Artist Emily Carr's Art in Nature

Only a few of Carr's paintings focus more on the sky than trees

Artist Emily Carr (1871-1945) lived an unconventional life, challenging norms and traditions at the time, and became an artist in her own right. She is best known for her paintings deep in the forest, trees in simplified shapes, but the brushstrokes have a lot of movement and energy.

The Vancouver Art Gallery is showing an extensive assemblage of her work in That Green Ideal: Emily Carr and the Ideal of Nature until November 8 this year.

Wood Interior, 1909

The exhibition shows over 100 works from sketches and charcoal drawings to numerous oil paintings focused on her love of nature and keen interest in Indigenous culture.

There is also a lot of background information about Carr's life. She was born in Victoria, British Columbia in 1871 into a privileged family. Carr was the second-youngest of nine children, her father intent on carrying on English traditions. 

It's surprising to see the exhibition reveal some personal details about Carr, such as when she was around 12 years old her father decided to talk to her about the birds and the bees that completely turned her off from sex... one wonders what he said to her which caused the conversation to have such a profound effect on her for the rest of her life.

Her childhood and life drastically changed when her mother died when Carr was 14 years old in 1886; she believes her father was heartbroken and died two years later. As a result Carr's oldest sister Edith was her guardian.

From a young age Carr showed artistic leanings and her father encouraged her to develop her talent. But it wasn't until two years later in 1890 that she studied art at the California School of Design in San Francisco for three years, then returned to Vancouver Island and then went to England to study painting; she also went to Paris later in her career.

Tree Trunk, 1931

Meeting Lawren Harris of the Group of Seven in 1930 made Carr feel like she was part of a community of painters who had similar philosophies, inspired by nature.

"Find the forms you desire to express your purpose," she wrote in her journal in June 1931. "When you have succeeded in getting them as near as you can to express your idea, never leave them but push further on and on strengthening and emphasising those forms to enclose that green idea or ideal."

Most of the paintings are vertical, showing the height of the trees she painted, admiring their trunks and leaves -- she used a lot of green paint! One painting called Wood Interior, 1909 shows trees at ground level, but with the morning light shining in between the tree trunks. 

Another called Tree Trunk, 1931, focuses on the simplified form of the tree trunk, which looks similar to a Georgia O'Keefe painting in its sensuous curves and earthy palette. 

Only a few works are horizontal, or only show sparse trees, or from a distance and instead focusing on the sky with clouds.

It's such an extensive exhibition, that it is quite an intense Carr retrospective! 

That Green Ideal: Emily Carr and the Ideal of Nature

On until November 8, 2026

Vancouver Art Gallery

When a Malaysian Meddles in Hong Kong Affairs

Kuok became CEO of Shangri-La hotel group last August

The debate of whether Hongkongers should learn more Mandarin than Cantonese has erupted again after the scion of the family that owns a chain of luxury hotels weighed in on the topic at a business summit in the city.

"We should really revamp our public education system. Our next generation has to be much more connected to China in terms of language and culture," said Hui Kuok, chair and group chief executive of the Shangri-La luxury hotel group.

She is the daughter of Robert Kuok, founder of the hotel group and Malaysia's richest man. At one point she was the CEO and managing director of the South China Morning Post newspaper, which was owned by her father until he sold it to Alibaba in 2016.

"One way to do this could be over time to make Putonghua the main medium of instruction in schools," she said, speaking at HSBC's Global Investment Summit in Hong Kong.

"Another way could be for Hong Kong to invite some of the best public schools in China to open campuses here, just like we have done for international schools for decades."

Needless to say there was a lot of outrage over her remarks, in particular that she has a privileged background and attended international schools and has a degree in East Asian Studies at Harvard. She became CEO of Shangri-La Asia Limited last August, and is the wife of Bryan Gaw, an executive director of Kerry Properties, another Kuok company.

Many commenting online say Hongkongers should continue speaking Cantonese, Mandarin and English, and not specifically cater to China. However, for the Shangri-La hotel group, China is its greatest source of revenue, with an equity interest in 50 hotels out of 82 worldwide.

Besides, Mandarin is already taught in Hong Kong schools as a requirement. What more does Kuok want?

It's quite strange for her to speak out on a topic like this when she herself had an international education, having grown up in Hong Kong and then studied in the United States.

Some people online have called to boycott the hotel chain, and if -- a big if -- there are enough of them to make a serious financial dent in the company's bottom line, we may know why...

Review: Under The White Gaze

Cheung examines how people of colour are portrayed in media

I just finished reading a thought-provoking book, especially for journalists and media outlets. Called Under The White Gaze, it's written by former Tyee reporter Christopher Cheung, who previously worked at Metro and the Vancouver Courier.

He grew up in a multicultural neighbourhood, went to school with classmates with different backgrounds, and then wondered why people who were not white were not covered in mainstream media in Vancouver. 

As a journalist Cheung tried to rectify the situation, only to encounter many issues. When he tried to specifically do stories about Chinese people, they would downplay their achievements and not think they should be covered in the media, or found mainstream media would only cover different cultures through their holidays, such as Chinese New Year, Nowruz, Diwali, and so on.

It reminds me of the years when I worked at CBC Radio and I was tasked with producing the programming for the Chinese New Year show. There were expectations of what my managers wanted, and what the Chinese community was hoping would be covered in the show. And how do you make it sound fresh the following year, when the same topics are covered, like the symbolism of the food eaten, the tradition of wearing red and the meaning behind "Gung Hei Fat Choy!"

In Under The White Gaze, Cheung explains that even though he as a person of colour may report on a topic through a cultural lens, ultimately it's white editors who decide how people of ethnic backgrounds are portrayed in the media, which can verge on being racist. Hence the white gaze...

Cheung uses a lot of examples in the media, from the CBC, to Maclean's, to the Toronto Star, the Globe and Mail, and community papers to illustrate his points. Why are ethnic restaurants usually described as "hole-in-the wall", or "hidden gem", or when interviewing someone for whom English is not their first language, why is their broken English literally written out?

In one early chapter he talks about "darlings" and "deviants". Darlings are model minorities, immigrants who come to Canada and work extremely hard to succeed. The polar opposite are deviants, people of colour who give their community a bad name, such as those arrested for trafficking drugs, or convicted for murder.

Another situation is when words in a culture are equated to an English or western word. My father likes to describe jellyfish as "rubber bands", or baked char siu buns as "Chinese hamburgers". Other examples are banh mi is called described as a "Vietnamese sandwich", but then they are sometimes called banh mi sandwiches which is redundant, or dim sum being equated to Chinese tapas, which it definitely is not!

The book makes the reader think about stories they have read on people of colour and how they were portrayed; it also forces journalists to think carefully about how they should cover cultural topics in the future.

In Hong Kong, non-Chinese communities, particularly Indians, Pakistanis, Filipinos and Indonesians should be covered more in the media, and with more sensitivity. For the most part, it's as if they don't exist, unless an employer severely mistreats their domestic helper and is dragged to court. There are many successful professional Filipinos in the city, while many Indian families have long roots in Hong Kong.

Under The White Gaze leaves a lot for the reader to consider, and in particular journalists who want to do a better job of covering their communities, which are becoming even more multicultural. In general we need more understanding of others, giving people the opportunity to speak in their own words with context, and report on them in a sensitive way. That will help all of us understand and appreciate each other even more.

Hong Kong's Challenging Times

Hong Kong is facing challenging times these days

Last year when I visited Hong Kong, it was eerily quiet as a lot of people had left the city for Easter break. 

This time around it looked busier, but looking at the shopping malls it is sad to see how empty they are, as the shops are empty. Not a single customer inside. The shop staff are looking at their phones or looking very bored. This is the state of retail these days.

Times Square mall was quiet just after 6pm

Case in point: this afternoon I wandered around Harbour City in Tsim Sha Tsui, steps away from the Star Ferry. It used to be the place mainlanders shopped in, with queues in front of Louis Vuitton, Gucci and Dior. While there were people wandering around window shopping, hardly anyone was buying anything, even mainland visitors.

No locals are buying because they are worried about their financial situation. A few days ago a friend told me that his manager and mid-level managers were let go -- immediately. His immediately boss had no idea she would be sacked and after seeing the human resources manager, went to her desk to pack up her stuff and left.

Another who had an inkling of what was going to happen, said farewell to colleagues, took their purse with them and they didn't see them again. People at work purposely keep only a few items in the office just in case they will be axed.

Meanwhile those left behind must pick up the pieces and take on even more work, for the same amount of pay, or a pay cut even, as times are tough. 

Sunset light reflects on ICC building

The media industry is rapidly unravelling thanks to artificial intelligence. The Hong Kong Standard sacked all of their sub editors, people who check stories for grammar and make sure it is factually correct. They have all been replaced by AI. Currently AI can rewrite stories, but not necessarily with the information intact and must be looked over to ensure the facts are still there...

Editors are even using AI to rewrite stories for them -- the job they are supposed to be doing! Do they want to be out of a job themselves? It's so bizarre and crazy that this is happening so fast. My friends joked they will have to turn to basket weaving to sustain themselves financially.

Meanwhile millennials are challenging to work with, unable to follow instructions or have the passion to work hard. Two friends told me they are literally babysitting the staff they work with, following up to make sure they finish their assignments, and they do so at odd hours -- like 3am or 5pm, or don't consider how their work will be perceived outside of the company. But they can't be fired otherwise my friends will have to do even more work.

It feels like schools are downsizing by the month, as teachers continue to quit and leave, and about the same proportion of students; this has resulted in lowering qualifications for teachers, in particular NET or native English teachers, while the same goes for the police, who have pretty much done away with stringent physical tests.

How can Hong Kong survive like this? It's hard to be optimistic for the city when you see the difficulties and no light at the end of the tunnel. 

But when looked at another way, a friend who moved with her two daughters from Beijing to Hong Kong a year ago, they love being here, despite the challenges of having to learn Cantonese and English. They enjoy eating different kinds of cuisines, like the fact there are hardly any queues for rides at Hong Kong Disneyland, and they are exposed to different kinds of opinions.

Nevertheless does the government have ideas on how to navigate the city through these challenging times? It's time to think outside the box to stimulate the economy and bring back visitors who splurge, not ones who follow advice on Xiaohongshu to spend the least amount of money...

 

VIFF Review: Democracy Noir

Orban's power has been unchecked for the past 14 years

If you want to study the disintegration of democracy in Europe, Hungary is the place to be.

Since 2010, Victor Orban and his political party Fidesz has been in power. In the 2018 election Fidesz won a two-third majority, giving it the mandate to change the constitution.

Led by Orban, Fidesz dismantled rule of law, took control of publicly-funded media, and forced workers to work overtime without extra pay.

Orban confronted by sharp whistling by Szabo

This is what Democracy Noir is about, exposing how Orban fundamentally changed Hungary and how three women are trying to push back.

The documentary is directed by Connie Field, an American who lives in Berkeley, California, but her husband is Hungarian.

After the screening she explained that she has been going to Hungary every year since 2010 and it was in 2014 that she started filming what was going on; she could not get interest in her project at the time so she kept filming and only now the film has been released.

Field follows three women trying to stop Orban in their own ways: Timea Szabo an opposition politician; Nikoletta Antal, a nurse and activist; and Babett Oroszi, a journalist.

Szabo speaks fluent English and explains a lot of what is going on in English, while the other two speak Hungarian. 

When I asked her why she chose three women in the film, instead of say a mix of men and women, Field didn't have an answer... she seemed to think it was not important. But in the film, the three are very fierce and determined. There is a scene where Orban announces families won't have to pay income tax forever if they have four children, which echoes what China is trying to do without success. 

Antal is a nurse who demonstrates regularly

But apparently this policy has resulted in people willing to have kids because the state will help them pay for them, and in this regard are Orban supporters.

Like Donald Trump, Orban creates enemies of the state, and it is the LGBTQ+ community, and falsely accusing politician Szabo of being a drug dealer, as she has worked in Afghanistan and at Harvard.

Oroszi explains the rampant corruption that is happening in Hungary. The European Union poured a lot of money into Hungary to bring it up to developed country standards. However, Orban didn't use the money to improve healthcare, education and so on, but instead spent it on pet projects like a big, shiny stadium next to his country home, a rundown cottage to show his humble roots.

The contractors chosen in the bids were friends of Orban's; the bricks or stones used to build these big construction projects came from the quarries owned by Orban's father. Orban's father is building a massive complex of his own, while nurse Antal says she spent some of her own money to buy medicine for her patients who couldn't afford it.

Field was at tonight's VIFF screening

The media is completely gutted so that the vast majority are controlled by the government and they all use the same wording in their reports, while alternative media like the one Oroszi works for are few and far between; she says it's like musical chairs working for these few places that are left.

While opposition politician Szabo does well in Budapest, her party is unable to get votes in the countryside; Field explains after the screening that Orban looked to the rural areas to get votes and tailored his platform to what they wanted to hear. Sound familiar with Trump?

She says in fact Project 2025 has ideas borrowed from Orban which makes Democracy Noir required viewing not only in the United States but around the world.

What happened in Hungary also mirrors what has happened in Hong Kong, though Field notes that Orban isn't like Putin who feels the need to jail and poison opposition; Orban is so comfortable in his power that he knows he will win regardless and so opposing voices don't bother him.

And like Hong Kong, a lot of young people have left Hungary to work elsewhere in western Europe. When it's voting day and they need to go to the Hungarian consulate to cast their ballot, strangely the consulate is closed...

Democracy Noir

Directed by Connie Field

90 minutes

Hong Kong Not Over, says CY Leung

Are HK's days over? Leung says it has "irons in the fire"

Former chief executive Leung Chun-ying wants to have a chat with former Morgan Stanley Asia Head Stephen Roach to tell him Hong Kong's still got its mojo.

Last week Roach wrote in the Financial Times that China must fix its economy and allow Hong Kong to run itself if it wants the financial hub to have a better future.

"The most important thing Beijing can do is, number one, fix its own system," said Roach, a senior lecturer at Yale University.

Roach says Beijing needs to leave HK alone

"Beijing also needs to be more aggressive and transparent underscoring its commitment to the 'one country, two systems' model."

In his column he said Hong Kong's embattled stock market was a sign of the end of the city's economic success over the past 20 years, and Beijing's grip on the former British colony and China-US tensions made the case that it is fast declining.

"It pains me to admit it, but Hong Kong is now over," he wrote. "A city I once called home and have cherished as a bastion of dynamism has had the world's worst-performing major stock market over the past quarter of a century."

Leung has the opposite view.

"I think it's out of date and also out of touch. I'd very much like to sit down with him and have a conversation with him as to the new irons in the fire that Hong Kong has," Leung told RTHK.

Leung says HK can build marine insurance sector

"There are so many new economic sectors and sub-sectors that I personally have identified running around in the mainland of China in the past six years," he said. "What about maritime insurance? China is a major shipbuilding and maritime nation in the world nowadays. And Hong Kong is the most competitive international financial centre of China."

Is this one of the "hot irons" Leung is referring to?

He said the English language, fully convertible Hong Kong dollar, the legal profession and independent judicial system can help build a robust maritime insurance sector.

And? What of the other irons?

He also pointed to the audit business.

"In the high quality development of the country, many manufacturers and exporters need third party, independent, standard, and testing and certification services. And Hong Kong is very good at this. Hong Kong has the goodwill, has the credibility, and that's the reason why we have such a thriving audit business," he said.

Right...

Barely Recruiting Hong Kong's Finest

The force is actively looking for applicants at home and abroad

The Hong Kong Police Force is still desperate for recruits, despite dangling very good salaries and benefits. It's now gotten to the point where the force has lowered its requirements to make it easier to get more applicants.

It happened last May, when height and weight minimums were scrapped. Previously men had to have a minimum height of 163cm and 50kg, and 152cm and 42kg for women. They could also wear corrective lenses.

Secretary for Security Chris Tang Ping-keung gave an update on the recruitment situation in the Legislative Council on January 10.

Tang gave an update at the Legislative Council

He said: "The Hong Kong Police Force has been adopting proactive recruitment strategies to attract high calibre candidates who have the competence to become a police officer, the affection for the Motherland and Hong Kong, and the passion to serve the public so that the force can continue to demonstrate its professional capability and maintain Hong Kong as one of the safest cities in the world."

While he says there has been no change in the language requirements of all police officers (should read, write and speak fluent Cantonese), the force has developed its own Chinese and English proficiency test "to suit the police officers' practical needs in communication and comprehension when performing their day-to-day duties".

What were the results?

On December 31, 2023, Tang says 87 applicants took the General Chinese Test, and 623 the General English Test, and 14 took both.

University recruitment poster in China

"The passing rates for the General Chinese Test and the General English Test were 49.4 percent, and 27.6 percent respectively," he said.

Those rates don't really bode well for the force or Hong Kong.

In addition, Tang says the force is recruiting applicants on the mainland, specifically looking for Hongkongers studying in China with 23 successfully hired, as well as students in overseas cities like London, Toronto and Sydney, where 40 who joined the HKPF.

"It is the HKPF's initial plan to resume publicity and recruitment campaigns overseas later this year," he said.

Good luck Mr Tang.

Kindergarten Numbers Continue to Fall in HK

Kindergarten schools are competing for fewer students

Kindergartens in Hong Kong and desperate for students, as the number of applications is one-third less than last year, due to emigration and the falling birth rate.

Parents need to submit a "Registration Certificate for Kindergarten Admission" in order to get government subsidies, and the number of applications for this designation has also fallen by more than 20 percent in five years according to official data.

Lam says the birth rate continues to fall

Nancy Lam Chui-ling, vice-chairwoman of the Hong Kong Federation of Education Workers and a kindergarten principal says the actual number of kindergarten students is actually even smaller.

"This is because parents will sign up for a few kindergartens to pick from, so the actual number of registrations will definitely be even lower than the number of offers we give out to the applicants," she said. 

"The number will keep falling as people emigrate and tend not to give birth. I do not think the emigration wave will stop."

For example, the number of births began dropping in 2017, from 56,500 to a record low of 32,500 in 2022.

In the first 10 months of last year, the number of registered births fell slightly from 27,823 to 27,293. The final figure will be revealed in February.

A few months ago the government announced it would offer a HK$20,000 bonus to eligible parents with newborns. The authorities project a 20 percent increased birthrate to around 39,000, but that's well short of the more than 50,000 recorded in 2020.

Many young families have emigrated overseas

Lam suggested kindergarten schools offer full-day classes, but are kids ready for that? For some just going to school is traumatic already... That said full-day classes would allow both parents to work.

Nevertheless, kindergartens are trying to entice parents to sign up with them by offering to teach their children other languages, such as Spanish, French and Japanese on top of English, Cantonese and Mandarin.

As if kids don't have enough to learn already!

Review: Fun Hot Pot Experience at Haidilao

Getting the "noodle dance" performance

When I was in Beijing around 2007, a local friend took me to Haidilao for hot pot. The most memorable part was the "noodle dance", where a guy in a tracksuit and cap doing a quasi ribbon dance with a stretched out piece of dough, making circles with it in the air and even snapping it at us. What a spectacle!

Many years later I went to Haidilao again for my birthday and they gave me a paper crown to wear and had a blindingly bright LED sigh that said "Happy Birthday" in Chinese, Korean and English. 

Enough food to eat? The perils of over-ordering

This year I tried the Haidilao in Vancouver and was also treated to a Happy Birthday sign on the wall and even a lit up sign with a handle. They sang Happy Birthday in Mandarin and English, and presented me with a platter that had "Happy Birthday" written on it with a candle, and six small ice cream containers stacked up like a pyramid.

Oh yes we had the noodle dance again! This time with a vegetable-flavoured dough that was green!

The service here (for Canadian standards) is very attentive and friendly and the staff speak mostly Mandarin and English for non-Chinese speaking customers. If you are a member of Haidilao you get lots of freebies, like toys for the kids and we scored some Miffy hats!

The only problem with hot pot is always over-ordering the amount of food to eat. But before you even order there's a salad bar where you can get snacks like sliced oranges and apples, cherry tomatoes, congee and even shrimp chips!

At the same bar area there is an array of condiments to make your individual sauce with soy sauce, sesame paste, chilli oil, sesame oil, coriander, and vinegar, chopped chillis, minced garlic and spring onions.

Pork bone and mushroom soup bases

Then ordering on a tablet one gets carried away ordering as you scroll down and forget what you've already picked out...

And then the food arrives via a feline-shaped robot and you're overwhelmed by the amount of dishes on the table!

Luckily Haidilao let us pack up the cooked and raw food -- we cooked the meat and put them in plastic containers and another for the soup base. 

We were so full afterwards we didn't need to eat dinner! But we did try the soup and it was oh so good.

Until next year!

Haidilao

3204 West Broadway

Vancouver, BC

604 336 2588

Actor Matthew Perry's Death Shocks Fans

Perry (far left) was one of the stars of the hit sitcom Friends

Shocking news from Los Angeles tonight -- Friends' star Matthew Perry died at the age of 54 of an apparent drowning at his home.

He was best known as Chandler Bing, a successful executive on the hit sitcom Friends that also starred Jennifer Aniston, Lisa Kudrow and David Schwimmer. They played a group of friends navigating their professional and personal lives in a comedy series that lasted 10 seasons, or over 200 episodes. 

He had written a memoir released last year

On social media, some Chinese fans are posting their sadness of hearing of Perry's passing.

While Friends was never shown legally in China, everyone born in the 90s watched bootlegged versions of the show as a way to learn English. Many of my colleagues in Beijing told me it was their favourite American show.

One person posted on X, formerly known as Twitter:

"Friends was my first sitcom. My first English TV show. For kids in China growing up in the 2000s, Friends has some symbolic significance that cannot be summarised that easily. It was our first experience of the outside world. Matthew Perry, I'm forever grateful to you. RIP."

He did have a Canadian connection -- his mother worked for Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau in Ottawa, and Perry and Justin Trudeau went to school together.

Tonight Justin Trudeau paid tribute on X as well:

"Matthew Perry's passing is shocking and saddening. I'll never forget the schoolyard games we used to play, and I know people around the world are never going to forget the joy he brought them. Thanks for all the laughs, Matthew. You were loved -- and you will be missed."

Mocking Incident Puts Cathay Pacific on Damage Control

Three Cathay flight attendants were fired for mocking passengers

Cathay Pacific's problems continue to prevent it from getting itself out of the rut of the pandemic and now it has to do major reputation rebuilding after some flight attendants verbally mocked some Chinese passengers.

On a recent flight from Chengdu, Sichuan province to Hong Kong, three crew members were accused of making fun of passengers' language abilities by saying in English, "If you cannot say 'blanket', you cannot have it."

A Mandarin-speaking passenger complained about the incident which at first led the trio to be suspended, and then fired.

Lee warned Lam not to repeat the incident

But that was not enough.

Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu waded into the issue, saying he was angered and disappointed, and that he had personally instructed Cathay Pacific management to handle the incident seriously, and that the airline must review staff training and improve its customer service culture.

"These disrespectful words and deeds have hurt the feelings of compatriots in Hong Kong and the mainland, and also undermined the city's existing culture and values of respect, courtesy and inclusiveness," he said.

"I am outraged and disappointed by the fact these bad deeds happened on a Hong Kong flight."

He told Cathay Pacific's CEO Ronald Lam Siu-por the incident was serious and had damaged Hong Kong's image, and urged Lam to ensure the incident would not be repeated again.

For his part Lam apologised in Mandarin to passengers who were affected by the incident as well as the wider community, and vowed to prevent a repeat of the situation.

Lam will ensure training and "customers first"

The CEO said he would lead a cross-department task force to enhance the company's "customers first" culture, and ensure its service had a solemn and polite image, and improve its quality.

Does Lee know that Hong Kong residents disparage mainland tourists on a daily basis? Is he going to punish them too?

Post-Covid there are complaints from the tourism sector that the city is getting the cheap Chinese tourists, the ones who have never visited Hong Kong before and don't mind seeing only the free landmarks and eating rice boxes. 

That's because the tensions between mainlanders and locals were never resolved as far back as a decade ago -- remember the term "locusts"? -- and so it's no wonder these situations have flared up again. 

Trying to get Hongkongers to shut up will be very hard, despite the dependence on these cross-border tourists to get the hospitality industry back on its feet again. 

It's a pity Hong Kong has put most of its eggs in this China basket, when all investors know it's better to diversify to ensure more balanced returns...

Young People Want to Leave Hong Kong

Young Hongkongers want to leave

Looking at the calendar it's not April 1, but this is quite a striking headline coming from Oriental Daily.

The top headline says: "Half of all Hongkongers want to leave", and below that, "Willing to leave even if their English is poor".

The survey was conducted by the Hong Kong Association for Academic and Teaching Exchange on 503 people, most of whom were high school students.

Students feel they have no future in Hong Kong

The article says Hong Kong's poor governance and draconian anti-epidemic measures in the past three years have made people's livelihoods miserable, the economy tanking. The story adds professionals and highly-educated elites have already left the city.

Seventy-one percent of those surveyed have thought about going abroad to study, and 38 percent intended to work overseas.

While 95 percent think it's important to have good English to go abroad to work or study, 36 percent think their English is poor, 49 percent think it's average, while only 15 percent think their English is excellent.

The most common reason for wanting to leave is life pressure at 57.5 percent, followed by the political environment at 51.9 percent, the economic downturn at 31.4 percent, and lack of job opportunities at 31.2 percent.

The article quotes social sciences lecturer Chan Wai-keung of Hong Kong Polytechnic University who says with property prices so high, it affects young people's thinking about their futures. 

They are willing to leave even if English is poor

If those with good jobs need to spend a good chunk of their salary on mortgages, then those with lesser prospects feel their chances of social mobility are very slim and would rather want to try their luck elsewhere. 

This has been a common refrain for decades, but with opportunities shrinking, young people feel that even if they did work to the bone, they still wouldn't be able to own a flat... so what's the point?

The issue is particularly acute in Hong Kong, but also in many other places around the world, including Vancouver.

So while these young people hope to get a new start elsewhere, they might be shocked to find out housing prices are out of reach globally...

Review: Red Roulette

A captivating book about the CCP today

The day before Red Roulette was supposed to hit bookstore shelves, the author Desmond Shum got a phone call from his ex-wife, who he hadn't heard from in four years.

In 2017 she was snatched from her office in Beijing and was never seen again. But in September 2021 he heard her voice on the other end of the line, begging him not to release the book he had written, a story about his humble beginnings over 50 years ago and how his career mirrored the rise of China.

It was his ex-wife, Whitney Duan Weihong who had taught him the ropes of how to do business in mainland China, and together they made multi-billion dollar deals that made them immensely wealthy.

Duan and Shum on their date before marrying

She was the one who cultivated their top-drawer contacts -- from local cadres rising up the ranks, to top senior officials in the Politburo. It really does sound like betting on horses and hoping that yours manages to cross the finish line without corruption charges in tow.

Shum was born in Shanghai, but as a child his parents sacrificed their relatively decent lifestyle to start all over in Hong Kong. He was frustrated at first, but his height and athleticism helped him become accepted in school, learning Cantonese and English, and later university in the United States.

After returning to Hong Kong, Shum managed to manoeuvre his way into China in the late 1990s and saw how anything was possible, but how?

Enter Duan, who would show him how it's done.

Red Roulette chronicles their rapid rise to the top where they flew private jets, bought expensive art work and had homes in various places. It's practically dizzying how Shum nonchalantly reels off how much they spent on wine and jewellery, but that it was the cost of doing business.

Wining and dining businessmen in Bordeaux 

Nevertheless, he reveals very interesting insider observations: Those headlines of officials charged with corruption or caught with lots of prostitutes are mostly false. Shum says they are concocted to justify taking these officials down, when in fact they led pretty clean lifestyles to climb up the political ladder.

Shum describes his relationships with a few of these officials who were later caught, and in the time that he knew them over several years, he claims they would not logistically even have time to cavort with hookers as they were tied up in meetings (with male officials) all day and night.

But he still does not know why Duan was taken and why she has never been formally charged. 

In media interviews, Shum has said that when she called him, he knew someone was next to her telling her what to say, and warning that someone was going to get hurt if the book was released.

He claims he wrote Red Roulette for his son Ariston, who is now 12 years old so that he will know what his parents had achieved and that Shum has no regrets.

Duan, Ariston and Shum in happier times

He also reveals his support for Hong Kong -- even attending the 2019 protests early on and voted in the last District Council election. But with the implementation of the national security law, which Shum says is heavy handed, he believes this is the end of Hong Kong as an international financial hub.

Before the book ends, Shum talks about Xi Jinping before and after he became the leader of China and makes some interesting personal observations about him.

A fascinating read that ties in various news stories that I have read over the years and interesting to see Shum's take as he knew many of these people personally.

Spending 25 Percent Lesson Time on Patriotism

Children will spend more class time on patriotic education

Hong Kong parents who have taken their children out of the local school system to be educated overseas must be breathing a sigh of relief they did the right thing.

That's because the Education Bureau has asked (not directed) primary schools to spend up to one-quarter of the study time towards patriotism and national security during the six years of primary education.

Topics to be covered include "the understanding of Chinese culture, the constitution, Basic Law and national security education".

Authorities also recommended organising "cross-disciplinary" exchange visits to mainland China.

This is the first change in the curriculum in eight years. A bureau spokesman said there was a need to update the primary curriculum guide to "enhance student learning", and noted the ones for kindergarten and secondary school had been updated in 2017.

There are seven learning goals, but the first and main one is to "understand our country and the Chinese culture, and cultivate a sense of belonging and national identity towards our country through national education and national security education".

In order to teach all this information, schools are to set side up to 25 percent of the 4,752 hours of lesson time during the six primary school years for organising activities to brush up their understanding of the constitution, the Basic Law and national security.

That time will be cut into lesson time for learning the Chinese and English languages, as well as mathematics.

As a parent this must be infuriating to know that precious class time is being squandered on national education, training young children to parrot Communist ideas and beliefs.

Perhaps there will be a continued spike in students leaving the city later this year?

Education Chief Promotes More Putonghua Learning

Students need to learn more Mandarin for better opportunities

The Hong Kong Education Bureau claims news reports saying the city was considering switching the medium of instruction for Chinese lessons in Mandarin rather than Cantonese are "inaccurate".

However when Secretary for Education Christine Choi Yuk-lin was interviewed by state-run Global Times, she said that "if conditions are met, schools can use Putonghua to teach the Chinese language subject." 

Choi says Putonghua should be used in schools

In the interview published on Monday, Choi said the young generation in Hong Kong would "suffer losses" in terms of opportunities arising from China's rapid development if they could not speak Mandarin.

Therefore, she said, schools must teach subjects in Mandarin rather than Cantonese. 

But the Education Bureau claimed some media outlets misinterpreted Choi's remarks as meaning Mandarin would be the teaching language of choice for all schools and would be comprehensively implemented.

Instead the bureau clarified that such policies would depend on the school's situation, "including the level of readiness among teachers, the Mandarin capability of students, the language environment on campus, the curriculum, and support available for learning and teaching."

The bureau also said that "teaching Chinese in Putonghua" has always been a long-term target in the Chinese language curriculum since 2002, and this policy has not changed.

However, if Choi is giving this big hint that students should further brush up on their Mandarin in order to compete with peers on the mainland, she should be appealing to the parents, as they are the ones who would prefer their children have good English skills to keep their employment options open.

Students are already learning Mandarin

Also, is Choi also suggesting that the level of Mandarin in schools is bad? Then whose fault is that? Perhaps better teachers should be hired? Oh wait thousands of them have left Hong Kong?

There was also a time when suddenly teachers in Hong Kong had to teach subjects in Cantonese rather than English because the government seemed to think students did not have a good grasp of what was going on in the class. This was difficult for teachers to do, who had for years and decades taught the subject in English. 

And now the government wants teachers to teach in Mandarin instead of Cantonese...