Our November 2024 issue – Long Live the Truth is now published.
Post-pandemic 2024 sees a world in wars. From the ongoing Russia-Ukrainian and Israel-Hamas wars to the recent Lebanon conflict, the call for peace is pressing. In this issue, our reporters travelled to Japan and brought back the message of peace-making.
Our Periscope features how Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum presents an incomplete narrative of Japan as an atomic bomb victim without addressing the true causes of World War II. A Hiroshima atomic bomb survivor, having learned about Japan’s war crimes in Singapore at the age of 78, is now dedicated to tell the truth and promote peace.
In the People section, a retired Vietnam soldier searches for remains on the battleground.
A TV host learns to be a better mother after running a people-hunting show in China. A Chinese craftsman dedicates his life to making traditional paper.
Other stories tell the struggles of Hong Kong democrats and an investigation into illegal mainland Chinese photographers working in Hong Kong. Away from the negativity, Hong Kong athletes are trying to make rope skipping an Olympic event. A local organisation provides free sports classes to those in need. In China, a new online game Wukong drives tourists visiting the real-life game locations. Our reporters are concerned about the environment, with stories highlighting the carol restoration in Hong Kong and the sole paper recycling factory in Hong Kong.
Our era is fast-paced, complex, and unpredictable. In times of conflict and uncertainty, Varsity stands with those in need and strive for peace together.
Young Chinese fake to be rich by self-branding on social media.
By Celina Lu
Posing as an elegant lady leading a luxurious lifestyle, online content creator Xiao Shu has a taste of living like a princess for one day – an experience of a lifetime by hiring a team of make-up artists and photographers to do a photo shoot in fancy places, albeit wearing a counterfeit designer dress and carrying a fake luxury handbag.
The service package covers photo taking at a Michelin restaurant called Yihenyue by Seven Villas, an infinity swimming pool, a golf course, and Conrad Hangzhou.
Xiao filmed the whole experience and made a video which was then shared on her own social media accounts on various popular social media platforms in China, including TikTok, Xiaohongshu (the Little Red Book), and Bilibili.
“I want to start an online business by creating video content myself. I wrote a story about boys taking pictures of luxurious lifestyles for social media posts when I worked for GQ magazine. I find faking to be rich is an interesting topic, so I tried it myself and made a record of it,” the 28-year-old woman says.
Xiao Shu takes photos in a golf course. (Photo courtesy of Xiao Shu)
Xiao spent RMB ¥2,488 (US $349.37) for a 12-hour shooting session and she was guaranteed to have nine photos finished.
“I’m not used to wearing gorgeous clothes and posing for photos for hours. The experience made me feel that I was pretty and happy at that moment. I also felt a little bit awkward, as I was not used to that,” Xiao adds.
The video about the experience earned her 22,000 likes on Xiaohongshu, 432,000 likes on TikTok, and 2,242 likes on Bilibili.
Xiao Shu takes photos in a Michelin restaurant. (Photo courtesy of Xiao Shu)
Out of curiosity, fund investigator Zhou Qian also signed up for a service package like Xiao. She had her first photo taking session at the Guangzhou Elegant Hotel. She posted the photos she took on Xiaohongshu.
“I have seen videos of other girls doing this on TikTok before, and then I wondered what it was like. I gave it a try on my 28th birthday in a five-star hotel,” Zhou says.
“I booked the photo shoot two weeks earlier and paid RMB ¥400 (US $56.18) for a 30-minute photo session. Costumes were provided and I had to do my own make-up,” she says.
“The service also includes providing a fake Louis Vuitton bag. The photographer took pictures of me with my mobile phone and told me to pose in various ways. But I actually didn’t feel right because I was faking to be rich,” the 28-year-old woman says.
“After half an hour, another customer came. There were about at least 20 girls waiting to take pictures that day,” Zhou shares.
“Young girls find it appealing to pretend to be rich elites. Many are willing to spend money to fake it for a day. After all, who doesn’t want to become rich and smart,” she adds.
Zhou Qian takes photos in Guangzhou Elegant Hotel. (Photo courtesy of Zhou Qian)
Advertisements about the “Fake Socialite” photo service can be found on various social media platforms offering the service charging from RMB ¥400 (US $55.24) to RMB ¥2,500 (US $345.22).
Lucky King is one of the studios posting messages about such “Fake Socialite” photo service in Xiaohongshu.
It charges RMB ¥1,188 (US $166.90) for an hour of photo session at a five-star hotel the Bvlgari Shanghai and RMB 1,088 (US $152.85) per hour at the Banyan Tree Shanghai.
95 per cent of their customers are girls and five per cent are boys. They are mostly between 20-35 years old, according to the studio.
Shooting set up in a five-star hotel in Shanghai. (Photo courtesy of Lucky King)
“In recent years, senior cadre style or gentle style photography have become increasingly popular on TikTok. Most of the girls who purchased the service are to get a nice set of photos for their birthday and want to maximise the value for the money they can afford to spend,” a staff of the studio says.
Assistant Professor Lin Jian from the School of Journalism and Communication of the Chinese University of Hong Kong points out that photo services of such kind are popular among internet celebrities.
“Some internet celebrities want to create an illusion that they live a luxurious life to impress their fans. Some want to make use of the service to create content for their social media accounts,” Lin says.
“Internet celebrities want to make use of this to boost their fame and number of followers. They might profit from the fame they build in the future. Private companies might approach them to advertise some products or run live online sales,” Lin comments.
Lin also points out that some young people are yearning for a celebrity lifestyle and want to get a taste of it.
“Consumer culture is an important part of contemporary youth culture in China. This kind of photography service is also a kind of consumption behavior. They can have a taste of being at five-star restaurants and hotels,” he says.
“Consumption has actually become a solution for dealing with stress and the urge to be successful. A solution to the fact that it’s hard to find ways to turn us into a so-called ‘successful’ person,” Lin adds.
Reporters: Erica Hwang Seowoo, Mike Chu, Daniel Paek, Daniel Koong, Cindy Lee, Chloe Nguyen, Roy Ng, Charlie Ho, Alexa Lau, Perry Kwok, Winnie Li, Suan Yeon
A message of peace from Hiroshima A-bomb survivor Teruko Yahata, calling for a world without war and urging global leaders to foster unity and understanding.
Many Americans are worried about Donald Trump’s return to the White House.
By Ken Nguyen
A victory for Donald Trump in the United States (U.S.) presidential election stokes concern about the country’s future economy, healthcare and welfare of immigrants.
“I voted for Kamala Harris, but this result is what I did expect”, says Timothy Esau, an American, who is now a full-time Business student at the Chinese University of Hong Kong.
Esau says that he is worried that the president-elect would likely worsen the U.S. economy with the upcoming tariff policy that targets every country.
Vowing to end inflation in the U.S., Trump, who defeated Democrat Kamala Harris by a significant margin, plans to install a blanket tariff of 10 to 20 per cent on all imports, with additional tariffs of 60 to 100 per cent on goods brought in from China.
“I don’t think tariffs are good for America. The thing is that there are still ways for China to sell their products to the country, which is through a third party,” Esau says.
Aiming at curbing Russia’s Ukraine war efforts, the U.S. imposed individual and economic sanctions. Esau points out Russia manages to sell their products to some companies in Kazakhstan, and from which export to the U.S.
“This way can also help China bypass the tariffs, but of course their products will go up in prices. Even so, expensive Chinese goods will still be more competitive than U.S. goods, and consumers are those who get hurt,” he says.
“So basically, it is tariffs for everybody, especially for the U.S., the one who made the tariffs”, the student adds.
Another American living in Hong Kong, Professor Stacilee Ford from the Department of History, the University of Hong Kong, fears that Trump will limit abortion rights, one of the items discussed in the far-right policy recommendations in Project 2025.
Project 2025 is a comprehensive policy document created by the Heritage Foundation, a prominent right-wing think tank that has influenced Republican administrations since Ronald Reagan.
“It is a document that Trump has tried to distance himself from, but it is pretty clear to be a roadmap of sorts for his second term as the president,” Ford says, adding that she voted for Kamala Harris.
“At one point, Trump was pro-choice (supporting abortion-right), but in his need to be a flag-bearer for conservative voters, he flipped his stance,” she says.
Ford adds that Trump supported judges to the Supreme Court who do want to roll the clock back and ban abortion.
Future threats to abortion rights in the U.S. under Trump’s administration.
“We will see what he (Donald Trump) does. Note that his wife, Melania Trump, recently wrote in her memoir that she is pro-choice,” she says.
Amaru Ordóñez-Jacobson, an American who is now an exchange student at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, expresses his concern over the healthcare system as Trump calls for sweeping changes to the Affordable Care Act.
“It is incredibly concerning,” he says.
The Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, is a comprehensive health care reform that was signed into law by former president Barack Obama in March, 2010. The reform aims at making healthcare more affordable and accessible for Americans by expanding insurance coverage, reducing healthcare costs, and improving the quality of care.
The student recalls watching a live presidential race debate, in which Trump talked about having ‘concepts of a plan’ to replace Obamacare when being asked how his government would manage to guarantee healthcare for U.S. citizens without the law.
“It was just crazy. How can anyone see a man saying ‘concepts of a plan’ and still think he is the right person to run our country for the next four years,” Jacobson says.
“The fact that Trump wants to remove the policy that has helped tons of Americans better access to healthcare is terrifying,” he adds.
Jacobson shares that he grew up in Texas, where there are many white people showing negative attitudes towards Mexican immigrants.
He worries that the situation will get worse since Trump repeatedly stated in many rallies that he plans for mass deportations of millions of immigrants and expanding the U.S.-Mexico border. Trump claims that this will benefit American workers by raising wages and improving job conditions.
“I am really concerned about how unapologetically racist Trump’s campaign was,” Jacobson says.
Sharing the same concern, Asian American Chloe Yu-Ning Cheng, who is now an exchange student at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, thinks it is worrying that Donald Trump sees deportations as the answer to everything.
“Why are immigrants seen as un-American? This just got me to question what are American values” Cheng says.
The 21-year-old believes Trump only protects and cares about the white and the wealthy. She adds that she does not understand why the president-elect and his team demonises immigrants while talking about preserving ‘American values’ in their rallies.
“According to them, I am not sure if they mean immigrants would change American values, or destroy it, or something. I don’t quite understand what the concern is about,” the student says.
Watching live broadcasting of the election results with her American classmates in a university lecture room, Cheng recalls people were shocked when seeing each of the battleground states being taken by Trump.
“All Americans that I know are processing the result right now. It feels unreal,” says Cheng.
Being called as “fat pig” by her university classmates, Zhang Zichu adopted various extreme diet plans she found online as she could not stand the discrimination and insult.
While studying at Xiamen University in 2016, Zhang strictly controlled her food intake, eating poached food only for eight months. She might even only eat 500g of poached spinach or an apple with skimmed milk or 50g of corn kernels with a tomato in a meal.
“Sometimes, 10 cherry tomatoes were enough for me to have a meal,” Zhang recalls the torment when she was 21 years old.
Not only controlling what she ate, but Zhang also used “Fairy Tube” she bought online which cost RMB ¥76 (US $10.5) to induce vomiting.
It is a 40cm long rubber tube with a diameter of 2.5cm that she would insert directly from her mouth into her stomach along the esophagus, allowing food to spit out along the tube.
“I used the tube to help me vomit after I eat a large amount of food,” Zhang says.
“The ‘Fairy Tube’ allowed me to enjoy a wide variety of food without worrying about getting fat. I had to start every meal by having some ice cream and drinking water throughout the whole eating process to help vomit all the food easily after every meal,” she adds.
Zhang used the method twice a week during the horrible eight months. She would also do eight to nine hours of exercise in the gym every day.
The extreme diet, the “Fairy Tube” and exercise led her to a loss of 70kg. But for five years, she experienced a lack of menstruation, she also lost a lot of hair and teeth.
A photo Zhang’s leg. (Photo courtesy of Zhang Zichu)
Feeling immense pressure in life, Zhang told her mother that she had a desire to end her own life.
Having noticed Zhang’s emotional disturbance, her mother took Zhang to the Peking University Sixth Hospital for treatment in 2019, out of concerns for Zhang’s personal safety.
Zhang was diagnosed with anorexia nervosa, an eating disorder with a serious mental health condition, that one would try to keep the weight as low as possible.
Standing at 160cm, Zhang’s weight dropped to 25kg, the lowest point of her life in 2019 from 105kg in 2016. And her heart rate was only 39 beats per minute whilst the normal resting heart rate for adults is between 60 and 100 beats per minute, according to Britain’s National Health Service.
“I felt like I was not a human anymore. I was just like a devil living in this world,” Zhang says.
After three months of hospital supervision, she had three balanced meals a day and took medications such as Olanzapine, Quetiapine, and Prozac, to treat her mental conditions. She gradually recovered.
Also diagnosed with anorexia nervosa was Shao Panpan, who adopted extreme diets she found online in 2023. She weighed only 30kg with a height of 160cm at that time.
Her classmates laughed at her because of her weight, so Shao decided to lose weight when she was in high school in January 2023.
“There is a popular weight loss method called liquid fasting (only drink liquid without sugar for 3 meals) on social media, so I imitated it to achieve my weight loss goal,” Shao says.
She recalled that she quickly lost 2kg in one day, but her weight rebounded easily, so she tried to find other methods on the Internet.
During her online research, she was misled by many “skinny” bloggers on social media, who shared their daily food intake and their slim bodies, making her believe that she could lose weight if she ate less than them.
Shao also regarded her parents who tried to help her regain health as “enemies”.
“I just put food in my mouth and spit it out when my parents were not looking at me,” she says.
In April 2024, after a year of experiencing these extreme diets, Shao lost weight to 30kg. She was unable to concentrate in class, unable to stand, and even experienced urinary and fecal incontinence.
A photo of Shao when she was extremely thin. (Photo courtesy of Shao Panpan)
Worried about Shao’s health, her parents brought her to the hospital. She even developed severe pneumonia and she was in critical condition a week after because of her low body weight.
“When I was about to lose my life because of my extreme weight loss, I realized that the methods shared online were actually incorrect,” Shao says.
“The excessive weight loss had caused me great distress because of various side effects it brought, such as irregular menstrual cycles, hair thinning, and mental fatigue,” she adds.
Shao learns from her personal experience that health is the most important thing when it comes to losing weight and urges everyone not to blindly follow extreme diets shared online.
Lecturer Peggy Yip Pui-Sze from the School of Life Sciences at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, warns people should not rely on online information regarding extreme diets and notes the information is not clinically and scientifically proven.
“Those who adopt these diets may experience malnutritional, as they do not have a balanced diet and only eat one type of food or avoid certain kinds of food groups,” Pui says.
She says extreme diets might lead to a sharp fall in weight at the beginning, but such diet plans may have detrimental effects on the body.
“There is no shortcut to weight control. Changing unhealthy eating habits in daily life and exercise are required,” she says.
Pui urges those who are experiencing eating disorders to seek help from professionals.
A skater’s journey from heart surgery to Olympic triumph.
By Cathleena Zhu
Having won 15 gold medals in international competitions, including the Olympic Games, World Championships and European Championships, Yara Van Kerkhof thinks the last race at the Short Track Speed Skating World Championships in her home country, the Netherlands, as the perfect end of her 27-year career.
Van Kerkhof and her three teammates won gold in the women’s 3000 metres relay of the Championships held in Rotterdam in March 2024. She wept as she accepted her last medal.
“It was a great feeling to have tens of thousands of people cheering for us. I think their encouragement led to our team’s victory,” Van Kerkohf says.
Yara and her teammates celebrating their victory in winning the 3000m relay gold medal. (Photo courtesy of Yara Van Kerkhof)
“When I stood on the podium, I saw my seven-year-old self again. If that little girl could see what I have achieved today, she would be very proud,” she adds, recalling her childhood memory.
At the age of seven, Van Kerkhof was diagnosed with congenital heart disease and had an open heart surgery. Thanks to the treatment, she was able to keep her dream of becoming a short-track speed skater alive.
The Dutch athlete has always loved skating since she first stepped on the ice when she was three. But her parents did not want her to do athletic training because of her medical condition.
Van Kerkhof insisted on doing simple exercises such as jogging every day for three years. Her parents were convinced by their daughter’s passion and were determined to find the best doctors for her.
“My family asked almost everyone they knew. One of my father’s colleagues had a child who also had heart problems and was treated at a facility called Stichting Hartedkind, so they sent me there too,” the 34-year-old athlete recalls.
Stichting Hartedkind conducts scientific research on inherent heart defects in children. The non-profit organisation (NGO) also provides children with free treatment and rehabilitation after surgery.
Founded by Wesley Keesomlaan in 1995, the organisation is funded by donations and gifts from individuals and businesses.
The short-track athlete underwent her open heart surgery with the help of the organisation in 1997 followed by a six-month recovery.
“Not only they brought me physical repair, but also a lot of emotional support. I was scared that I wouldn’t be able to get back on the ice because of the risk of surgery, but the staff always encouraged me that I would be able to achieve my dreams after treatment, so I trusted them,” Van Kerkohf says.
7-year-old Yara just finished her heart surgery. (Photo courtesy of Yara Van Kerkhof)
After the surgery, a tailor-made recovery exercise regimen was developed for Van Kerkohf. The NGO is still in constant contact with the athlete and checks on her monthly.
Van Kerkohf made a good recovery from her disease in ten years. She could do the same amount of exercise as a professional athlete.
“When I was 17, I decided to try out for the Dutch national team. My goal was to stand on the Olympic field,” the short-track skater says.
In 2018, Van Kerkohf achieved her Olympic dream. She won silver and bronze medals in the 500 metre 1000 metre races respectively in Pyeongchang Olympic, a historic breakthrough for the Dutch short-track speed skating team. She was 28.
The athlete thanked her doctor for making her dreams come true for the first time after the competition.
Van Kerkhof says the director of the NGO told her that many children with congenital heart disease become braver because of her. More than 100 children born with heart disease are now doing short track speed skating.
“I was very moved, as the Olympic spirit is to inspire people to be strong. But I wouldn’t be where I am today without the help,” Van Kerkhof says.
The world champion is an ambassador of the NGO to encourage more children with heart disease.
Van Kerkhof holds lectures, hosts fun games and does bike rides for the children treated there every year when she has no race.
“I hope the kids here can gain friendship and bravery in these fun games. It’s important to let them know that there are no limits in what they can do,” Van Kerkhof says.
“A big reason for my decision to retire this year is also to explore more outside of sports,” the world champion adds.
The Dutch athlete says she will continue to help more children with heart problems achieve their dreams by learning more human biology and medicine.
“As for my next step, I hope to learn more medical expertise to provide these children with both treatment and training support,” Van Kerkhof says.
Mainland students living in Hong Kong enjoy travelling to Taiwan after a visa policy change.
By Bliss Zhu
Studying in Hong Kong, university student Xie Guofan from Sichuan went to Taiwan this year for the first time in her life, as she takes advantage of a policy change which allows mainland Chinese staying in the city to apply for travel permits.
“Taiwan is very nice. The food and sightseeing are amazing. People there are very kind and welcoming,” Xie says.
“I felt surprised that a ticket agent rushed to help me when I was trying to buy a bus ticket at the airport. The staff helped me even though I didn’t ask for it. I felt so grateful. Without her help, I would have bought a wrong ticket,” she recalls.
“My homestay host in Hualien was also very nice. Knowing that we are mainlanders coming to Taiwan for the first time, he gave us travel tips about restaurants and some fun attractions including Qi Xing Tan and Taroko National Park,” the year three student says.
“Despite the political tension between Taiwan and Beijing, I don’t think the relationship between Taiwanese and mainland Chinese is affected at all,” she adds.
Xie Guofan was chasing dolphins in Hualien. (Photo courtesy of Xie Guofan)
Mainland travellers used to take up around a quarter of about 11 million visitors to Taiwan in 2018 counting for the biggest group until a solo travel scheme was suspended due to cross-strait tensions in 2019. Group travel was suspended because of COVID-19 in 2020.
Under the current policy which was introduced on September 1, 2023, mainland Chinese living in a third country or region are eligible to apply for a permit to visit Taiwan.
Visas allowing one-time entry or multiple entries are available for application and cost NT $600 (US $18.47) and NT $1000 (US $30.78) respectively.
“I find many posts about permit applications to Taiwan on social media platforms such as Xiaohongshu (The Little Red Book). I regret not applying for a visa for multiple entries, as I want to visit Taiwan again,” Xie says.
Another student Li Yixuan, from the Chinese University of Hong Kong, went to Taiwan for the second time in September 2024.
The student from Beijing shares that she falls in love with Taipei after first visiting the city in March.
“I wish I could live there for the rest of my life if I have enough money. The living pace is very slow, and I enjoy walking in the streets. There are many old streets, where you can find a lot of museums and old bookshops,” the Mathematics and Internet Engineering major student says.
“The Taiwanese are very thoughtful and caring, which is better than those in mainland China and Hong Kong,” she adds.
A sticker on the wall of Tainan Art Museum says: “I have the right to decide about my uterus.” (Photo courtesy of Li Yixuan)
She observes that many public facilities are designed to be wheel-chair friendly, such as having more ramps rather than stairs. There are many left-handed chairs in universities.
Li also finds the concept of gender equality prevalent in Taiwan, and the discussion of feminism is more popular than in mainland China and Hong Kong.
A gender-inclusive sign in Taipei’s busy area, Ximending District. (Photo courtesy of Li Yixuan)
“There are many film festivals about women, feminist bookshops and feminism-related public discussions,” the year three student shares.
“Taiwan is also very acceptive of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) community, which is a taboo in the Mainland. I can find many LGBTQ-related research and books. I think Taiwanese pursue personal rights and civil democracy, so they care more about the rights of different groups. I think this makes the cultural industry in Taiwan more diverse,” Li adds.
The toilet design is gender and religion inclusive in Taipei Huashan Cultural and Creative Park. (Photo courtesy of Li Yixuan)
Hong Kong university student Zhou Wenxiao from Henan also took advantage of the visa policy and flew to Taipei just to join the pride parade in 2024. This is her second visit to Taiwan.
“Being a journalism major student, I am always interested in parades. I have seen many parade-related press coverage and never seen so many sexual minorities in a rally. The feeling was foreign to me. I enjoyed it,” the year five student says.
Zhou recalls there were many half-naked men in the parade, and the homosexual male was the main focus.
Signs at parade gatherings read: “Liberation for all genders.” (Photo courtesy of Zhou Wenxiao)
Zhou points out that other non-governmental organisations (NGO) also attended the parade to campaign for their agenda, such as an NGO focusing on labour rights in developing countries.
“It is an opportunity to learn about people who are doing different things trying to change the world. That is appealing to me. I will go to Taiwan again for bookstores, parades and Taiwanese cuisine,” she says.
Beatbox advocate THE-O promoting beatbox in Hong Kong
By Pauline Yau
World champion beatboxer Ko Ching-hei, who recently clinched the Haten World Championship title in 2024 has now turned his passion into teaching. He teaches secondary school students beatboxing, the art of mimicking drum machines.
“Beatboxing is still a relatively new culture and art form. Not many people are familiar with beatboxing as it has not become mainstream. I hope I can change that,” Ko says.
During the one-hour sessions, Ko teaches about 30 form one to three students basic beatboxing skills such as eight beat rhythms, kick drum, and the snare at Ellen Yeung College.
Ko Ching-hei teaching his students the basic beatboxing skill siren.
“I try to engage students by making the lessons more fun. Sometimes I play groovy beatboxing tracks to catch their attention or allow them to jam together with beatbox cypher – a gathering of beatboxers in a circle, improvising beats together,” the year four university student says.
Ko started self-learning beatboxing at 12 after being inspired by a video of Hikakin, a famous Japanese beatboxer.
“I thought it was really to mimic musical instruments only with muscles, and that there was no music sheet to follow,” Ko says.
“I never feel bored of beatboxing. The freedom for creativity is infinite. There are countless combinations of rhythm and notes. I discover new beats and sounds every time I go freestyle. The sense of satisfaction is beyond words,” he says.
Ko devotes his time to beatboxing whenever he takes a break from his study.
“During my free time, I film beatboxing tutorial videos to put up online,” Ko says. Although the videos only garnered a few hundred views, he gained enough exposure to be invited to teach beatboxing at schools. This encourages him to pursue beatboxing as a career.
“When I was a year one student, I felt depressed about my future. I didn’t want to take the path that most people follow – just graduate and work for money. I hope my work in the future can be related to something I believe in,” Ko says.
In 2019, after six years of beatboxing, Ko founded Cyphinal Beatbox to promote Hong Kong beatbox culture through education and events.
Ko Ching-hei demonstrating his beatboxing skills for students.
Cyphinal Beatbox YouTube channel has gained 907 followers, featuring regular videos of beatboxing battles and tutorials. The platform allows beatbox enthusiasts to learn, compete, and jam together.
“Whenever I have contests overseas, I learn a lot and feel the high energy there. People are genuinely moved by the music. The vibes are great. That is why I want to hold these activities in Hong Kong as well, to show Hong Kong beatbox lovers that beatboxing is about jamming together, not just practising alone,” Ko says.
Apart from promoting beatbox education, Ko competes in international competitions to gain exposure.
In 2024, he became the fourth Hongkonger to qualify for the Grand Beatbox Battle, an international beatboxing competition held by Swissbeatbox, the largest beatboxing platform in the world.
His stage name THE-O comes from his English name Theo. “Advanced beatboxing skills like D-low, B-art and Show-Go have a hyphen in it, so I put one in my stage name as well,” Ko says.
“Personally I think resilience and creativity are what make a great beatboxer. You learn how much effort a beatboxer puts into a beat when they perform, as well as their personality. Humility is also something I value. It makes the music more empathetic and easier to relate,” he says.
Despite efforts to promote beatboxing, Ko knows well the path he has chosen is a less travelled one.
“Many Hong Kong people think beatboxing is ‘noisy’, ‘dirty’, and ‘playing with saliva’,” Ko says.
Another major concern for beatboxers is the financial burden. “Beatboxers usually have to pay their way to participate in international competitions and symposiums. Our income is unstable. Many take on side hustles or become producers and DJs,” Ko says.
“My ultimate goal is to make beatboxing a viable career. If beatboxing can sustain our basic needs, we will invest more time on beatboxing, honing our art, instead of spending time on other side jobs to support ourselves… this is my passion, and I will continue to pursue it despite all odds,” he adds.
Harold Yip Man-ki shares his journey in the recycling industry.
By Ken Nguyen
“I started my recycling career in 2009 but waited almost 10 years to set up Mil Mill because back then, running a pulp mill was not profitable,” says Harold Yip Man-ki.
Mil Mil is the first and only drink cartons recycler in Hong Kong, converting used beverage boxes and other paper wastes into pulp, which is the main material for paper making.
The company can handle up to about 50 tonnes of drink cartons daily, which is equivalent to nearly two million boxes.
In 2009, Yip founded Secure Information Disposal Services Limited (SSID), which is a confidential documents destruction and professional wastes consulting company, targeting businesses, accounting firms, law firms, universities and many others.
A year later, Yip wondered whether there were better ways to deal with paper wastes in Hong Kong.
“In Hong Kong, people simply collect wastes and export that to other places, mainly to Mainland China. It is nothing more but a simple trading business,” he says, noting that this is ineffective.
Pulp making inside Mil Mill’s factory.
And from Hong Kong landfill statistics, he found that there were more than 2,000 tonnes of paper wastes being discarded every day. He wanted to make a change.
“Paper recycling is very simple. You don’t put paper in a rubbish bin but a recycling bin. Why are there still many people not doing it?” he adds.
However, the founder at first believed that a paper mill was not feasible in Hong Kong due to limited space and infrastructure.
“To prepare for the setting up of Mil Mill in 2019, I applied for recycling fund to raise budgets. It took me more than one year to find an appropriate site and another nine months to construct the whole plant”, Yip says.
In 2015, the government introduced a HK$1 billion Recycling Fund to support recycling businesses with the hope to recover 55 per cent of municipal waste to achieve a goal of “zero-landfill” by 2035.
The pulp processed by Mil Mill is transported mainly to Mainland China as materials for the manufacture of different paper products such as tissue, A4 paper and packaging.
Processed pulp are ready for export.
The founder highlights the importance of networking with different enterprises and institutions to form collection points of paper wastes and sources for raw materials.
“The challenge with Mil Mill is that its model has two ends. Even if we collect sufficient amounts of waste, it would be useless if there are no places to send the pulp to”, Yip says.
Efforts of Mil Mill in the past years have been recognized by many institutions. The company has partnered with most shopping centers and residential estates in Hong Kong to build up over 600 collection points of paper wastes in 2024.
But the way to its success today was not easy. The COVID-19 broke out shortly after Mil Mill’s opening.
“We just built the factory and held a big opening ceremony, and then nothing, no materials coming in, no institutional investments. If I failed, I would have lost all the money and efforts”, Yip recalls.
“I was very worried about Mil Mill being shut down”, the 60-year-old man says.
The situation changed in 2020 when Mil Mill received support from many newly elected young district councilors, who helped set up collection points in their office and let the community know more about the recycling mission of Mil Mill.
“We could then expand the network with more enterprises and collect wastes from them. Gradually, our brand image became more popular that even some big corporations wanted to work with us”, Yip says.
Subsidies from the government during the pandemic and support from green groups helped the factory survive difficult times.
“We got a lot of support and were very lucky to overcome difficulties”, says the founder.
The biggest challenge for Mil Mill came late in 2022 when the government-backed landlord, the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation, refused to renew its lease and forced the company to leave Yuen Long.
“Right after COVID-19, the landlord kicked us out. We tried very hard and finally relocated to a new site in Fanling”, Yip says.
Moving to a new location, the company can only keep 20 per cent of its old facilities and has to install new machines.
“Capacity of the electricity supply is limited, so we have to find smaller and more energy-efficient machines”, the founder says.
Luckily, the plant could still manage to process relatively the same volume of wastes as the old site.
Having been through so many ups and downs, Yip’s passion in recycling wastes is undeterred.
“I want everyone to know that some kinds of paper wastes like milk cartons, ketchup cans and coffee cups are not rubbish and they can be recycled for a better purpose”, he says.
Yip now is no longer involved in day-to-day operations of the factory, though he is the largest shareholder.
But his journey with recycling continues.
“I am working in a new company that handles agricultural wastes to produce board fabrication for furnishing. I can not disclose much. Let’s wait for the official announcement,” Yip says.
