Remembering Sid Tan

Tan was a community activist passionate about the head tax

The first story I ever did for CBC Radio in 2003 was about the head tax that Chinese migrants had to pay to enter Canada in the 1800s. 

Only the Chinese were forced to pay this discriminatory tax that was CAD$500 per person, which was a fortune at the time and took years to pay back.

There was a callout looking for a Cantonese speaker to conduct interviews and I answered it.

Quon (right) paid the head tax

It was then that I found out I was to interview Charlie Quon, one of the last surviving head tax payers and the growing campaign to demand the federal government address this shameful period in history and compensate the victims and their families.

I also interviewed Gim Wong, the son of a head tax payer. He was well into his 70s but still fit into his military uniform. He talked for over an hour about how the head tax affected his family. I found out later he died in 2013.

Spearheading the movement called Head Tax Families Society of Canada was Sid Chow Tan, a rotund fellow, his hair desperate for a haircut and had a scraggly moustache and goatee. 

What I remember most was how passionate he was about the cause, insistent that head tax payers had to be compensated.

Redress finally came in 2006 when then Prime Minister Stephen Harper apologised and compensated CAD$20,000 to each surviving head tax payer. 

He also had an interest because he was a "paper son" -- a "son" of a Chinese man who was already living in Canada. Tan was born in then Canton, now Guangzhou, China and then came to Battleford, Saskatchewan.

Wong in his uniform

It was only when he was a teenager that he discovered he was a paper son and led to his mission in life.

The news came out on Tuesday that Tan had died the day before on September 26. Tan was 73 years old.

He kept in daily contact with his son Jordan in Victoria. When Jordan didn't hear from Sid, he rushed over to Vancouver and found him in his apartment. 

I found out later Tan was also passionate about many other causes like environmental activism with the Sierra Club of BC, mentoring community media producers and running for city council in 2014.

Many in the community and media circles are mourning his loss. Though I never met him again, I am thankful to him to having me tell the head tax story and be a part of the journey to right a wrong.

Ronson Chan Flies to Oxford, Hui Sentenced in Absentia

Chan is chairman of the largest journalist association in HK

It is a relief to know that Hong Kong Journalists Association chairman Ronson Chan is flying out tonight to the UK to attend a six-month fellowship at the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism at Oxford University.

Chan paid a fine related to a traffic charge

Thursday morning Hong Kong time he had to go to court (again) to face a charge of running a red light last year. He was fined HK$2,000.

Outside the court he told reporters he was looking forward to the six-month program as a temporary break from his 18-year career as a journalist in Hong Kong. 

Meanwhile former lawmaker Ted Hui Chi-fung was sentenced in absentia to 3.5 years in jail for jumping bail in cases stemming from his alleged disruptive behaviour in the Legislative Council and for participating in the 2019 protests.

It is the first time a fugitive was sanctioned in absentia for offences allegedly committed in Hong Kong related to the protests.

Hui and his family have settled in Adelaide

The court found Hui guilty of contempt in June for breaching bail conditions. He had given up his passport but then managed to persuade two judges to give him permission to travel on the pretext of attending climate change meetings in Denmark in November 2020.

It was later revealed that Hui enlisted the help of Danish parliamentarians to draft a fake itinerary and invitation to enable him to leave Hong Kong on what was thought to be official business.

Hui's parents, wife and children left the city soon after he did, and they are now settled in Adelaide, Australia.

The judge ruled in June that Hui had consciously abandoned his right to defend himself, pointing to his Facebook posts where he "continued to display his displeasure or dissatisfaction towards the legal system in Hong Kong" and "proclaimed publicly his disdain for the integrity of this court".

Hui was in Denmark in November 2020

Before the ruling today Hui wrote on his Facebook that he would continue to lobby for Hong Kong at an international level no matter what the sentence was.

"The only objective effect of a severe sentence on me is to exacerbate the deterioration of Hong Kong's rule of law, giving the entire world a glimpse on how the Hong Kong court is content with persecuting residents fighting for freedom and democracy in cahoots with tyranny," he said.

HK's Only Carton Recycler's Dead End

Yip says Mil Mill has been given a Dec 31 deadline to leave

The Hong Kong government has very little interest in protecting the environment. The latest news is a drinks carton recycler being kicked out of its space by Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation, a body set up by the government. 

The science park has given Mil Mill till the end of the year to operate and then it has to vacate the 20,000 sq ft plot in Yuen Long. In order to process everything and leave by December 31, Mil Mill's executive director Harold Yip Man-ki says they will have to stop taking in drink cartons in October.

He added the deadline is hardly enough time for the recycler to prepare for its departure.

The plant processes 3 tonnes of waste per day

Mil Mill is the only recycler in Hong Kong that can process drink cartons that are made with layers of polythene and aluminium for water resistance and durability. Recycling these cartons is considered to have lower profit margins compared to other recycling ventures because of the additional work needed to break down the coating.

In 2019, Mil Mill rented the current space in a three-year contract and then last year science park extended the least to the end of 2022.

It was in September that Mil Mill received an email from the landlord to vacate the premises without stating a reason why or any suggestions of renewing the lease.

The city's environmental department offered three alternative sites for Mil Mill: in Cheung Chau, Chai Wan and Stonecutters Island. But Yip rejected these offers, saying the locations were not suitable.

It is hard to understand why the science park is kicking the recycler out since its mandate is to support small and medium-sized enterprises. At the same time the government half-heartedly trying to solve the situation started by another government body. 

Seems strange and awkward.

Mil Mill takes in these drink cartons to recycle

This is happening at a time when Hongkongers feel even more passionate about saving the city's natural environment and are more environmentally conscious. 

If any thing the government should be leasing the land for the pulp mill since the current space is run by a government body. Mil Mill only recycles 3 tonnes of the 67 tonnes of waste produced in Hong Kong everyday. Hong Kong needs several of these recyclers to try to reduce as much garbage as possible.

It is imperative for the government to encourage more companies and individuals to recycle, if not set up its own enterprise to do so. But instead it shifts the responsibility on people who really care about the environment. They know they aren't going to make much money, but they feel strongly about landfills and excessive waste.

The current recycling bins in the city are a joke -- people haphazardly dump things into the wrong bins -- because the government has not educated them properly on how to separate their waste. 

As a result when they migrate abroad, Hongkongers have had complaints from neighbours about them having little understanding of how recycling works and what part we play in all of this. It is embarrassing that they know so little about it and why it's so important to participate and do it properly.

So this demonstrates how the government has given recycling such a low priority, not enforcing nor encouraging it.

Why does the government want its land to become a massive garbage dump? Very hard to understand its lack of interest in the environment and the three Rs: reduce, reuse and recycle.

Canada Removes Covid-19 Border Hurdles

From October 1, no more Covid tests, quarantines or masks

After a lot of grumbling with Covid-19 protocols resulting in many American tourists and day trippers staying away, the Canadian government announced this morning that as of October 1, anyone, vaccinated or not can come into the country, are not mandated to wear masks on planes, trains and cruise ships, no more random arrival testing, or even the need to show proof of vaccination.

ArriveCan app will be optional

There is also no need to quarantine or use the ArriveCAN app. The latter was what American visitors grumbled about, particularly those who came for the day, unwilling to fill out the tedious online form on their phones, while others found their app was malfunctioning and told them to self-isolate when they were not infected.

While people are rejoicing and deleting the ArriveCAN app, epidemiologists fear that they are losing crucial information when people are not tested on arrival. They say it's important to know what variants are coming in and from where. When wastewater is tested, it is already too late -- at least when someone is tested upon entering Canada, health experts can be made aware of the situation and react quickly and effectively.

Interestingly, Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos said Monday's decision was not a sign Canada is out of the pandemic, but that the government's data showed the importation of new variants was no longer having an effect on the evolution of the virus in the country.

Duclos says the pandemic isn't over yet

"If anybody believes the pandemic is over, I invite them to visit a hospital," he said.

"That decision again was driven by the evidence that we have seen over the last few weeks and months, which is that the transmission and cost of transmission of Covid-19 on our healthcare workers, hospitals and including those patients who have seen backlogs in their surgeries and treatments over the last two years and a half... are now almost entirely driven by domestic transmission of Covid-19. That's where we need to invest our energy."

However, while masks will no longer be mandatory, Dr Howard Njoo, Canada's deputy chief health officer, said he still recommends people wear masks on planes and trains.

"The science is clear -- wearing a mask is clearly a means of personal protection that is extremely effective," he said.

Njoo advises people to continue to wear masks

"I hope Canadians will make an enlightened decision about this."

The other issue is that the ArriveCAN app is now optional, but it doesn't mean a border agent will not ask to see it, which makes it confusing at best.

Today some people were still wearing masks on public transport, though the majority chose not to. People seem to have moved on from Covid-19 and don't have the same concerns they had two years ago. Others are still masked up and even wearing gloves. 

It's all relative... and will continue to be.

Almost Half of Secondary School Students are Depressed

Many students participated in the protests, some now in jail

After over two and a half years of the pandemic with schools closed and at-home learning from computer monitors has taken a toll on Hong Kong students' mental health. 

We are not surprised.

NGO Baptist Oi Kwan Social Service conducted a survey among 1,192 secondary school pupils and found 48 percent of them had symptoms of depression, including feeling hopeless about the future, or a loss of fun. Some 36 percent displayed moderate to very severe signs of depression.

Pandemic has taken a toll on students mentally

In addition, 51 percent of those interviewed were found to have symptoms of anxiety, such as being afraid of embarrassing themselves, dry mouth and trembling. These cases needed professional help.

Ivan Fang, a committee member of the NGO said mental stress often stemmed from a dissatisfaction with daily life. The students who did the survey said they were most upset about the Covid-19 pandemic, their education and the state of society.

Sadly this will be a vindication for parents who took the difficult decision of moving their families from Hong Kong to start their lives elsewhere. While they are mostly in primary school, these children who have migrated to places like the UK, Australia, and Canada seem to be happy and not dragged down by the severe pandemic restrictions like in Hong Kong.

In some cases parents may want their children to complete secondary school and then go abroad for university, or others don't have the means to leave the city. But with the pandemic taking such a toll on these young people, they probably can't hang on much longer.

Depressed students feel hopeless about the future 

Perhaps it's no wonder that 70 percent of the respondents also had poor relationships with their parents, making the students' mental health even worse. 

It's also not helpful that the government does not value its next generation and instead throws it in jail.

Hopefully these students will address their symptoms and understand they are not alone. Everyone in Hong Kong is going through not only the trauma of the pandemic, but also that of the 2019 protests and the political repression happening now.

It's a lot to process for a teenager, let alone an adult.

Food Review: Portuguese Club of Vancouver

Clams cooked with slices of chorizo Portuguese style

My friend here who recently traveled to Portugal wanted to recreate the dining experience and found ONE Portuguese restaurant in Vancouver so we checked it out.

It's called Portuguese Club of Vancouver on Commercial Drive and we went there today for lunch.

Inside the decor is rundown, but none of the customers seems to mind -- their attention is totally focused on the giant screens showing the football match. People were glued to the football while drinking beers, wine and eating lunch.

Large buns like those at Fernando's

The staff shortage is acutely felt as we stood there for several minutes before being shown to a table, and then to take our order, but the young waitresses are nice enough.

The menu looked pretty limited with only a few starters and mains. It was mostly seafood, two soups -- no caldo verde! and some sandwiches.

My friend is a picky eater and didn't seem interested in sharing several dishes, so we ended up ordering the same main dish -- sardines with potato and salad (CAD$20), and a plate of clams with chorizo (CAD$24) to share as a starter.

We tried to order the deep-fried cod cakes called bacalhau, but they were sold out! So our waitress suggested clams with chorizo.

As we waited, she gave us giant buns, reminiscent of Fernando's in Macau, but not as good -- they were served cold and had a hard exterior, though they were soft and fluffy inside. 

They were perfect to mop up the delicious savoury sauce in the clams and chorizo, though it was very salty. The clams were plump and a touch briny, cooked in a white wine sauce with the slices of chorizo and some parsley. 

Then our mains arrived and the portion was quite large! Four medium-sized whole sardines cooked on a grill, with a salad made of iceberg lettuce, tomatoes and cucumber doused with Italian dressing, and three chunks of boiled potatoes.

Hearty serving of sardines with potatoes, salad

At first I wondered if I could finish all of this, but plugged along, methodically one side of the sardine, removing the bone in the middle, and then finishing the other side before moving onto the next one. Eating at a steady pace I managed to polish off all the sardines! 

The potatoes were delicious when dipped in the clam and chorizo sauce that we kept at the table. 

We were too full for anything else. My friend had wanted to try the rice pudding for dessert, but she packed up two sardines, salad and the rest of her bun to take home.

The selection of food was hardly impressive, but perhaps you need to be a regular to dine there to have off-menu items prepared. We heard from one waitress that it can be so packed in the restaurant for other football matches. Luckily the patrons left table by table once the footie match was over, though by that point we were almost finished our lunch.

Portuguese Club of Vancouver

1144 Commercial Drive

604 251 2042

Quote of the Day: "One-Way Ticket to Hell"

Health secretary Lo (left) and Lee at press conference yesterday

Soon after Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu announced the end of hotel quarantine -- but three days of self-monitoring, which actually means seven days of rapid antigen tests and four PCR tests, no restaurants or crowded areas -- he faced the media who had some accountability questions.

Cable TV asked: "Have we now chosen to 'live with the virus'? Does this go against the central government? We have also heard 'living with the virus' is a one-way ticket to hell."

Zunzi cartoon with "going to hell together" at back

Lee's response: "We want to reduce the number of infections. Same as the mainland."

But...

"The Hong Kong SAR government has considered all factors," he continued. 

"What if there's a new variant? We don't have a crystal ball. We are confident we can contain the infection numbers at a reasonable rate currently," he said. "We don't want to backtrack."

Well, neither do we.

Though other social-distancing restrictions are still in place, such as conducting RAT tests before entering bars, and for eating in restaurants in groups larger than eight, live performances and dancing still not allowed, and of course use the LeaveHomeSafe app to enter premises.

Still want to come to Hong Kong?

Two Steps Forward, One Step Back

People waiting to hear the scrapping of hotel quarantine

Lots of things happening in Hong Kong -- the latest is that Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu will finally announce the end of mandatory hotel quarantines, and that people self-monitor for three days at home. 

This after over two and a half years of severe quarantines that was at three weeks for the longest time, then down to one week until August 12 when it was changed to three days in hotel quarantine and four at home.

The announcement comes after mounting calls from the business sector who have seen finance types flee to Singapore, retail and hospitality suffering and in many cases shutter, while sports events have been cancelled or postponed because the government is too slow to give the green light.

Three weeks, then one week, then three days...

Interestingly Beijing has given its blessing for Hong Kong to live with Covid-19, perhaps seeing it as a test case? Or conveniently saying it's "one country, two systems"? 

Regardless it's a welcome sign for everyone in Hong Kong, which may prompt many to travel for the first time in years (if they can afford it), or even return?

Another sigh of relief for journalist Ronson Chan, chairperson of the Hong Kong Journalists Association who was granted bail after pleading not guilty to obstructing police officers and an alternative charge of obstructing other person lawfully engaged in public duty.

This development comes a week before he is to go to Oxford University for a six-month fellowship.

Chan was arrested on September 7 while on his way to report on a story. Two officers allegedly asked to see his Hong Kong ID many times and Chan allegedly refused, asking to see their ID, which is allowed by law. The officers claimed he was "uncooperative" and arrested him.

On Thursday Chan was granted bail and no travel restrictions were imposed; he had to pay HK$10,000 bail and report his future UK address and phone number to the police in Hong Kong.

Chan can go to Oxford University next week

Conveniently his trial is set for May 2023, a month after he is expected to return from the UK.

Outside the court Chan observed it was ironic that the Hong Kong government was holding an event for journalists at the Grand Hyatt Hong Kong.

"Today, at this very moment, some journalists are holding a reception celebrating National Day, while the chairperson of the Hong Kong Journalists Association had to appear in court. I guess this reflects the contrast we've seen in the news industry in Hong Kong now," the veteran journalist said.

What is is referring to is Chief Executive Lee instructing journalists how to do their jobs post-NSL.

While saying journalists should report the news in an "objective, fair and impartial manner", they should also remember they are also Hong Kong residents and therefore are "not above the law".

"I hope that all members of the press will be able to distinguish right from wrong and stay away from these camouflaged media organisations and bad apples who undermine press freedom," he said, referring to groups Lee claimed did illegal things in the name of journalism.

Lee warns of "camouflaged media organisations"

Who is he referring to here? Or is the "bad apples" a hint?

Lee urged those in the media to "tell the Hong Kong stories well".

"[The industry should] unite and tell the world the latest developments and correct information of Hong Kong," he said.

But this is what Hong Kong media have been doing all along. They are one of the institutions to make the government accountable, particularly now that the legislature is completely stacked with pro-Beijing lawmakers now.

However, it seems Lee is only interested in having media continue to tow the government line...

Emigration is "Inappropriate"

Huang says there are no stats on HK people moving abroad

In the past year, 113,000 people have left Hong Kong, either because of the never-ending pandemic restrictions, or because of the increasingly repressive environment, but Beijing refuses to acknowledge this drop in the population.

On Tuesday Huang Liuquan, deputy director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office instead said it was a number of factors which caused the decline.

"Hong Kong's population drop is caused by various factors and there is no way to suggest that it is a result of an emigration wave," he said, adding there were no official figures by the Census and Statistics Department showing the number of residents who have moved abroad.

113,000 people left Hong Kong in the past year

He also quoted a local government official who said Hong Kong was an international city and that the population was "highly mobile".

"From the population data announced by the city government and its spokesman's explanation, it is inappropriate to describe it as a wave of emigration that has emerged in Hong Kong," Huang said.

Then how do you explain the population drop to 7.29 million, down 1.6 percent from a year earlier, and the biggest drop since records began in 1961?

In addition, the labour force decreased to 3.75 million in June, the lowest figure in nearly a decade, and a 3.49 percent decline from the same period last year.

Huang can spin it all he wants, but it is clear to not only Hongkongers, but also to the United Kingdom, Australia, the United States and Canada that they have left for a better life. Why else have young families sacrificed good jobs for their children's education, while young graduates and professionals see no future in Hong Kong?

But the more Huang and other Chinese officials say it, they hope their mantra will become fact.

However numbers do not lie... 

Quote of the Day: Archbishop of Canterbury

Archbishop of Canterbury delivering his sermon at the funeral

Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury gave a sermon at Queen Elizabeth II's funeral with some words that should not be forgotten.

He talked about eternal life after death, which is the central message of traditional Christian funerals.

"The pattern for many leaders is to be exalted in life and forgotten after death. The pattern for all who serve God -- famous or obscure, respected or ignored -- is that death is the door to glory."

Wonder what atheist leaders like Xi Jinping thing of that?

In particular Welby said: "People of loving service are rare in any walk of life. Leaders of loving service are still rarer. But in all cases those who serve will be loved and remembered when those who cling to power and privileges are long forgotten."

Who is he referring to there?

Only China Terrified of Covid-19

The Queen made her final journey to Windsor Castle

Queen Elizabeth II was finally laid to rest today, but not before a funeral full of tradition, ceremony and meaning.

Numerous heads of state were invited, and the only person wearing a mask at Westminster Abbey was Chinese Vice-President Wang Qishan -- complete with a Chinese flag on it for branding purposes.

It was also a metaphor for how much China is an outlier compared to the rest of the world when it comes to Covid-19.

Wang (centre) wearing a mask at the funeral

And people within the country are angry after a bus in Guiyang, Guizhou province, carrying people who tested positive, was involved in a motor vehicle accident, killing 27 of those passengers and injuring 20. on Sunday. 

They were being bussed at 2am to a remote quarantine centre 260km from Guiyang, the capital.

It wasn't Covid that killed them, but an accident.

CNN even pointed out a picture of someone in a hazmat suit spraying the crumpled heap that was the bus with disinfectant afterwards.

Guiyang vice-mayor Lin Gang apologised on Sunday night, but did not elaborate on the government's role in the crash, or what the apology was for.

Instead he said the government would "inspect safety risks in transporting people to quarantine" as well as investigate the cause of the incident.

The crushed bus that left 27 passengers dead

But the apology and the suspension of three officials was not enough to quell the anger fomenting online. There were more than 69,000 comments on social media after 24 hours of the crash, and related topics on Weibo were viewed more than 400 million times.

The level of social media engagement is similar to when Dr Li Wenliang, the doctor who warned about Covid-19, died in February 2020.

Meanwhile in Hong Kong, things are starting to look up. Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu suggested the city should have an "orderly" approach to opening up, and there were indications hotel quarantine will end soon, but people arriving will have to self-monitor at home for seven days.

"I'm conscious of the fact that while we need to control the spread of Covid, we also need to ensure that there will be maximum activities... and economic activities for society to carry on," Lee said.

Lee strongly hints hotel quarantine over soon

"I am also conscious of the need to maintain Hong Kong's competitiveness by ensuring that we have good connectivity."

Finally Lee's pleas are being heard by Beijing, after several major sporting events were cancelled. 

The Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon was cancelled for November 20 but now organisers have announced it will be held in February, though no word on how many can participate.

Covid-19 has taken a terrible toll on Hong Kong's economy, with financial secretary Paul Chan Mo Po projecting a potential budget deficit of more than HK$100 billion (US$12.7 billion). All that taxpayer money going down the drain all for "dynamic zero-Covid"...

HK May Scrap Hotel Quarantines Soon

Will more people come to HK if they can monitor at home?

Hong Kong continues to take the tiniest baby steps to open up and is now mulling the idea of scrapping hotel quarantines and having people monitor themselves and avoid crowded places and restaurants for seven days at home.

It is believed Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu was going to announce this during his policy address, but now it seems this plan will be pushed forward to later this month.

Lee's announcement is being moved up

The city logged 7,322 cases and they are going down, including the number of imported infections at 132. There are also suggestions of scrapping travelers having negative PCR tests 48 hours before boarding since they are tested upon arrival.

This would be immensely helpful as it is getting harder to find places around the world to have these PCR tests done, not to mention the exorbitant cost.

The Centre for Health Protection reported there was no spike in cases following the Mid-Autumn Festival that was previously feared, though the number of cases is still around 8,000 a day.

In November the Hong Kong government plans to host an international banking summit and the infamous Rugby Sevens tournament, which is why health experts are suggesting scrapping the hotel quarantine now because no high-flying banker will have time for seven days in a hotel, three of which are in solitary confinement followed by not being able to eat in a restaurant for four days.

One of these experts is Kelvin To Kai-wang, chairman of the University of Hong Kong's department of microbiology.

"There is a higher chance of having severe infection cases in the winter," To said. "It is better to let more people come to Hong Kong in autumn. At least it could lower the burden on the medical sector in the winter."

Hui suggests "0+7"... will the government buy it?

Meanwhile Dr David Hui Shu-cheong says Hong Kong should implement the "0+7" scheme and the incoming travelers should wear electronic tracking wristbands to prevent them from breaking the rules, though he added the vast number of infections are local.

The city should really scrap quarantine altogether, but it doesn't seem to realise that the rest of the world has moved on. Hesitating on hosting major sporting events is not helping with the revitalisation of the city.

But this is what it has come to, a government hamstrung by various stakeholders, not following the science but political influence instead.

China may not even begin to open up until sometime in 2023... does this mean Hong Kong will have a similar timeline too?

What's in a Name on Municipal Election Ballot

The race for the top jobs at Vancouver City Hall is on

Municipalities in British Columbia will hold elections for mayor and council on October 15. In the cases of 37 cities, the mayors won by acclamation because they had no challengers. 

Some include the mayors of Burnaby, Port Coquitlam, Ashcroft, Comox, Duncan, Invermere, Pitt Meadows and Tofino.

Will Mayor Stewart keep his position Oct 15?

For all the other municipalities campaigning officially began on Saturday, but in Vancouver you wouldn't know there was an election going on except for a few campaign signs on people's lawns for Ken Sim, a Chinese-Canadian businessman.

In the 2018 election he came in second to Kennedy Stewart, and this time around may have the chance to become the first Chinese-Canadian mayor of Vancouver. 

He is the son of immigrant parents, and in high school worked on the weekends at Wendy's where he worked as a janitor cleaning toilets before graduating from UBC's Sauder School of Business. Sim then qualified as an accountant and got a job with KPMG.

Not only that Sim has two businesses, one he co-owns called Nurse Next Door, that operates in North America, serving seniors who prefer to live at home, and Rosemary Rocksalt Bagels, which sells bagel sandwiches named after Vancouver neighbourhoods.

Sim is Stewart's main challenger again

Sim is married to a South Asian and they have four boys. But his one weakness is that he doesn't speak Chinese.

That said, his campaign boards have his Chinese name printed on there.

Will he get the Chinese vote in Vancouver? Hard to say, but 15 other people running for mayor and council are desperate for the Chinese vote or Persian and have petitioned to have their names in Chinese or Persian printed on the ballot for October 15.

This led to Vancouver's Chief Election Officer Rosemary Hagiwara to file an application in provincial court this past Tuesday to disavow Chinese and Persian characters to be used by the 15 candidates because when they filed their nomination papers they did not include their Chinese or Persian names, nor did they use them when they stood for election in 2018.

However, given the short time frame, Judge James Wingham ruled it would be "unfair" to proceed with the application under the timeline set out in the Vancouver Charter and adjourned the hearing to a later date, sometime after the municipal elections.

Harding has Chinese name on campaign board

For the 15 candidates they are thrilled with the ruling, with some ethnically Chinese candidates claiming it represents their heritage, while others like Fred Harding say they have a Chinese name because their spouse is Chinese, or they have connections to Chinatown like Melissa DeGenova... 

Meanwhile former three-time city councillor Kerry Jang dismissed the need to put Chinese and Persian names on the ballot, and that this is a way for candidates to procrastinate from talking about the real issues of the election which are in order of importance:

- Housing (35%)

- Drug overdoses (14%)

- Crime/Poverty/Property taxes (three-way tie at 9%)

- Climate change (7%)

- Jobs (6%)

- Covid-19 (5%)

- Traffic congestion/Public transit (each 2%)

Now that the ballot question is sorted, can we talk about issues voters really care about?

Covid Suspends Sporting Events

Last year's Cross Harbour Race started in Wan Chai

The ongoing Covid restrictions in Hong Kong are making it so difficult for the city to go back go normal, now into the third year.

When I say "normal", I mean holding sporting events for people in Hong Kong and overseas to participate in.

This year will be three batches of 500 people

Some are allowed to be held, and others not for no particular rhyme or reason.

Why is it that the Cross Harbour Race is allowed to be held with 1,500 participants swimming in three batches of 500, while the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon had to cancel its November 20 date because the government still hadn't made up its mind to give the green light.

What's there to think about? Runners are released in batches too. It's not like the race is held inside -- it's outside and starts before most of the 7 million people wake up. 

Perhaps even worse, the Oxfam Trailwalker which is a race that also raises much needed funds for the charity -- didn't even get any kind of consideration.

The marathon canceled its November race

The latest cancellation? The World Dragon Boat Racing Championship that will be held in Thailand instead.

Isn't it embarrassing that the home of dragon boat racing -- the Hong Kong International Races for dragon boat were first held there in 1976 -- aren't going to have races again this year?

Government officials don't seem to want any kind of revitalisation of the city at all and only care about Covid numbers.

What is this going to achieve? By cancelling these world-class sporting events, the authorities have effectively told everyone Hong Kong is not open. Why would anyone want to go there?

Meanwhile it also gives local residents fewer and fewer reasons to stay in the city.

Dragon Boat races have moved to Thailand

The latest now is that marathon organisers are now looking at possibly holding the race in February, but who knows what the pandemic situation will be like then? 

The government is doing a really good job of making it harder for people to exercise and have some respite from the severe and irrational Covid restrictions...

China-UK Tensions for Queen's Funeral

The Queen's coffin is lying in state at Westminster Hall

A friend of mine got into the line at 4am wait for hours to file past the Queen's coffin at Westminster Hall.

But a delegation of Chinese officials won't have the privilege of paying their respects to the late monarch.

House of Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle refused the request due to Chinese sanctions against five British MPs and two peers.

There is an up to eight-hour wait to pay respects

Last year China imposed travel pans and froze assets of nine Britons, including seven parliamentarians -- for accusing Beijing of mistreating Uyghurs.

That led to China's ambassador to the UK being banned from Parliament -- a move which has now been extended to a Chinese delegation that wanted to pay their respects to Queen Elizabeth who is lying in state until Monday.

Control of Westminster Hall is shared by the Lord Great Chamberlain, who is appointed by the monarch, and the speakers of both the Commons and the Lords. They decide who is allowed in -- and not.

Nevertheless, Chinese President Xi Jinping has been invited to the funeral on Monday, to the uproar of seven MPs and peers, who said it was "wholly inappropriate" for the Chinese government to be represented given its human rights record.

"You cannot have a Golden Age, normal relations, with a country that has now been exposed as committing the sorts or atrocities it has, not least the genocide against the Uyghurs, the oppression going on in Tibet for the last 60, 70 years, and now what we see going on in Hong Kong as well," said former Tory minister Tim Laughton.

The Queen put on the charm offensive in 2015

However, there is speculation Xi won't come anyway, but Vice President Wang Qishan may attend instead.

And to think the Queen hosted Xi at Buckingham Palace in 2015, rolling out the red carpet in a bid to sweet talk Beijing into 30 billion English pounds of business, or so then prime minister David Cameron hoped.

Seven years later his party is condemning Xi's invite to the Queen's funeral...

Lee Cries Covid Wolf

Lee claims Covid-19 is six times more deadly than the flu

Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu is sounding the alarm, but does anyone care anymore?

He warned Covid-19 is six times more fatal than the flu, but health experts dispute this, saying the mortality rates of the two respiratory diseases are similar, partly because of high levels of immunity.

They estimate the fatality rate for Covid-19 in Hong Kong is at 0.098 percent, which is close to the 0.1 percent for influenza; they said this is because of the city's high vaccination coverage for the coronavirus and natural immunity levels.

Dr Hui says death rate actually much lower

Dr Leung Pak-yin, a former chief executive of the Hospital Authority says the Covid-19 fatality rate of 0.6 percent cited by Lee "failed to differentiate between this current wave and the fifth wave during February to March," he said.

"With the build-up of the immunity barrier in the community, the [Covid-19] death rate in Hong Kong since May has been similar to that of flue," Leung said on social media.

He also said Lee was calculating the fatality rate by lumping all the Covid-19-related deaths together (9,511), instead of focusing on those since May 15 (356 deaths) because Omicron is a sub-variant.

"Analysing data has to be precise. Death rates vary according to the mutation of the virus, and the community infection situation," Leung said.

Professor David Hui Shu-cheong, who is the government's pandemic advisor, agreed with Leung. Dr Joseph Tsang Kay-yan, chairman of the Medical Association's advisory committee on communicable diseases said the recent death rate of 0.098 could be even lower due to under-reported infections, as Omicron is less deadly.

Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan of the Centre for Health Protection agreed the fatality rate was at around 0.1 percent.

Dr Chuang says mortality rate around 0.1 percent

"In the fifth wave after May, the overall death rate is certainly lower than that from December to April. I think that is because many people had been infected before, and more people had got vaccinated," she said.

But Chuang added the mortality rate among elderly coronavirus patients could be higher, but not to the extent suggested by Lee.

Why is he doing this? Perhaps to continue justifying Hong Kong's zero-Covid strategy, or to scare people into getting vaccinated. But those who have managed to travel outside the city this summer can attest that the rest of the world has moved on from Covid-19 for the most part, and that when people are infected, they mostly experience flu-like symptoms, or are even asymptomatic. There is basically nothing to fear.

It seems like Lee is crying wolf which contradicts top health experts' assessments. His lumping all the cases together is a pathetic attempt at massaging the numbers to suit his message. And then it is completely shot down by a bunch of doctors.

Perhaps this is their way of resisting against the government instructions to only speak with one voice -- one voice against the city's leader?