Hong Kong’s Tourism Ice Age

May 2, 2022

Hong Kong tourism industry grapples with COVID-19 isolation protocols.

Charlie Chun

Travel agency operator Cheng Kwei-shing is working as a weight management trainer, while his partner has found a job in the security industry due to the pandemic.

“I now teach people how to improve their health by changing their lifestyle and eating habits. My courses are mainly conducted online,” Cheng, who started his travel business in 2010, says.

His travel agency used to host one to two groups of outbound tours every day before the pandemic.

“We are not able to host any outbound tours now. When the situation improved in May 2021, we hosted local tours to sustain my business, but the revenue was insufficient to maintain daily operation. With the Omicron outbreak, local tours have been suspended. I have to live on my own savings,” he says.

The government has lifted its COVID-19 flight ban from April 1. Fully vaccinated residents are required to undergo a seven-day quarantine upon arrival in Hong Kong.

“The flight ban has been lifted, but travellers still have to quarantine when they return. I do not think this will lead to a drastic increase in travelling. Anti-pandemic policies change every day, making it difficult for the industry to adapt,” Cheng says.

“Anti-pandemic policies change every day, making it difficult for the industry to adapt.”

“My travel agency is not preparing for any resumption of tours, but I will resume business when all anti-pandemic measures are removed. I am using savings to cover company operation expenses. I will do anything to keep my travel agency alive,” he adds.

Until March 2, 2022, 100 licensed travel agencies have shut down due to COVID-19, according to the Travel Industry Council of Hong Kong.

Frontline Struggles

Apart from business owners, frontline workers in the travel industry are also badly affected by the pandemic, and one of them is Kenneth Mok Cheuk-nam.

“I used to have two to three tours for overseas tourists every week. Now the number of tours is down to zero,” the 25-year-old tour guide says.

Mok has started working as a part-time office worker doing clerical work at a social enterprise since May 2021.

“Some of my colleagues find jobs in security services, property management and office work,” he says.

The government introduced the Employment Support Scheme in 2020, providing subsidies to affected industries, due to the outbreak of COVID-19. The seventh round of funding allows each eligible applicant to receive a one-off subsidy of HK$7,500 (US $955.7).

“The amount is better than nothing, but that is not enough for some tour guides who have families to take care of. I am waiting for news from my company. The relaxation of anti-pandemic policies is carried out in three stages, and there is no exact date about when local tours will resume,” Mok says.

Like Mok, Danny Wong Chung-hang also has to take up part-time jobs to make a living.

“I was sacked in 2021. Then I work as a part-time office worker and a staff at COVID-19 testing centres helping with booking registrations,” the former tour escort says.

“My monthly salary now depends on how many days I work. My salary now is similar to what I used to have when working as a tour guide, which is around $10,000,” he adds.

Danny Wong Chung-hang hosting a tour to Hailuogou in 2019 when outbound travelling was possible.
(Photo courtesy of Danny Wong Chung-hang)

Wong says other staffs either take no pay leave or get paid by days of work in branches or back offices, and many former colleagues have taken up jobs in isolation facilities, vaccination stations and COVID test centres.

“The travel company has developed an online market business from July 2020 mainly selling imported food from Japan and Taiwan. But I do not think staffs who have been sacked want to take up other posts even if the company offers them, as the salary is really low. We are all waiting for tours to be resumed,” Wong says.

He believes the travel industry will be revived once the anti-pandemic measures are removed.

“I am sure that the company will rehire sacked employees again. I will look for jobs in other travel agencies if I do not get my job back,” Wong says.

Wing On Travel has developed online market business selling imported food.

Tourism Ice Age

Lawmaker Perry Yiu Pak-leung, representing the tourism industry, thinks the industry is going through an “ice age”.

“The Omicron outbreak has hit the industry badly. Many frontline workers have to seek temporary jobs at vaccination centres to make a living,” Yiu says.

Over the past two years, the government has rolled out measures of more than HK$3.8 billion to support the tourism industry.

“The main goal of travel agencies is to avoid shutting down and massive manpower loss. The industry will be able pick itself up quickly once all anti-pandemic measures are removed,” he adds.

“The industry will be able pick itself up quickly once all anti-pandemic measures are removed.”

Current Status of Major Travel Agencies in Hong Kong

Travel agency	Status
Morning Star Travel	Shut down on January 27, 2022
EGL Tours	Developed online market business in May, 2020
Hong Thai Travel	Developed online market business in April, 2020
Wing On Travel	Developed online market business in July, 2020
Wincastle Travel	Shut down on April 23, 2021

Edited by Kajal Aidasani
Sub-edited by Winkie Ng

A Long Way Home

April 30, 2022

Mainland students struggle under the lockdown policy in different cities.

Lily Wang

It took mainland university student Long Yuqi 30 days to go back home to Shenzhen from Hong Kong. She left Hong Kong in February fearing a possible lockdown in the city and later ended up being locked down in her hometown when she finally reached home in mid-March.

“My mother had to wake up very early to buy fresh food for the family during the lockdown because wet markets were open in the morning only. All food would be sold out if she went there late. Now my family and I still need to do COVID-19 tests every day,” the 20-year-old student studying at the Chinese University of Hong Kong says.

The lockdown in Shenzhen started on March 13 and ended in Futian District, where Long and her family live, on April 12.

She was desperate to leave Hong Kong and return home in early February when the Omicron outbreak began to sweep across the city.

“My mom was worried that the central government might take control of Hong Kong and impose a lockdown on the city, so she kept urging me to go home,” Long says.

In total, Long has spent around RMB ¥10,000 (US $1,572) to buy a few plane tickets and change the departure dates and destinations of her tickets, hoping to leave Hong Kong as soon as possible.

“I was not able to directly return to Shenzhen, as I was unable to be part of the 800-people quota for that, so I had to fly to Beijing first,” Long says.

“I finished 28-days of quarantine in Beijing and flew back to Shenzhen on March 13. Then I found myself trapped in a lockdown,” she sighs.

After all the ordeal she has been through in the past two months, Long is quite pessimistic about the border arrangement between Hong Kong and the Mainland in the coming months.

“I don’t think the situation in Mainland China will turn better soon. The government is determined to continue to adopt the zero-COVID policy,” she says.

Long is now having online lessons at home in Shenzhen. “I hope CUHK can let mainland students attend Zoom lectures at the university’s Shenzhen campus. The feeling of studying on campus is different from having lectures at home and I cannot focus when I am studying at home,” Long says.

The view of Long Yuqi’s quarantine hotel in Beijing. (Photo Courtesy of Long Yuqi)

Another university student, Wang Zixin from Shenzhen, also left Hong Kong in February and found herself trapped in her hometown’s lockdown in March.

“I have to do a COVID test every other day, but it does not affect me much. I do not need to wait for hours to take the test, and I can take it any time between 8 am to 10 pm. I feel happier staying in Shenzhen than in Hong Kong because I have more food delivery choices,” Wang says.

In February, Wang struggled to secure a slot in the 800-quota quarantine hotel available daily in order to go through the Shenzhen Bay border checkpoint.

“The Wi-Fi in my dorm was not fast enough for me to get the quota online so I asked my friend on the mainland with a stable internet connection to secure a lot for me. I also spent RMB ¥800 (US $125.6) to hire a scalper in case my friend failed,” Wang says.

On February 14, she left Hong Kong for Shenzhen by taxi and then underwent 21-day quarantine.

Struggles in different cities

Strict border control and quarantine policies in different cities not only make it difficult for mainland students to return home but also for those who study in the Mainland.

Year two student Venus Xie from Shanghai Jiao Tong University has been locked inside her dormitory since March 12.

“Students are afraid, as we are worried that we can test positive one day. I have already done more than 20 COVID tests, but I have not been informed about my test results,” she says.

Xie says all students at the university are required to do tests every two days.

“A pass card is assigned to each dormitory of four students. One of the students is required to take the pass card when he or she goes to the university canteen to buy food for all students in each dormitory. We can only buy daily necessities such as paper towels, shower gel, and sanitary napkins online and nothing else,” Xie says.

She says many students had fever in March, but they had to wait for two to three days for medical treatment because of a lack of resources and manpower due to the emergence of a large number of patients in such a short time.

“The university tried their best to help us, but there are around 30,000 students here. There was not enough food, medicine, and manpower, and nobody could leave the campus. Medical staff were later deployed in our university to help us,” Xie says.

Follow orders without questioning

A mainland scholar, who declines to reveal his identity due to pressure from work, criticizes the mainland authorities for carrying out policies which fail to meet the people’s needs.

“The people are overwhelmed by troubles caused by the government measures. The death rate is now even lower than that caused by the common flu. But no one dares to speak out against the government’s ideology publicly,” he says.

He points out it is difficult for a city like Shanghai to execute the zero-COVID policy.

“It is a city that depends on business and service industries. The lockdown will kill the economy, especially small and medium sized businesses,” he adds.

He says patients with mild symptoms have used up medical resources which are urgently needed for patients with other fatal illnesses who need immediate medical treatment.

“The senior officials are not taking up the responsibilities of saving lives. Ordinary people like us can do nothing but follow the rules,” he adds.

Edited by Angel Woo
Sub-edited by Leung Pak Hei

Mainland Children: Let Us Play!

April 25, 2022

Mainland Chinese children feel upset about a new policy that limits their time playing video games.

Eve Qiao

High school student Zak He used to play two hours of online video game every day. He feels upset for not being able to play the Honor of Kings, a popular online video game, whenever he wants because of a government restriction that limits online gaming time for youngsters under 18 to three hours a week.

“I feel bored. Playing online video game is my favourite hobby. But now I can only play one hour a day on weekends,” the 17-year-old student says.

Under the government restriction introduced by the National Press and Publication Administration in August 2021, teenagers under 18 can only play video games for at most three hours a week, with playing time on weekends and holidays limited to between 8 pm and 9 pm. This move aims to combat the problem of video gaming addiction among minors.

“My roommates and I used to play video games one hour a day after finishing our homework, but now we cannot because of the government policy. What can I do when I am bored?” he sighs.

He says now he can only kill time by watching videos on different applications. “But I have more fun playing video games,” Zak says.

Cheng Dong, a 14-year-old junior high school student, shares her frustration. The new policy not only limits her playtime, but also makes her lose money.

Cheng Dong is not allowed to play game because of the game’s restriction. (Photo courtesy of Cheng Dong)

“I feel angry about this policy because I have less time to play video games. I always buy monthly subscriptions for online games which requires me to log in every day to collect in-game items. But now I can only log in to the game on weekends, which means I lose about RMB ¥180 (US $30) every month. This amount is quite a lot for a student,” Dong says.

But the junior high school student also admits that she has spent more time on other interests after the policy has been implemented.

“I spend more time on singing and reading novels now. I have been doing other things since I play less video games,” she adds.

Game operators have quickly changed game systems to prevent minors from playing games overtime. To identify underage group, all players are required to upload their identity cards and do face recognition for their first log in to play video games starting from August 2021.

To get around the rules, 11-year-old pupil Andy Zhao borrows his elder brother’s identity card to cheat the registration system. His brother celebrated his 18th birthday in November 2021.

“I uploaded my brother’s identity card and asked him to do the face recognition for me so that the system would take me as a grown-up and I can play video games whenever I want,” the pupil says.

Andy Zhao needs his brother to do face recognition for him.

But this trick does not solve all problems. “I need my brother to stay with me when I play online games. The system sometimes asks for face identification before login,” Zhao adds.

“I also need to register a new account for myself when I turn 18, which means I will lose all credits I have now in my current account,” he sighs.

Nearly 63 per cent of young people aged under 18 played video games, according to a study The 2020 National Report on Minors’ Internet Use published by China Internet Network Information Centre (CNNIC) and other government departments in 2021.

The report also shows about 65 per cent of minors played video games for more than 10 hours a day, with eight per cent playing for more than 15 hours.

Anthony Fung Ying-him, a professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong’s School of Journalism and Communication, says the policy might not be perfect, but it is quite effective.

Fung also thinks intention of the government measure is good, and its purpose is to combat addiction.

“There are still many minors using other people’s identity and other ways to cheat on the recognition system. Other supporting measures should be introduced to prevent them from doing so,” he says.

The professor points out there are many reasons causing gaming addiction such as family relationship.

“I did a survey in Shanghai in 2016, and I found a strong correlation between the time teenagers spent on playing games and the time they spent with their parents. Family factor accounts for most gaming addiction cases,” Fung states.

He adds the policy is very effective in the short term, but joint efforts involving both families and the government are needed if people want to solve this problem fundamentally.

“I think families and schools are responsible for doing proper digital literacy education. Parents should set examples for their children and teach them the right way to learn about the digital world,” the professor says.

Edited by Alina Chen
Sub-edited by Leung Pak-hei

The Flexible Rope Skipping King

April 24, 2022

Timothy Ho Chu-ting, a rope skipping world champion, worked as a delivery man, is still passionate in rope skipping despite having difficulties in training during the pandemic.

Esme Lam

Timothy Ho Chu-ting, the first Asian world champion of rope skipping, was forced to work as a delivery man during the pandemic.

Ho did two hours of training in between his two part time jobs working as a delivery man for Foodpanda from 11 a.m. to 1 or 2 p.m. and 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. for McDonald’s three days a week from December 2020 to February 2021.

“No matter what I do for a living, I always make sure I have time for training. I must ensure that I am fit and ready when physical competitions and training classes resume,” he says.

Being the winner of Male Individual Overall Champion of the World Rope Skipping Championships in 2014 and 2016, Ho is both an athlete and a coach.

Ho Chu-ting and his team won the team champion in the FISAC-IRSF World Rope Skipping Championship 2014. He was also the winner of individual performance.
(Photo Courtesy of Timothy Ho Chu-ting)

But most of his classes have been cancelled because of the pandemic and his income has dropped by 20 per cent.

“I have never thought of working at McDonald’s and being a delivery man. I thought I would always be a rope skipping athlete and a coach,” he says.

From his experience as a delivery man, Ho has learnt to enjoy working no matter what job he has.

“I enjoy cycling while delivering food. It feels good to exercise and work at the same time,” he says.

Despite his passion for rope skipping, finding a venue for training is not easy during the pandemic, as sports centres have been closed.

“Sometimes I just walk on the streets to find random places for training. It is also difficult to breathe as masks are required when doing outdoor exercise,” he says.

“Sometimes I just walk on the streets to find random places for training. It is also difficult to breathe as masks are required when doing outdoor exercise.”

Ho’s daily training session mainly consists of three areas: speed training, jumping skills and physical training.

“I used to do training five to six days a week. Now I have to cut down my training to two hours per day and four days a week because of the pandemic,” he says.

The pandemic not only has affected his job and training, Ho also has to overcome challenges of taking part in virtual rope skipping contests.

“To be honest, I do not like virtual competitions…but I will do it because of sportsmanship,” he says, adding that videos are taken repeatedly until he has a clip of his perfect performance.

“This makes athletes very tired. I spent one whole month producing six videos for submission of the virtual world championships last year,” he says.

Ho Chu-ting has to film himself jumping repeatedly till he captures the best performance in order to join a virtual contest.
(Photo Courtesy of Timothy Ho Chu-ting)

Apart from hardship caused by the pandemic, Ho has to combat his injury which is his worst nightmare. He had to stop his training for two months in 2021.

“I feel so strange. It seems that I have tried my best already, but it also seems that I have not due to the injury,” he says.

Despite training so hard all his life, rope skipping was not Ho’s favourite sport when he was a child.

Ho started rope skipping for physical training in his badminton lessons. He then joined rope skipping classes after his physical education teacher discovered his talent when he was five.

After winning his first award in a competition when he was a Primary Five pupil, he fell in love with rope skipping.

“It not only gives me the sense of achievement, but also helps me build friendship with my teammates who do training and make progress with me,” he adds.

At the age of 19, Ho won his first world champion title in the World Rope Skipping Championships in 2014.

“When the flag of Hong Kong was raised inside the Hong Kong Stadium in the awards ceremony, I was really excited. It was a great honour for me to represent my home place to win an award,” he recalls.

“When the flag of Hong Kong was raised inside the Hong Kong Stadium in the awards ceremony, I was really excited.”

Ho has different feelings when joining competitions with a different hat.

“I feel scared and worried about my performance when I take part in competitions. I feel even more worried when my students take part in contests, as I am afraid that they may fail to perform certain skills that they have put a lot of effort into mastering. Sometimes I am even more nervous than my students,” Ho says.

Ho once taught students with emotional or behavioural problems in 2020. The students were unwilling to engage in class at first.

“I changed my coaching practice and taught them in a playful way. They then became willing to give rope skipping a try. As I mainly hold my lessons in mainstream schools, this special experience gives me a great sense of achievement,” he says.

To promote the sport, Ho started producing YouTube clips featuring rope skipping skills and work outs videos in February 2022.

Ho Chu-ting started producing YouTube clips featuring rope skipping skills and work outs videos in February.
(Screenshot of YouTube video)

“Rope skipping classes are usually for kids and teenagers. I want to promote rope skipping to adults by producing videos about how to keep fit with the sport,” he adds.

“I hope that rope skipping will become so popular that it will one day be one of the sports events in the Olympic Games, and my students and I will have a chance to represent Hong Kong,” Ho says.

“I hope that rope skipping will become so popular that it will one day be one of the sports events in the Olympic Games, and my students and I will have a chance to represent Hong Kong.”

Edited by Winkie Ng
Sub-edited by Leung Pak-hei

Good Photos with Poor Eyesight

April 19, 2022

Three visually impaired photographers share their joy of taking photos.

Cynthia Chan

Photography for the Fully Blind

Just one month after picking up a camera to capture the beautiful landscapes of Hong Kong and mainland China, Sophi Ng* lost her eyesight completely because of a severe cold.

Now that 22 years have passed since then, she continues recording breathtaking sceneries around her with her camera, with the hope that she can look back into the past through her photos if she can restore her eyesight one day.

Ng thinks photography has sharpened her senses and has taught her to be open-minded.

“It is important to take photos by heart, to listen, to observe and to feel things around you. By doing so, you can capture more beautiful moments in life,” she says.

She explains blind photographers “borrow eyesight from others when taking pictures”, which means they are guided by people with normal eyesight to construct an image of the surroundings in their mind.

“I thought vision was a must for photography. The first time I took photos after I went blind, others told me about the things around me. With their guidance, I found different positions and camera angles to take the photos. This has given me confidence in photographing by hearing,” she says.

Ng adds that she now goes taking pictures with her guide dog.

“I am guided by the dog when taking photos. When I hear something, it will lead me to the direction of the source,” she says.

“We can take good pictures. My completely blind teammate once captured a stunning sunrise by feeling the temperature,” she adds.

A photo of the Tai Hung Fire Dragon Dance taken by Sophi Ng capturing cultural landscapes in Hong Kong.
(Photo courtesy of Sightfeeling)

A Poor Eyesight but a Clear Vision

Ng is not alone. Kwok Kin has just 10 per cent eyesight since birth. He suffers from inherited eye disease and can only see things within 80 centimetres’ length. With his remaining eyesight, he captures Hong Kong’s city landscape, natural scenery and trivial moments around him with his camera.

“I take photos just like those with normal vision, but I cannot see as clearly as they do,” Kwok says.

Working as a freelance photographer, his photos embed his artistic interpretations of the world.

“Just like when I take an out-of-focus photo of a pink flower, although we want to see the object clearly, it is good to be vague sometimes for rooms of reflection and imagination,” the photographer with a blurry vision says.

He says his sensitivity to light helps him compose photos.

“Eyesight and vision are different. Eyesight is your ability to see, while vision is the interaction between the eyes and brain. It is about interpretation and understanding of light, colour and space,” he explains.

“Eyesight and vision are different. Eyesight is your ability to see, while vision is the interaction between the eyes and brain. It is about interpretation and understanding of light, colour and space.”

“Therefore, having poor eyesight does not mean I cannot take good photos. I can still have sharp interpretations of colour and space in my mind, which does not depend on eyesight,” he adds.

“All sensations are equally important in experiencing the world. By gathering messages we the visually impaired receive from senses and using imagination, we can interpret the world and express our interpretation through photos,” Kwok says.

A photo taken by Kwok Kin shows his interest in black-and-white photographs.
(Photo courtesy of Sightfeeling)

Cathy Chu, a visually impaired friend of Kwok’s, is also passionate about photography. She suffers from congenital cataract, a rare birth defect in which the lens in her eyes are cloudy, and has lost almost all eyesight since birth.

“I enjoy the feeling of taking photos, no matter if the image is focused or not,” the amateur photographer says.

Holding a piece of crystal glass in front of the camera lens is Chu’s favourite way of taking photos.

“Crystal glass creates the visual effect of a kaleidoscope, stimulating imaginations to see things from a different angle,” she says.

“I was inspired that everything around me can aid me in photo-taking. I once took advantage of a glass to take a symmetrical photo which looked like angel’s wings,” she says.

A photo taken by Cathy Chu captures a scene of the Tai Hung Fire Dragon Dance.
(Photo courtesy of Sightfeeling)

Make the Blind More Visible

Ng, Kwok and Chu have joined Sightfeeling, a social enterprise which helps the visually impaired in photo-taking and the promotion of their photos, for more than three years. There are around five visually impaired photographers in the organisation.

The organisation sells postcards with the photos taken by the visually impaired, holds blindness-related activities with other organisations and organises photo exhibitions for the visually impaired to increase public’s interaction with them.

Mok Ka-wai, 26, one of the founders of Sightfeeling, says her organisation aims to enable the public to appreciate the talent of the visually impaired.

For their first photo exhibition held in March, 2018, Sightfeeling organised a trip to Taichung, Taiwan to take photos.

“Visitors in the exhibition said they never imagined the photos were taken by the visually impaired. It is hard to see the difference when two photos, one taken by a person with normal vision and the other by a visually impaired person, are put together,” she says.

Sightfeeling’s Taiwan trip with visually impaired photographers in December, 2019.
(Photo courtesy of Sightfeeling)

“We think the visually impaired are the same as the visually normal,” she adds.

There were 47,600 visually impaired persons in Hong Kong in 2020, with 88.8 per cent being economically inactive, according to a special report released by the Census and Statistics Department regarding persons with disabilities and chronic diseases in December 2021.

Sightfeeling hopes to create more job opportunities for the visually impaired because their abilities are often underestimated by society.

“Society often labels minorities with inability. Those labels refrain them from being understood by others,” Mok says.

“Society often labels minorities with inability. Those labels refrain them from being understood by others.”

“The visually impaired have stronger mentalities than normal people. They have positive mindsets and will not look down on themselves because of their disability. They do not think they are inferior. Their mentality leads to their success,” she adds.

Mok thinks visually impaired photographers such as Kwok are very talented and they deserve more recognition from society.

“We hope the society can see the photos taken by the visually impaired, and also appreciate them,” she says.

*Name changed at interviewee’s request

Edited by Winkie Ng
Sub-edited by Kajal Aidasani

Keep Calm and Live with Omicron – Editor’s Note

April 19, 2022

Two years have passed since the COVID-19 pandemic broke out, but it is far from over. The raging fifth wave of Omicron hits Hong Kong badly. Our city has already reached a grim milestone as over 1 million coronavirus cases have been reported. But life still has to go on, people from all walks of life are all trying their best to live with Omicron.

Our Periscope section explores how students put virtual platforms to a good use and help them to focus their studies amid the pandemic. Mainland and international students have also tried hard to keep their study on track through online classes while struggling to find their way back home under the lockdown policies in different places. Private tutors have been playing a pivotal role since the Omicron outbreak as parents have depended on them to take care of their children when physical classes were suspended.

Students were not the only ones who suffered, some foreign domestic helpers were sacked by their employers after testing positive. In our People section, our reporter interviews an Australian priest in Hong Kong who lends a helping hand to these workers during the pandemic. A Hong Kong rope skipping world champion also talks to Varsity about how to keep his rope skipping passion alive even physical competitions and training classes have been cancelled.

It takes courage to live with uncertainty, especially when all you could see is a gloomy future – in this issue, Varsity also examines how university students strive to keep their voices to be heard when most student unions have been diminished under the pressure of school administration.

We also follow other interesting topics in this issue of Varsity, from the downside of online self-diagnosis to the impact of video games restrictions on youngsters in China.

Don’t let the wave drift you away. Keep a cool head to calm the wave. We wish all the best for everyone. Have an enjoyable read!

Angel Woo

Managing Editor

Fresh Start in Britain

April 19, 2022

A young Hong Kong chef and YouTuber pursues her culinary career in the UK.

Carrie Lock

As the only Hong Kong chef working at a boarding school in Cambridge, Catharine Leung impresses students with her Hong Kong cuisine – stir-fried rice noodles with beef and fried squid with salt and pepper. These have become the most popular dishes among students.

“A six-year-old pupil from Hong Kong said to me, nearly in tears, that stir-fried rice noodles with beef and fried squid with salt and pepper are his favourites. The dishes reminded him of home,” the chef in her 30s says.

“I am responsible for offering Asian cuisine such as sushi, spring rolls and custard buns,” she adds.

Leung’s work schedule starts at 7am. She joins her British and American colleagues to wash dishes, prepare ingredients and cook meals.

“Lunch time is the peak hour. Serving 800 people in two hours is as chaotic as being in a war. When it comes to dinner, we can relax a bit as we only provide meals for 200 students who live on campus,” she says. She gets off work at 3pm, after finishing dinner preparation.

Catharine Leung is making dumplings for students at boarding school. (Photo Courtesy of
Catharine Leung)

Other chefs sometimes ask Leung to teach them how to cook Hong Kong dishes. “My British colleagues can now cook rice, sweet and sour pork and fried squid with salt and pepper,” she says.

She also learns how to cook Western cuisine like fish and chips and lasagna from her colleagues.

The chef thinks it is easy to cook Asian cuisine in the UK as more and more Asian food ingredients are available in supermarkets.

“If I cannot find a certain ingredient, I will seek for a substitute. I use my creativity when I have to cook classic Hong Kong dishes like turnip cake,” she says.

Chinese sausage, a main ingredient in cooking turnip cake, is difficult to find abroad. In one of her YouTube videos, Leung suggests replacing it by Kabanos, a Polish dried sausage which is easier to find in supermarkets.

Her love for cooking started while she was studying for a Master programme in media management in the UK in 2014.

“I fell in love with cooking, as I had to cook for myself every day in order to save money,” she says.

But she had never thought of turning her interest into a career. She returned to Hong Kong and continued to work as a documentary director after graduation. It was until 2017, a backpacking trip to Europe brought her back to cooking again.

“I served green curry for 100 guests at a wedding held in a resort in Black Forest, Germany. They loved it so much that they even came to the kitchen and told me how much they loved my food,” she says.

“The joy of cooking is similar to filming. I feel motivated when people praise my cooking and I feel the same when the audience like my films,” she says. Their positive feedback boosted her confidence to pursue her dream as a chef in Europe.

Leung flew to Britain in 2019 with a working holiday visa from Hong Kong and has been living in Cambridge ever since.

While working as a full-time chef at the boarding school, Leung opened her food stall “Ely Bubble Tea” in March 2020, selling Hong Kong street food – bubble tea and egg waffles in Cambridge town.

Though her stall only operated on weekends, her food still attracted some supporters. “Not many local residents knew what bubble tea and egg waffles were when I first opened my stall. After a year, I got customers visiting my stall regularly,” Leung says.

“The happiest thing about opening a food stall is chatting with my customers about what is happening in Hong Kong. Many of them care about our city,” she adds.

Leung’s food stall was temporarily closed in September 2021 as she needed to take a rest. But she says she will reopen her stall in the future.

Now, she continues working as a full-time chef on weekdays. At the same time, she is also a YouTuber.

Catharine Leung’s food stall “Ely Bubble Tea”. (Photo Courtesy of Catharine Leung)

Bubble tea and egg waffle offered at “Ely Bubble Tea”. (Photo Courtesy of Catharine Leung)

From Apple Daily to YouTube

Leung’s channel BackpaCooking (廚職背遊梁芷靈), which was launched a year ago, has about 121,000 subscribers of which many are new Hong Kong migrants in the UK. She usually films videos about cooking, grocery shopping and the life of Hong Kong migrants.

In 2021, Britain rolled out the BNO visa scheme for eligible Hongkongers, offering a pathway to citizenship in response to Beijing’s imposition of national security law.

A total of 103,900 Hongkongers have applied for resettlement in Britain in the first year of the scheme, according to recent figures released by the UK’s Home Office.

“Some followers in Hong Kong left comments saying they are very upset about what is happening in Hong Kong but they feel better after watching my videos. Their comments motivate me to post more videos about life in the UK on YouTube,” Leung says.

“I inbox strangers such as political activist Finn Lau to ask for interviews. To build trust with them, I have to tell them my story angle and interview questions in detail,” she says.

Her videos also cover topics like grocery shopping and starting a catering business in the UK. The chef also teaches people how to cook Asian cuisine, especially Hong Kong dishes such as steamed eggs and Cantonese poached chicken.

She spends most of her weekends and holidays doing interviews and filming. “Video editing is the most exhausting part. I spent countless nights after work doing editing,” she says.

Before launching her own channel, she collaborated with Apple Daily to produce news videos about British people’s attitude towards immigrants from Hong Kong and life of Hongkongers in the UK until the sudden closure of the media outlet in 2021.

“I was shocked. An important media outlet just disappeared in a day. Some voices could not be heard if there are fewer media outlets. So I decided to continue producing stories by setting up my own YouTube channel,” Leung says.

“Some voices could not be heard if there are fewer media outlets. So I decided to continue producing stories by setting up my own YouTube channel,” Leung says.

Catharine Leung travels around the UK and films her Youtube videos. (Photo Courtesy of Catharine Leung)

Tips for Hongkongers Who Want to Leave

Leung has already lived in Britain for two and a half years. The stressful environment in Hong Kong is what caused her to leave.

“Life in Britain is relatively simple and peaceful. I also feel free here. I enjoy the freedom of speech as I can freely voice out my opinion on things that I do not like, such as unfairness in the workplace,” she says.

Still, moving to a foreign place is not easy. It was a big challenge for Leung to find herself a home when she first arrived in Britain in August 2019.

“It is difficult to rent a house when you are fresh off the boat. I had to provide an employment reference but I was jobless at that time. So I stayed at my friend’s place for a month till I found my first job as a kitchen porter in Cambridge. I stayed there for three months,” Leung says.

“Working as a kitchen porter was demanding for me. I had to clean dishes, dump the garbage and do labouring,” she says, given that she had never worked as a blue-collar worker before.

Since the living pace and culture are very different between Hong Kong and the UK, she says having an open-minded heart is the key to adapting to a new life.

“Do not use the same mindset you have in Hong Kong when you are in the UK. Try to embrace their cultures and ways of life,” she says.

Edited by Angel Woo
Sub-edited by Kajal Aidasani

Let’s Study Together Online

April 19, 2022

More students choose to use virtual study platforms.

Karmen Yip

University student Anjelica Yeung Ka-yan has been studying on Discord, an instant messaging and digital distribution platform since December 2021, as physical study rooms have been closed due to the pandemic. She now studies two to three hours every day on the study platform.

Yeung started using the virtual study platform after she failed to focus on her studies at home during the pandemic.

“It is hard to create a learning atmosphere alone at home. I also lack self-discipline and easily get distracted by my iPhone,” the psychology major student says.

“Virtual study rooms help create a better learning atmosphere. I can see everyone focusing on their studies. Some highlight textbooks and some take notes on their iPads. I feel like being monitored by others. Others in the virtual study room can see if I am focusing on my study. This forces me to stay focused,” the 19-year-old student explains.

“Others in the virtual study room can see if I am focusing on my study. This forces me to stay focused.”

Yeung points out virtual study platforms have user-friendly interfaces with different functions such as subject channels where she can connect with students around the world who are studying the same subject.

“I can ask for help by typing questions in my subject channel. Other students who are online then respond to me and explain how to get to answers by showing reasons and logic behind,” she says.

“I can always find someone productive in a virtual study room. Students from all over the world study on the virtual platform 24/7. I can also set up a private virtual study room to study with my friends despite strict quarantine measurements in real life,” the university freshman adds.

“I can also set up a private virtual study room to study with my friends despite strict quarantine measurements in real life.”

Similar to Yeung, master student Shirley Ooi Yee-shyen is often distracted by social media apps like Instagram when doing self-study.

“When the pandemic hit, I messed up my own routine. I used to sleep from 12 a.m. to 8 a.m. But isolation wrecked my daily schedule, and I went to bed at 4 a.m…I lost motivation and life became dull. That was when I started to study with my friends on Zoom,” the student from Université Grenoble Alpes says.

Ooi now spends an average of five hours a day on the virtual study platform.

“I turn on my webcam or share my screen sometimes so that others can check on what I am doing when I study on the platform,” she says.

“If my friends find that I have been away from my desk for too long or if they see me scrolling my phone, they will remind me to get back to my study. I will feel guilty and get back to work. The platform also has a system that tracks how many hours I study and users are ranked on the Study Leaderboard based on their study hours,” the chemistry student explains.

Ooi thinks the leaderboard motivates her to study harder and pushes her to finish at least one school task a day on the virtual study platform with her friends. But she also warns users not to stay online for too long for the sake of being on top of the leaderboard, as that is harmful to their mental health.

Shirley Ooi Yee-shyen uses a virtual study platform that tracks the number of study hours and provides users with their study statistics.

To help himself focus on his study, Nadir Matti took one step further. He founded a virtual study platform, Study Together, in July 2019.

Matti created the platform with a website and a discord server.

“The discord server reminds you to refresh your study goal every two hours. For example, your goal for this session is to finish reading 50 pages. After two hours, you will receive a notification reminding you of your goal and ask you to input the next goal. This pushes students to make progress,” he says.

Nadir Matti’s discord study server reminds users of their study goals every two hours.

Compared to studying at a library, Matti says it is way more comfortable and easier to study at home.

“When you go to a library, you have to spend time packing your bag and commuting. There are also concerns like if there are comfortable and enough seats in the library, and the opening hours of the library. With the virtual study platform, students can just turn on their laptops and start doing self-study with others,” the founder explains.

“At home, you have the perfect study environment that is all set-up. If you are a night owl and want to study at 3 a.m., you can still use online study rooms to stay focused,” Matti says.

The number of members joining Nadir Matti’s discord study server has increased during the pandemic.
(Photo Courtesy of Nadir Matti)

Psychology scholar Dr. Alex Chan Chi-keung, associate professor at Hong Kong Shue Yan University, says more students choose virtual study platforms for interaction and interconnectedness.

“Through these platforms, students are motivated to focus on their study and can build friendships with others. By motivating and reminding each other of their study goals, it keeps them going,” he explains.

“By motivating and reminding each other of their study goals, it keeps them going.”

Chan says studying virtually as a group triggers group flow, a phenomenon that occurs when a group of people want to reach a team goal together.

“Group flow leads to improved performance and increases productivity,” he says.

Apart from that, Chan says students can find the most suitable study method by discussing different study skills with other students in chat rooms.

But he says virtual study platforms are not for everyone.

“If a user has poor self-discipline or has no clear study goals, the user can be sidetracked from their work and get distracted easily. Too much information flow on the platform also affects their focus,” he says.

Chan adds some students focus too much on comparing themselves with others and that causes pressure. He also warns cyber bullying on virtual platforms can lead to psychological problems like depression.

Edited by Kajal Aidasani
Sub-edited by Angel Woo

Voice for the Poor

April 19, 2022

An Australian priest provides help for Hong Kong’s needy during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Iris Jiang

Australian priest John Wotherspoon lends a helping hand to foreign domestic helpers who have been sacked by their employers after testing positive for the coronavirus during the Omicron outbreak in Hong Kong.

“We have had more than 100 cases of homeless domestic helpers. Some cried when they came to our organisation. I was so upset by their suffering,” says Father Wotherspoon, who is also a co-founder of MercyHK, an NGO he set up with his friends in 2016.

He says one migrant worker slept in a car for 30 hours, and some stayed at the Hong Kong International Airport for three days when the weather was cold in late February. “Some of them were not accepted by boarding houses and others had trouble getting on the planes to their home countries because of COVID,” the Catholic priest says.

He also says that homeless cases have been mostly referred to his organisation by HELP for Domestic Workers, a concern group which also helps domestic workers in Hong Kong.

“We have five centres accommodating more than 100 domestic helpers from Indonesia and the Philippines. They are provided with three meals a day,” Father Wotherspoon says in a virtual interview with Varsity on his smartphone while checking on domestic helpers to see whether they had enough food.

The priest at one stage worked 16 hours a day helping domestic helpers affected by the pandemic.

“These workers would have been on the street if nobody helped them. I have three needles and I will be careful,” says the 75-year-old, referring to the three doses of vaccines he has taken, despite the risky nature of his work. He has been assisted by a team of volunteers.

Temple Street Father

Having served the poor in Hong Kong for over 30 years, Father Wotherspoon can speak fluent Cantonese.

Dubbed as “Temple Street Father”, the Australian priest from Brisbane who came to Hong Kong in 1985 because his congregation needed more personnel.

“We have been helping homeless people, McRefugees (homeless people who stay overnight in McDonald’s) and ex-prisoners, now we are assisting COVID-19 patients as well,” he says.

Living in a subdivided flat in Yau Ma Tei, he says: “It has been a very happy experience,” which also brings him a lot of practical advantages.

“I like to live in a simple small room in the midst of poor people… I do not have to commute to work and am always available to people seeking my help,” he adds.

Apart from helping the needy, Father Wotherspoon updates his blog titled “A Voice for the Poor” every day. The blog has content ranging from prayers and the Bible to the latest situation of the homeless and links to news reports.

Father John Wotherspoon updates his website “A Voice for the Poor” every day.
(Photo Courtesy of Father John Wotherspoon)

Donations have flooded his bank account after his work has been reported by the media.

“I didn’t ask for money, but donations have just kept coming. I am very lucky that more people are learning about our work and are willing to help us,” he says.

It allows Father Wotherspoon to employ a full-time social worker to help look after the homeless and two part time ones to look after drug addicts since November 2021.

Serving the poor in China

Apart from spending time helping the needy in Hong Kong, Father Wotherspoon also served in China.

He worked at an international school in Zhaoqing, Guangdong, as an English teacher from 2001 to 2008.

“I used my salaries to help migrant workers in the local area. There were a lot of migrant workers from Guizhou and many of them could not afford the cost of seeing a doctor,” says the priest, adding that there were a lot of migrant workers from Guizhou.

He has strong interest in Asia as he studied Chinese History at Monash University in Australia.

“I always think of China as the most important part of Asia. When I came to Hong Kong, I dreamt of working in China someday,” the priest says.

He also voluntarily taught poor children English in the nearby area. “I taught students from all levels. It was very enjoyable,” he smiles.

When he returned to Hong Kong in 2008, his main job was to help prisoners, drug mules and drug addicts.

“We just respond to the needy. Wherever someone needs help, my group tries to do something…The most important thing is to treat people with respect and care,” says Father Wotherspoon.

Home is where the heart belongs

About 242,000 residents have left Hong Kong since 2020, according to the figure from the Census and Statistics Department. While Hongkongers are leaving the city because of the introduction of the National Security Law and strict government COVID restrictions, Father Wotherspoon says he belongs to Hong Kong.

“For me, Australia is just a holiday place. Helping people in Hong Kong is more important…My family in Australia has always been supportive and they are very happy with what I’m doing” he says.

He believes that the world needs more people to care about the disadvantaged. “No matter what you do, if you can devote part of your time to helping people, you will be much happier,” he says.

Edited by Leung Pak-hei
Sub-edited by Winkie Ng

Of The Students? By The Students? For The Students?

April 19, 2022

CUHK students criticise their university’s new criteria of selecting student representatives.

Leopold Chen

The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) launched open recruitment of student representatives in the tertiary education institution’s committees earlier this year.

The move came nearly a year after the last cabinet of the Student Union of The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUSU) resigned in March 2021.

The selection criteria for the representatives consist of staff recommendation, relevant experience, reasons for application and academic performance, according to an email sent to all students from the university’s Office of Student Affairs (OSA) on January 19, 2022.

Among them, a recommendation by a full-time CUHK staff takes up to 40 per cent of the score.

A nomination panel consisting of members from “student-related units”, colleges and “related Committees” will also screen the applications. But CUHK does not indicate what kind of organisations count as “student-related units” or “related Committees” in the announcement.

“Respective committees reserve the right to have final decision upon the nomination/appointment of the student nominee(s),” reads the announcement.

According to the email, the application period originally ends on February 10, 2022. But CUHK extended the recruitment exercise to March 21 after it had not received enough applications.

Among the 25 university committees open for recruitment, representatives in 24 of them used to be recruited by the CUSU, whose cabinet was elected by all CUHK students.

The Office of Student Affairs (OSA) of CUHK is now in charge of recruiting student representatives for the university’s various committees after the CUSU dissolved.

Peter Chan*, formerly a member of the CUSU Council, criticises the selection system for lacking representativeness.

“It is quite funny. Passion is more important than ability or recommendation when selecting a student representative. One’s ability cannot simply be measured by recommendation or academic performance such as grade point average (GPA),” he says.

“The representativeness is inevitably lower. Representatives’ power is now granted by the university administration. But in the past, it was granted by the CUSU, an organisation elected by and representing all CUHK students,” he adds.

“Now all the university’s decisions seem to come out of the blue. We used to say that the student union is a messenger. Now that messenger is gone,” Chan says.

The CUSU is one of the many university student unions in Hong Kong that have been dissolved or become defunct since July 2021.

In July 2021, the University of Hong Kong announced that it would not recognise the status of its student union.

The Education University of Hong Kong made a similar decision in January 2022, further ruling that the student union’s HK$9 million deposit will be placed under the “temporary care” of the university.

The City University of Hong Kong required its student union to vacate its premises by February 14, 2022. The student union held a “farewell ceremony” on campus that day. The police stated on February 20 that the event may have breached the National Security Law as seditious slogans were displayed, adding that its National Security Department has been investigating the case.

The Student Union of the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUSU) dissolved on October 7, 2021, citing the dilemma between legal risks and complying with the university’s demand.

Status of Student Unions in Eight UGC-funded Universities in Hong Kong

University	Status	Latest update on social media (as of April 16)
The University of Hong Kong (HKU)	The status of HKUSU had not been recognised by the university since July 13, 2021. It moved out of its premises completely on July 21, 2021.	July 5, 2021
The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST)	The cabinet term was forced to end after six members were disciplinarily sanctioned in January 2021 over an “unapproved” memorial event for Chow Tsz-lok, a 22-year-old HKUST student who died amid the 2019 protest. No new cabinet stepped in until February 2022.	March 2, 2022
The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK)	The student union announced its dissolution on October 7, 2021. It has been defuncted since then.	October 7, 2021
City University of Hong Kong (CityU)	The student union vacated its premises on February 14 as required by the university. The police’s National Security Department is investigating the student union’s alleged breaching of the National Security Law. On April 11, the university sent emails to at least 30 students, who are in connection with a farewell ceremony for the student union, demanding them to respond to the university on whether they have committed the alleged wrongdoings listed in the email including breaching the disease control and prevention terms and the section 9 of colonial-era Crimes Ordinance.	March 1, 2022
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU)	The university administration has stopped recognising the status of the student union, suspended all support for the body, and demanded that the student union move out from their premises by July 15, 2022. Previously, members of the student union voted in against of signing the Acknowledgement of Compliance (AoC), which allows the student union to bear the name of “The Hong Kong Polytechnic University”, but also granted the university administration the power to interfere with the affairs of the student union.	April 15, 2022
Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU)	Operating under a provisional committee due to a lack of proposed cabinets for two consecutive years.	April 12, 2022
The Education University of Hong Kong (EdUHK)	The university announced that it will not recognise the status of the student union on January 20, 2022. The student union’s deposit is under the “temporary care” of the university.	Not Available
Lingnan University (LU)	In December 2021, the university said that the membership size of the student union is too small to be representative and it may stop acknowledging the status of the student union. A new representative council of the student union came to office on March 2, 2022.	April 4, 2022

^{*All universities but HKUST have stopped collecting member fees on behalf of the student unions}

Students Go, Administrators Come

The Office of Student Affairs (OSA) of CUHK has taken over the student union after its dissolution on October 7, 2021.

Founded in January 2022 and initiated by a group of students, the CUHK Students’ Joint Platform (SJP) is a platform to discuss school affairs when the CUSU is defunct.

The organisation is composed of more than 20 student organisations, most of which were affiliated with the CUSU in the past.

The organisation collects opinions from students, holds sessions for students to discuss school affairs, such as mandatory vaccination in the university and student organisations’ registration under the OSA, and acts as student representatives to negotiate with the university administration.

Silva Lam*, a member of the standing executive committee of the SJP, thinks the OSA cannot replace the CUSU.

“The OSA does not even have the full list of student societies and needs to ask us for it. They do not know whom to approach to explain the situation. I do not think they can handle the aftermath brought by the dissolution of CUSU within a year,” she says.

The SJP executive committee member also expresses disapproval to the new student representatives recruitment system.

“I think the system is weird. Being good at studying or having a good relationship with university staff does not mean being a good representative. Some students, especially freshmen who do not know the staff well but want to get involved in student affairs, may be filtered out by the system.”

Lam says some helpers of the SJP took part in the student representative recruitment.

“Although they understand the influence of student representatives is very limited, they still think it is a way to express the opinion of students,” she says.

The SJP has now proposed a framework for a new CUSU if there will be any. The blueprint will allow student societies to have a bigger say in all affairs.

Responses from Administrations and Authorities

Responding to Varsity’s enquiry, CUHK says it acknowledges the constitution of the CUSU is in place and will welcome a new student organisation “that upholds CUSU’s tradition in serving not only the student community but also society more broadly.”

The university adds that it believes participation in student organisations and “a prominent student voice” are important in students’ university life and it will ensure these activities are well supported.

The head of the CUHK OSA, also known as the University Dean of Students, has not responded to Varsity’s request for comments.

The Education Bureau says the government respects universities’ autonomy over student affairs in a written reply.

“At the same time, the Government requests universities to uphold good governance and accountability to the public, while their operations should comply with the law and meet the interests of the university community as well as the community at large,” it reads.

*Names changed as requested by interviewees

Edited by Leung Pak-hei
Sub-edited by Angel Woo