Covid-19 Cause Spike in Elderly Suicides

Increased number of seniors contemplating suicide in fifth wave

Now into its third year, coronavirus pandemic has claimed more victims than just those who are infected with the virus -- elderly people who are have committed suicide or are contemplating it.

On Tuesday researchers at the University of Hong Kong said their suicide warning index recently surged to an unprecedented "crisis level", with elderly people more at risk of taking their own lives during this fifth wave of the pandemic.

The Suicide Early Warning System had a daily estimate of suicides at 1.69 on February 23, and as the number of Covid-19 infections rose to the tens of thousands, the estimate hit 4.05 on March 21. The average figure over the past year was 1.8.

Yip says elderly suicides is at "crisis level"

The March 21 figure is the highest since the warning system was created in 2020, though the daily estimate has since dropped.

Professor Paul Yip Siu-fai from HKU's Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention said social distancing measures have affected people's mental health and elderly people are particularly vulnerable.

He said eight people aged 65 and older committed suicide in the past seven days and it's estimated that 400 seniors will take their lives this year -- double the number last year.

"Social distancing [measures] have introduced not only physical distancing but also emotional disconnectedness. I think it's this emotional disconnectedness that leads to the sense of isolation, a sense of being abandoned by family members or by community. It has an adverse impact on our mental health," he told an online press conference.

"For the elderly people, if they live by themselves, I think the community can proactively engage with them," Yip added.

The group Suicide Prevention Services reported handling 220,000 calls in January and February, an average of nine a day from seniors.

Suicide Prevention Services worries about elderly

It said elderly people are worried about getting infected with Covid-19 and so they are scared of meeting relatives during the pandemic. Their sense of crisis also becomes even more heightened if they or a family member contracted the virus, which could then trigger suicide, the group warned.

There were news reports over a week ago about an elderly couple who killed themselves after finding out they tested positive for Covid-19 and didn't want to be a burden on their family.

Justin Leung, a program manager with the service, added most elderly people are not tech savvy either, making it difficult for them to find out the latest information about the pandemic.

"It's very complicated for the elderly. It's difficult for them to learn in a short period of time," he said. 

Yip called on the government to relax social-distancing measures and reopen leisure facilities as soon as possible to help people improve their mental well-being.

He also said the media should do its part by reporting on more positive stories to help reduce people's anxiety.

Many elderly are terrified to meet relatives

Everyone's anxiety levels have spiked during the pandemic, and even more so during this current fifth wave when the number of cases was over the 50,000 mark.

Thankfully they have dropped in the past week and hopefully in the next few weeks will be below 1,000.

It doesn't help when the government is more focused on fighting the virus than being concerned about its residents' well-being.

Hopefully the authorities will heed this study's warnings. While the 2003 SARS epidemic was relatively short lasting only a few months, it was a terrifying time for Hongkongers. Now 19 years later, people need to be able to see the light at the end of the tunnel to hang on and survive, mentally and physically.

Covid Infections Projected Several Times Actual Reporting

A man selling rapid antigen tests on the street

In an online virtual gathering with colleagues this afternoon because we are all working from home, many said they knew people who had had Covid-19 and had not reported it to the government because the website was not up and running yet, or they had room in their homes where they could isolate.

One colleague has recovered after 10 days of isolation in her bedroom that she shares with her family. She is triple jabbed, though she had a sore throat and dry cough. Her nine-year-old daughter had a fever that lasted two days or so and tested negative on a rapid antigen test two days before my colleague did.

Newly-built isolation units for Covid-19 patients

Interestingly her husband who has not had his booster, tested negative as did the rest of the family.

Nevertheless, just anecdotally it shows that people know of friends and family who have been infected and so even though the number of cases is in the 20,000 mark (today it is 27,761, 228 deaths), the number could actually be several times that. 

Those reporting they are positive from RAT to the government are those who have no space at home to isolate at all, or need the official documentation to get sick leave from work.

Some colleagues think the number is actually five times more than what is reported, and researchers at the University of Hong Kong's faculty of medicine estimate there could be 3.6 million residents infected at some point and 4.5 million will catch it during the fifth wave; they predict the death toll could be 5,102, and current it is at 4,355.

The researchers project a significant drop in the number of daily cases towards the end of March, and the daily caseload to fall below 1,000 by the end of April, and below 100 by mid-May.

However, they have noticed an uptick in the number of people using public transport to get around from monitoring Octopus usage during this past weekend and believe this could affect their projections.

Medical personnel at AsiaWorld-Expo

"This could well portend a fundamental change in transmission dynamics that would render our assumptions inaccurate, thus underestimating the forward burden of the fifth wave," they said.

Meanwhile a day earlier, Kwok Kin-on, an associate professor at Chinese University's School of Public Health estimated about 5 million residents would be infected by June, and projected an even higher death toll at 7,000.

He predicted the number of infections would not subside into the four digits until late May, and would return to the 100 mark about a month later.

What is the government's response to the over 20,000 cases a day?

To close down beaches.

Beaches will be closed yet again due to Covid

Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor could make the announcement as early as tomorrow (Wednesday) even though she had said earlier that social-distancing measures were already tough enough.

"Too many people have gone to the beach unmasked and pictures have also shown a lot of them had ignored the ban on gatherings of more than two people," a source said.

How many people have actually gone to the beach?

Considering most Hongkongers like to stay away from the sun it couldn't have been that many... but alas now residents are being further punished and not allowed to go to the beach... what little pleasures there are left... 

Is it any wonder people are fleeing the city?

Simple Goodbyes During Covid

Lovely portrait of Robin at the funeral

Today I said goodbye to a friend who died a few weeks ago from cancer. Robin Piers Lynam was 63.

I didn't know him that well, but more on a professional basis, and he was such a gentleman in an English sort of way. He was so knowledgeable on so many different subjects, from food to wine, music both classical and jazz, and was a musician too who played the guitar.

He was a Renaissance man who refused to get a mobile phone until he was diagnosed with cancer over two years ago and had to keep in touch with the medical clinics for his treatments.

Robin passed away at age 63 of cancer

The last time I saw him was about half a year ago at a lunch in Somm at the Landmark Mandarin Oriental, and I was so genuinely happy to see him as I knew he was battling cancer at the time and glad to see he looked well and had a decent appetite.

We said our goodbyes at the MTR station after, and I expressed hope to see him again soon.

That did not happen until today.

Due to Covid restrictions, 40 people were invited to come to the crematorium at Cape Collinson above Chai Wan, but only about 15 people showed up. We had a socially-distanced shuttle ride from Central that took less than 20 minutes.

When we arrived, his partner tearfully hugged everyone, and although she barely knew me she held me tightly.

Before entering the bare bones funeral hall, we scanned our Leave Home Safe app, where there were no flowers, just a plain room with seats on both sides, and on the left a rolling conveyor belt with a curtain to the crematorium.

Someone placed a portrait of Robin on the table and then the mini service began with his partner thanking us for coming, how they had 25 years together and was so grateful for every moment they were with each other.

She then invited each of us to say our goodbyes, which most people did briefly, including myself. His partner then said a few more words and played a lovely song in which she cried loudly throughout.

Cape Collinson is a no-frills crematorium

Periodically someone behind the curtain dressed in full protective equipment including goggles peered through to see if we were done yet.

When the folksy song ended, she pressed a green button and the coffin moved forward behind the curtain. Robin's partner will take his ashes back to the UK, as he and his older brother have predeceased his mother.

And that was it. We checked out of our Leave Home Safe apps and it was 16 minutes.

That's what a no-frills funeral is like these days.

Robin would probably be surprised to see how sparse the room looked, but maybe would think it was practical not to have flowers and having people fuss over him.

It was just so sad to see hardly any ceremony and not being allowed to have anything too elaborate. With so many deaths these days from Covid, the funeral parlours and crematoriums are very busy, though we did not see the next party come in.

I really enjoyed working with Robin -- he was so helpful whenever I had to publish say a supplement on wine or a wine magazine. He would ask me which wineries to include and then in a few weeks came out with practically flawless stories featuring the vineyards I had asked him to write about.

He was really a lifesaver.

Lam finally wearing a mask to address the public

Will miss his acerbic wit, knowledge on so many subjects and overall just a gentle soul to be around.

Hope you are resting peacefully on the other side.

On the Covid-19 front, today Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor made her first public appearance since February 22 to now give daily updates on the pandemic situation in Hong Kong. And for the first time she appeared speaking with a mask on!

So much for wanting to show people how she really feels, when as the leader of Hong Kong she should set an example and wear a mask indoors, as stipulated by pandemic regulations.

Today the city logged 58,750 cases (25,991 from PCR tests, 32,766 from RAT tests). The latter are considered confirmed after all the relevant information is inputted into the website and the government issues the applicant an isolation order. Many were backlogged cases from since February 26 to now.

The number of deaths was 195, of which 145 were not vaccinated, with ages ranging from 41 to 105. The youngest person was a domestic helper who had fainted and was found by her employer. At the hospital the helper was found to be infected after a RAT test, but it is not clear if the helper died of Covid as she was found to have a brain hemorrhage. Another female aged 45 had cancer. 

The alarming message

Infectious disease expert Dr Gabriel Leung has said on Twitter that according to the University of Hong Kong modelling, the fifth wave should have peaked on March 4 with over 1.8 million people infected.

When asked to comment on this, Dr Albert Au Ka-wing of the Centre for Health Protection said it was still a bit too early to know if the fifth wave had peaked yet, and would probably find out in another week or so as case numbers are still high.

In the meantime around dinner time everyone in Hong Kong received a fright on their phones with alarms going off because the government decided to send a very important text message letting everyone know that Queen Elizabeth Hospital is now only for Covid patients.

It was already announced yesterday.

Did they really need to do that? Everyone immediately complained on Twitter.

For some reason my phone went off an hour later... since then people have all changed our settings to not receive such alarms anymore...

Covid Could Harm Your Penis and Other Horrible News

A study of Covid-infected hamsters yielded interesting results

There might be another way to entice people -- particularly men -- to get vaccinated.

If they don't and catch Covid-19, their sperm count could drop.

That's according to research from the University of Hong Kong, that says the coronavirus could damage testicles, lower sex drive, and affect fertility in men.

The findings were released on Sunday by ProfessorYuen Kwok-yung and his HKU team, based on a study on testicular and hormonal changes in hamsters infected with the virus.

Yuen led the study by HKU researchers

The fact that Yuen even has time to conduct this study while being busy inspecting the airflow and ventilation of buildings whenever there's an infection is quite impressive... and how did they even come up with this hypothesis?!

Nevertheless, it was found that infected hamsters suffered a sharp drop in sperm count and serum testosterone four to seven days after infection.

The rodents also developed chronic testicular atrophy, resulting in a decrease in the size and weight of the testicles. Again aren't those quite small to start with?!

Both Omicron and Delta variants caused similar effects.

At least this is a bit of light-hearted news after days of depressing news and more to come.

Today 6,067 infected cases were recorded, only 12 of which were imported. The Centre for Health Protection has now given up on releasing preliminary positive cases as they did not reflect the true number, but also because they are completely overwhelmed.

Hong Kong officials are throwing their weight behind battling "the enemy", as Chief Secretary John Lee Ka-chiu says the city is in "full-on war mode" he wrote in his blog.

Lee says Hong Kong is in "full-on war mode"

"Now is the most critical time during the two years of anti-pandemic efforts. The SAR government is in a full-on war mode and will follow the important instruction of President Xi Jinping to stabilise the epidemic as an overriding priority, mobilising all forces and resources, taking all necessary steps to protect Hong Kong people's lives and health and ensure Hong Kong's social stability."

So it is under the guise of the pandemic that Hong Kong will follow instructions from Beijing because it is very evident that Hong Kong people cannot govern Hong Kong.

Meanwhile his colleague Secretary for Food and Health Sophia Chan Siu-chee warned in a radio program that social-distancing measures would be further tightened, but didn't go into details.

What does this mean? People can't even be in groups of two?

Chan says more restrictions to come

It seems the government is intent on making us the most miserable people on earth. We can't eat in a restaurant after 6pm, can't get haircuts or exercise in a gym, watch a movie, attend a concert, go swimming, go to a church/synagogue/mosque service, borrow a book from the library, and attend a wedding or funeral.

And Chan says it's going to get worse?

It's going to be a long, long spring.

More Restrictions Suggested to Covid-19 Weary Residents

Endless numbers of people waiting to get tested for Covid-19

Hong Kong's number of Covid-19 cases dipped just slightly at 986, with all except one being local infections. The number is not necessarily a true indication of the situation as the city's testing capacity is limited.

However, this evening word came down that Beijing will be sending medical experts to Shenzhen to discuss the best way to battle the fifth wave, which could entail sending thousands of medical personnel and millions of test kits, while also ensuring food supplies, particularly vegetables will come to Hong Kong. 

Beijing will offer medical help to Hong Kong

It makes the city sound like a developing country, completely helpless in its food security and medical capabilities. It's actually quite embarrassing.

There continue to be shocking scenes in Central, Wan Chai, and Tung Chung, the endless numbers of people waiting hours to be tested.

A temporary testing lab at Ma On Shan sports centre will be resurrected to ramp up testing from 100,000 a day to three times that.

Meanwhile experts from the University of Hong Kong are predicting that if the latest social-distancing measures continue, the city could see up to 28,000 cases by next month and 1,000 Covid-19-related deaths.

Professor Gabriel Leung, dean of HKU's faculty of medicine, is even suggesting the city be put under lockdown for two to three months to squash the virus. 

Leung is suggesting a city-wide lockdown

So when this was reported, residents here got into a frenzy worried about the possibility of that happening. 

When Leung was asked to clarify what he meant by lockdown he said: "What lockdown means is that we should implement more stringent measures... It could be achieved through administrative or legislative means... It could also be something voluntary. The most important thing is to curb transmission."

We get that, but how is that possible in a city of 7.5 million people?

He also suggested that residents be given rapid antigen tests and test themselves every other day before leaving their homes, and boost the vaccination rate not only in the elderly but children as well.

In addition Leung said having just one jab of the vaccine wasn't enough.

"Even with two jabs, it's very difficult to stop the spread of infection of Omicron. What it does do, however, is it brings down your bad outcomes and deaths," he said. "It will have a dramatic difference in terms of the number of deaths if you get jabbed early enough before you get infected."

Prolonged isolation will have mental health impact

People are wondering if they need to prepare suitcases for when they need to go into quarantine, or at least some kind of isolation.

If and when Hongkongers get out of the fifth wave, we will all need psychological help us understand what we've all gone through in the past three years.

June 4 Remembrances Wiped Out at HKU

Workers board up the bridge where a slogan is on the pavement

Following the dismantling of the Pillar of Shame just over a month ago, the University of Hong Kong continues to dismantle all remembrances of Tiananmen Square from the campus, as workers blocked off part of a bridge where students paint calligraphic commemorations of the 1989 crackdown every year.

On Swire Bridge the slogan says: "Souls of martyrs shall forever linger despite the brutal massacre; Spark of democracy shall forever glow for the demise of evils".

Students used to repaint the characters annually

But today nine construction workers wearing helmets and masks (to make them less identifiable) erected a metal partition in the morning to cordon off the part of the pavement on Swire Bridge where the commemorative messages were written.

The bridge is located off its namesake Swire Hall, a student dormitory.

Every year up until last June 11, 2021, representatives from HKU's student union have painted messages on the bridge's pavement to mark the anniversary of June 4, 1989.

In response to media inquiries about blocking off the bridge, a university spokesman said HKU "regularly conducts maintenance works at various locations and facilities", including the bridge.

Not like this before...

The slogan was a reminder of June 4, 1989

Jason Wong Ching-hin, an elected council representative for undergraduates at HKU, said the move was regrettable, saying that students and teachers have been repainting the pavement for the past 20 years to remind people about the history.

"The move by the university is incompatible with its role to uphold freedom of speech," he said, adding that he feared the university might no longer allow discussions on the crackdown and other sensitive topics in the future.

Along with repainting the pavement, students would annually clean the Pillar of Shame sculpture. 

As university officials in Hong Kong drag the institutions closer to Beijing's preferences, the further they move from freedoms of speech, expression, information and press. 

What would Sun say about HK?

Every time I walk past Dr Sun Yat Sen Memorial Park and see his statue in the middle of the grassy area, I wonder what he would think of Hong Kong now.

In 1887 he had studied at the Hong Kong College of Medicine for Chinese -- the forerunner of HKU -- and wondered what he would think about his alma mater's latest actions...

Fifth Wave Persists in Kwai Chung

100 local Covid-19 cases were logged in Hong Kong today

It is disheartening to see another triple-digit count of Covid-19 infections in Hong Kong today, 100 new cases related to the Kwai Chung housing estate. So far 334 cases are related to 12 of the 16 housing blocks here. 

Residents there are concerned that some may have become infected just from waiting in line to get tested or being in the elevators, let alone all the rubbish left strewn around.

It seems the situation there is also mishandled, or is the system overwhelmed and not enough staff?

Testing continues in Kwai Chung housing estate

A resident tested preliminary positive on Tuesday morning and she and her infected youngest son still hadn't been sent to the hospital by 3pm on Wednesday -- 35 hours after receiving an SMS message with the results.

The two had already developed symptoms like coughing and a fever, she could only take painkillers to relieve her symptoms, while her husband and two older sons were not infected. She and her youngest son are isolating in a bedroom, but they still have to share the bathroom with the rest of the family, so she was worried about transmitting the virus to them.

"Officials gave me multiple calls at 5pm [on Tuesday] and told me I will be sent to hospital and my husband and sons to Penny's Bay... But we still do not know when we can leave our home," she said. "They said they were arranging it for us, and said it was manpower issues."

There were concerns of poor waste management

Not a good excuse when Omicron is so contagious... and Hong Kong is insistent on its "zero-Covid" policy.

Meanwhile there are concerns that China may not open the border with Hong Kong until 2024 which has shocked a lot of people. 

However, it has been proven that Sinovac vaccines only have a 51 percent efficacy in preventing symptomatic disease, and its effectiveness wanes after six months. Meanwhile a University of Hong Kong study has found Pfizer BioNTech has nearly 10 times the average level of antibodies compared to Sinovac, 

But China doesn't want to buy proven mRNA vaccines from overseas and is developing its own and then will vaccinate its population -- again before even considering lifting its border restrictions.

By 2024 what will Hong Kong be like? Can it even financially survive to that point without any foreign tourists and businesspeople and investment coming in?

Earlier we were hearing November 2022, but another two years of this will be too much for many people to bear.

China is developing its own mRNA vaccines

A friend has poured HK$13 million of his own money into a bar that he will open this Friday during social-distancing restrictions. He has renovated a space complete with a stage, special lighting and of course a good sound system.

But he can only open it till 6pm.

How is he ever going to make back his HK$13 million?

Omicron and Delta Variants Found in HK

Yuen holds up the floor plan of the hotel with two infections

The Centre for Health Protection is warning the possibility that not only the Omicron virus is in Hong Kong, but so is the more serious Delta variant.

A woman who worked in a pet shop in Causeway Bay and had hot pot with friends in Yau Ma Tei, was tested for the virus and had the Delta strain. 

Chuang Shuk-kwan of the CHP says they are still trying to find the source of the virus.

Chuang (left) warns of Delta variant in HK

"There may be Delta strain circulating. So it is not only restricted to the Omicron cases we detected recently. So of course we're very worried whether there are other sources of infections that have not been detected. As for the source of [her] infection, we're still investigating," she said.

Today there are 11 recorded infections, eight of which are imported.

Another interesting case involves a woman from Pakistan who completed her hotel quarantine and tested negative throughout the stay, but five days later tested positive for the virus. She may have caught it from another hotel occupant in an adjacent room. Needless to say everybody who did quarantine in the same area of that floor will have to go to a quarantine camp for another 14 days...

University of Hong Kong microbiologist Yuen Kwok-yung inspected the Silka Seaview Hotel in Yau Ma Tei and believes the virus may have spread through the corridors when the doors of the guest rooms were opened.

"Tests on the spot showed it was possible the air could go from [one room to the other] through the doors," he said. "There are three air purifiers in the corridors, but there is no air purifier in the rooms. But we were told that they would be installed from [Monday].

"The air purifiers in the corridors were set to auto mode. That is, when the air is detected cleansed, the purifiers will go to sleep or not run at full power. We have advised the hotel management against running the air purifiers in auto mode."

Got the booster today, so far so good

Meanwhile a bit of good news: I got my booster shot today in Sai Wan Ho, the only location on Hong Kong island at the moment. It was fast and painless, though I'm dreading the possible side effects that may happen in the next few hours.

Another thing to cheer about: a young woman I know professionally finally got married to her long-time boyfriend today. So wonderful to watch the video of their nuptials on Facebook! 

When they were allowed to kiss, they did a quick peck on the lips, but after cajoling from witnesses, they did a longer smooth to much applause. The event too out the monotony -- albeit temporarily -- from being reminded of being stuck in Hong Kong for so long...

More Tiananmen Memorials Disappear

The Goddess of Democracy is no longer at this spot at CUHK

Following the dismantling of the Pillar of Shame at the University of Hong Kong, two other tertiary institutions also took down memorials of Tiananmen late last night.

The Chinese University of Hong Kong took down a statue which is a replica of the Goddess of Democracy, which has stood on the campus since 2010, while Lingnan University took down a wall relief memorialising the crackdown.

Students held a vigil for the statue this afternoon

Both artworks were done by sculptor Chen Weiming, a Chinese-born New Zealand citizen who now lives in the United States.

In a statement, CUHK noted it had never approved a 2010 student union request to place the statue on campus and that its reasoning for the decision was a matter of public record.

"Following an internal assessment... CUHK has removed the statue," the statement said. "The university never authorised the display of the statue on its campus, and no organisation has claimed responsibility for its maintenance and management."

So if the university never approved the statue to be on campus in 2010, why did it take 11 years to remove it? Weak argument.

It added the two groups responsible for placing the statue on campus -- the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, and its own student union -- had been disbanded.

Staff clean the spot where the statue stood

The alliance was forced to shut down, while CUHK cut ties with the student union in February and eight months later it disbanded. As if this reinforces its reasoning to remove the statue.

One fourth year student surnamed Woo was shocked to find the statue was gone.

"It is even more shocking that the government is afraid of a statue ... under these uncertain times, nothing is guaranteed and you never know when the last politically sensitive items will be removed," Woo said. 

CUHK students later held a vigil for the Goddess of Democracy on Friday afternoon, laying white flowers on printed pictures of the statue in the area where it stood. Others held drawings of the statue that said: "Missing. Have you seen her?" The word "mourn" was also spelled out with candles. 

Meanwhile, a spokesman for Lingnan University said its decision followed a recent review of items on campus that could pose legal or safety threats.

A relief about Tiananmen by Chen is now gone

"In the best interests of the university, the items in question have been cleared, or removed and stored appropriately," the spokesman said.

Aside from the relief, the university also painted over a wall painting of the Goddess of Democracy near the student union office with grey paint on Friday morning. The surrounding area was cordoned off between 7am and 9am, according to a students' representative.

Eric Tong Kin-lok, chairman of the ad hoc administrative committee of Lingnan University's student union, said the relief was dismantled with a circular saw into four pieces before being moved into a storage room.

"We strongly condemn the university's attempt to remove history," he said. "The university did not consult us before and did not even notify us."

Some students remarked that the Goddess of Democracy was a landmark for them to meet up. "We would say meet at the Goddess of Democracy, not the MTR station," one said, 

This wall painting was painted over in grey paint

Tong added that university security guards shone flashlights at students who were attempting to film the removal process, and also noted down their student ID details.

In 2010, Chen gave both the statue and the relief to the now-defunct alliance after being barred from entering Hong Kong, just two days before the candlelight vigil.

The Goddess of Democracy was subsequently displayed in Victoria Park that year before it was transported to the CUHK campus. Meanwhile the relief was displayed in several universities before it was finally placed in Lingnan University with permission of the administration. 

What's next? I'm too afraid to ask and find out.

We keep mourning what we have lost, and this year, it was a lot.

HKU Removes the Pillar of Shame

Workers move a piece of the sculpture overnight on Thursday

Two months after heads of the University of Hong Kong ordered the Tiananmen-themed sculpture Pillar of Shame removed, late last night it was taken apart in pieces which were wrapped up and then moved to HKU's Kadoorie Centre in Yuen Long, 30km away.

The surreptitious incident happened after 10pm when yellow plastic barricades were placed around the statue by Danish artist Jens Galschiot and workers in yellow hard hats began dismantling it around 3am, and bundled the pieces into a container truck which left the campus at 6.50am.

The Pillar of Shame originally looked like this

The HKU Council confirmed the removal of the eight-metre tall sculpture in a statement after the deed was done, saying the decision to take down the Pillar of Shame was made in light of "external legal advice and risk assessment" after a meeting on Wednesday.

"Latest legal advice given to the university cautioned that the continued display of the statue would pose legal risks... based on the Crimes Ordinance enacted under the Hong Kong colonial government," the statement said.

So it's not national security law related? Or any other law not related to NSL?

The council also said it was "very concerned about the potential safety issues resulting from the fragile statue" and noted that no official approval had ever been granted for its display. It had stood on campus since June 1997.

While the statement didn't give specifics on the potential legal risks, Section 10 of the Crimes Ordinance deals with acts with a seditious intent, including publications and displays of any seditious material, deemed a crime punishable by up to two years in prison and a HK$5,000 (US$641) fine for a first offence.

The artist is threatening compensation for damage

At Wednesday's council meeting, a large majority of the members -- most of whom are external stakeholders -- voted for the statue's removal.

It seems the council was prepared to remove the statue immediately after the meeting without asking other stakeholders on campus. This drew a lot of criticism not only the act of removing the sculpture, but also how it was done.

Legal scholar Eric Cheung Tat-ming said he could not see the rationale for citing Section 10 of the Crimes Ordinance to remove the pillar.

"The section has existed for a very long time and the statue was erected at HKU for years. Why did they not think the display had a [seditious] intention in the past, while suddenly they think it will violate the law?" Cheung said.

Indeed. We are all wondering the same thing.

And many critics have also pointed out for the university to take it apart in the middle of the night days before Christmas shows how cowardly the institution is in dealing with the issue. 

Interestingly the statue's removal comes two days before council chairman Arthur Li Kwok-cheung ends his term, and is days after the recent Legislative Council election to ensure "only patriots" hold power.

The statue was moved to Yuen Long

Li claimed on Sunday that it was still unclear who was the rightful owner of the sculpture, but artist Galschiot said Thursday it was his and accused the university of "destroying" the art work, and had ignored his offer to travel to Hong Kong to take it away.

"[HKU] will not talk to me," he said in a statement. "Countries around the world have offered to receive the Pillar of Shame, and the Danish foreign minister has offered his help -- but there has been no response from [HKU] or other responsible authorities."

He added: "It is my private property and the sculpture belongs to me personally... I will claim compensation for any damage to the sculpture. It is a disgrace and an abuse and shows that Hong Kong has become a brutal place without laws and regulations such as protecting the population, the arts and private property.

"And it's even more grotesque that they use the Western holiday Christmas to carry out the destruction of the artwork."

The aftermath of the removal is empty space

What is left is the yellow plastic hoarding and white plastic sheets over the area where the pillar was. Around the hoarding are pots of poinsettias as if to give the space a festive air.

The university has taken a hard line on the statue, which sparks questions around the future of freedom of speech and expression, as well as academic freedom on campus. More importantly it shows HKU complicit in following the government's lead in removing any reminders of what happened on June 4, 1989.

Will students there wish to continue studying at HKU following this incident? How do the alumnae feel?And what does this mean in terms of remembering Tiananmen? Will students and staff still be able to commemorate it in some way? Can the topic still be taught in class?

While administrators may think they are doing the right thing, they are destroying the foundations of the university, and Hong Kong too.

Chinese Expert says Covid Already Adapted to Humans

Guan Yi warned Covid-19 would be 10 times worse than Sars

China has one voice of reason in the Covid-19 pandemic -- but his expert opinion goes against President Xi Jinping's zero tolerance goal.

That's because scientist Guan Yi, whose work helped averted a second Sars outbreak in 2004, says zero-Covid will not succeed because the virus has already adapted to humans and cannot be fully eliminated.

He said during an interview with Phoenix TV that China should instead focus on vaccines and test the population's immunity level after vaccination to determine which jabs to administer. Guan is the director of the State Key Laboratory of Emerging Infectious Diseases at Shantou University in southern China, which runs a lab in partnership with the University of Hong Kong.

He says the virus has already adapted to humans

Almost 80 percent of China's population has been vaccinated and they have already begun administering booster shots and inoculating children.

However, there have been sporadic outbreaks that have spread to at least 20 provinces and regions. On Monday there were 43 reported new local symptomatic cases as well as 19 imported and 74 asymptomatic infections after days of mass testing and quarantine in multiple areas.

"Local governments are adopting zero tolerance to these scattered cases," Guan said. "But if that remains the case, I think our economy will collapse... I think there is no chance if we set a goal to eliminate all cases.

"Just like influenza, this virus already has a foothold in mankind and it will stay with us for the long term -- it is in fact, whether we like it or not. This virus has already fully adapted itself in humans.

"We should not declare victory over this virus too early, or we would be underestimating its impact on mankind."

Vaccines should be tested for antibodies

Guan explained the Sars outbreak was stopped in 2003 because it had not yet fully adapted to humans. He played a key role in identifying civet cats as they intermediate host of Sars. In January 2020 he told news website Caixin the then newly emergent coronavirus would be 10 times worse than Sars.

China should have the courage to find out its population's antibody level after vaccination, instead of devoting so much of its resources to testing to identify positive cases, he said.

"What is the level of [neutralising] antibodies induced by vaccines and how long can it last?" Guan said. "Only by [establishing that] can you determine the effectiveness of a vaccine. We also have to find out how long immunity can last after boosters, otherwise it could be possible that the antibodies wane before the winter finishes because the drop in antibodies may outpace the speed vaccines are distributed."

In Hong Kong it has been determined through antibody testing that people injected with Chinese-made Sinovac hardly have any or do not have any antibodies to fight Covid-19, let alone the variants. 

A few months ago Ip got Pfizer/BioNTech booster

Lawmaker Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee was one of those tested to have found to have no antibodies and immediately got a Pfizer/BioNTech booster.

Guan says vaccine makers have a responsibility to update the public about their vaccines' effectiveness against different variants. 

"If a vaccine is not effective, we should remove it [from the vaccine program]. If we don't have sufficient understanding... we don't have the [chance] to make improvements, especially when vested interests are involved," he said, in a veiled reference to pharmaceutical companies.

His reasoning is sound, and hints that China will have to live with Covid-19, but will Xi? Will the President take Guan's expert opinion into consideration, or force him to submit to his zero-Covid strategy?

We will be watching.

Hongkongers React to Mandatory Tracing App

People using the app on their smartphones at govt buildings

As expected, the first day of making the Leave Home Safe app mandatory in many government buildings including wet markets, libraries, swimming pools did not go as smoothly as expected.

Even a man who had fallen, bloodied his head and rushed to emergency, had to use the app in order to enter the hospital.

And in a show of force, five people who work at Immigration Tower in Wan Chai were arrested for using a fake app. Two were immigration officers, one a member of staff at the Audit Commission and two contractors.

An injured man had to use app to go to hospital

And these people are working for the government...

Meanwhile for ordinary folk, this morning there were lots of people in front of the entrance of the Pei Ho Street Market in Sham Shui Po as many elderly people sought the help of others in installing or using the contact-tracing app.

One shopper, surnamed Wong, resorted to buying a new smartphone to use the app.

"It is too troublesome to fill in a form every time you enter a venue. I had no choice but to buy a new phone," said the 60-year-old.

The media also discovered there weren't enough security guards at all the wet market entrances to enforce use of the app so many snuck in without scanning the QR code.

At Sha Tin Public Library, people moaned about using the app.

"It's convenient for some of us, but not convenient for elderly people who don't have a smartphone... To be honest, many jobless people don't have a phone. What can they do?" asked a man surnamed Ng.

A woman who gave her name as Jenny said she had planned to go to the library but was not willing to use the app to go in.

"Since they require me to scan the QR code, I decided not to enter," she said.

A housewife surnamed Chan said she had been turned away from the Lok Fu Post Office because she didn't have a smartphone.

"It's disruptive. I don't understand why they have to do this. I just want to send some mail. It's unfair to those of us who don't have the app."

There is a big market for second-hand phones

It is evident there is a lot of mistrust of the government and why it is so anxious for residents to use the app.

If that wasn't enough, pro-establishment politicians, in a bid to show their patriotism, have suggested the government enforce using the app in other places too. Lawmaker Michael Tien Puk-sun believes diners of B-type restaurants (four to a table and open until 10pm) will be forced to use the app by mid-November. 

And the University of Hong Kong's health expert Dr Ho Pak-leung, expects supermarkets and shopping malls will adopt the Leave Home Safe app as well. Currently the QR code is at the entrances but no one scans it.

If that wasn't enough, pro-Beijing newspaper Wen Wei Po's editorial said the government should proactively stop people from buying a spare phone specifically for the Leave Home Safe app as a passive tactic against the authorities.

But that only fueled the market for second-hand or cheap smartphones today. People flocked to second-hand electronic stores in places like Mongkok and Sham Shui Po to snap up phones that cost HK$800 (US$102). Most of the buyers were elderly people, according to salesmen.

Tien suggests using app in type B restaurants

"I installed [the app] for the elderly people if they didn't know how to... Some people really don't know how to use a smartphone, just like the customer I served just now. She has never used a smartphone," a seller surnamed Chan said.

This exact scenario was played out back in February when the government pushed residents to use the Leave Home Safe app. Lots of people rushed out to buy cheap smartphones just to use the app. And now it's happening again as it is becoming mandatory in so many places.

They are all buying a second phone for the same reason -- distrust of the government and a belief that the authorities will use the app to scan people's phones to extract personal data.

It's amusing how far each side will go -- the residents versus the government -- in trying to be one step ahead.

But for sure the government will keep pressing people to scan the app wherever they go, again in a bid to make Beijing happy. Because our fearless leader has one goal -- to open the border -- and she will do whatever it takes to get there.