced to six months in jail and served the full sentence.

Jackie Chan has definitely demonstrated his patriotism over the years, and for it he has been a member of the Chinese People's Consultative Conference, largely made up of Communist Party members.

On July 1, he took part in the Communist Party's centennial celebrations at the National Stadium nicknamed "the Bird's Nest", singing a rendition of the patriotic classic, Defending the Yellow River, composed during the Second Sino-Japanese War.

Chan can no longer count on Hongkongers to be his fans anymore either after he gave an interview with state media in 2019. He spoke out about the anti-government protests, calling them "sad and depressing", and said he hoped Hong Kong "can return to peace soon".

Etta Ng (left) married her partner in 2018

He was also criticized in 2009 for his comments about the pro-democracy movement. "I'm not sure if it's good to have freedom or not," he said at the time. "I'm really confused now. If you're too free, you're like the way Hong Kong is now. It's very chaotic. Taiwan is also very chaotic."

Poor Jackie. No one wants to have anything to do with him...

Lam says Govt Shouldn't Give Cash for Jabs

Vaccines will expire soon if people don't get inoculated

 

Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor has no clue how to get more residents vaccinated.

It's gotten to the point where millions of vaccine vials will be dumped because they will expire soon and there are not enough willing to get the jab.

Tsang tells people to hurry and get the jab

Thomas Tsang, a former controller of the Centre for Health Protection warned Hongkongers they only had a "three-month window" before the vaccines would be out of date.

"The vaccines all have expiry dates," Tsang said on RTHK Radio. "They cannot be used after the expiry date and the community vaccination centres for BioNTech will, according to present plans, cease operating after September."

He added it was "just not right" that Hong Kong was sitting on an unused pile of doses while the rest of the world "is scrambling for vaccines".

On Twitter many were calling for the rest of the vaccines to be sent to Taiwan and India; a colleague had a brash idea of bringing Indians to Hong Kong to get the jab, but of course that would never happen.

In any event employers were wringing their hands in despair after a report that Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels is offering HK$2,000 for each employee who gets vaccinated, and another HK$2,000 for the 1,700-strong staff if at least 70 percent of them get jabbed.

Was there a sudden uptick in injections?

Lam thinks businesses should give jab incentives

But is it really up the responsibility of businesses to do the job of the government to urge people to get inoculated for the benefit of the entire community?

Apparently the city's leader thinks so.

This morning Lam dismissed the idea of paying cash handouts to residents to get the jab.

"To offer cash or something physical to encourage vaccination shouldn't be done by the government and may even cause the opposite effect," she said.

Lam felt it was better for employers and private organizations to dole out cash or gifts as incentives.

So here we are looking silly with so many vaccines on hand and not enough people willing to roll up their sleeves to do their part, or at least selfishly protect themselves from being serious affected by Covid-19, when people in other countries including Canada, Taiwan and India are desperate for the jab.

At this rate Hong Kong's economy will not improve significantly and more importantly the opportunity to travel is getting further away when people are not getting inoculated.

HSH that owns The Peninsula is giving out cash

It was announced that 40,000 mainlanders who hold two-way permits and 13,000 asylum seekers would be allowed to get the jab later in July. They might as well give them injections now since the vaccination centres have no lines these days...

Vaccine Hesitancy Drags HK Down

About 17 percent of Hongkongers have gotten at least one jab

 

It is shocking to discover less than 30 percent of full time staff at the Hospital Authority have gotten the vaccine for the coronavirus.

The authority's chairman, Henry Fan said on RTHK that around 24,000 staff members had been vaccinated, 70 percent of whom got the BioNTech jab. He said this was in spite of the authority offering half days off and shuttle buses to vaccination centres.

HA admitted less than one-third staff vaccinated

Tony Ko, the authority's chief executive, also said on the same program that while Hong Kong's case numbers are very low, he warned the vaccines had a limited shelf life.

"Of course we know some of the vaccines -- in particular in Hong Kong, the BioNTech -- they've got a limited time when the vaccines are more effective. So I think it is very important that both the public, and of course our colleagues as well, receive the vaccination as soon as possible."

According to government figures, only 17 percent of the city's population have at least one dose of the vaccine. 

One of my younger relatives received his second jab today and is so far feeling well. He managed to persuade his colleagues to get it, after they saw that he wasn't dead yet. Seriously? 

While his colleagues are half joking, getting vaccinated is not to be taken lightly.

Today Hong Kong recorded its first local infection with an unknown source in seven days, while Taiwan is seeing an outbreak of some 180 cases. Singapore's flareup threatens the upcoming travel bubble with Hong Kong set for May 26, while India's situation is out of control and absolutely tragic.

Getting the jab means avoiding tests, quarantine

Isn't that news enough to urge people to get vaccinated?

Unfortunately not.

The argument of getting at least 70 percent of the population immunized to create "herd immunity" is not of interest to them either -- they would rather be the 30 percent not getting the jab, except that they make up over 80 percent of the population.

Excuses abound with hardly any rational reasoning, that the vaccine was developed too quickly, some have serious side effects after getting their shots, or they weren't planning to travel anyway.

People younger than me claim they need to do a health check beforehand is overboard, and it doesn't help that some doctors aren't willing to give definitive advice to their patients to get the jab in case they have an adverse reaction to the jab.

Giving logical explanations doesn't move these vaccine skeptics either, that top infectious disease experts like Yuen Kwok-yung, David Hui Shu-cheong and Ben Cowling have taken the BioNTech jab and recommended it, or that the more people get the vaccine then more restrictions can be lifted, or that getting vaccinated allows them to travel again.

Even the prospect of travel doesn't sway people

The non-vaccinated group is completely unmoved. 

An acquaintance thinks it all boils down to selfishness, that while people were willing to don masks from the beginning of the pandemic, it wasn't to protect the rest of the community, but rather to protect themselves.

Even the argument that more vaccinations will help Hong Kong's economy get better isn't of any interest to them which is strange when people are obsessed about stock and property prices. An even stronger argument of being vaccinated avoids a longer period in the quarantine camp barely moves them to get the jab.

The only good thing is that the number of vaccinations can only go up, though at a much slower rate than we hoped.

Jimmy Lai's Assets Frozen

National security police have frozen Lai's personal assets

 

Around dinner time tonight the Hong Kong government announced the national security police have frozen nearly HK$500 million (US$64.3 million) in personal assets belonging to Apple Daily founder Jimmy Lai Chee-ying, the first use of such powers under the new law.

The frozen assets include all 70 percent of Lai's shares in Next Digital as well as his holdings in three other firms. 

Next Digital shares fell to 19 cents today

Based on the company's market capitalization of HK$490.3 million, Lai's 70 percent stake is worth HK$343 million.

The police issued the letter regarding the freezing of assets to Next Digital which publishes Apple Daily and its auditors of the move, which came at the end of trading day. Next Digital shares closed down 2.11 percent at 19 cents.

"Apple Daily will be published as usual tomorrow. Don't forget to get a copy," the paper's editor-in-chief, Chan Pui-man, wrote on Facebook on Friday.

Meanwhile chief executive of Next Digital, Cheung Kim-hung, reassured staff earlier in the week on Tuesday.

"We won't shut [Apple Daily] down because it is in a dangerous situation. No, definitely not, I can assure you this will not happen."

CEO Cheung says Apple Daily will continue

The latest news comes as earlier in the day Apple Daily Taiwan announced after 18 years it would stop publishing a print version of the paper, citing readers' consumption of news has changed, and continued operating losses due to low advertising revenue.

It seems Lai may have prepared for this moment if there are pledges the paper will continue to operate.

He is currently in jail, sentenced for 14 months for organizing and taking part in two unauthorized assemblies during the anti-government protests in August 2019.

Last December he was charged by the national security police for "colluding with foreign forces to endanger national security", a crime, if convicted can lead to a life sentence. He was indicted on two other charges last month.

One can expect a repeat of last August when lot of people woke up early to get a copy of the Apple Daily. For the average Hongkonger, this is one of the last ways they can support the paper, a proxy for the city's press freedom.

Expect a lot of people to buy the paper tomorrow

If and when Lai is convicted of breaching the national security law, his assets that are currently frozen, can be by law confiscated by the government. 

HK$500 million is no chump change...