On the Hong Kong Women’s tour of United Arab Emirates, the UAE Women go two up in the T20 series beating Hong Kong Women by 28 runs at the Malek Cricket Ground, 28 April 2022.
images: HKcricket
Category: 2022
UAE Beat Hong Kong by 7 Wickets in the First Women’s T20i, 27 April, 2022
On the Hong Kong Women’s tour of United Arab Emirates, the UAE Women go one up in the T20 series beating Hong Kong Women by 7 wickets (with 27 balls remaining) at the Malek Cricket Ground, 27 April 2022.
images: HKcricket
Actor Kenneth Tsang Dies in Quarantine
Actor Kenneth Tsang Koon-yat 曾江 died in a quarantine hotel yesterday, the 87-year-old actor had flown in from Singapore and tested positive for covid.
Tsang was born in Shanghai and became an actor in the 1950s starring in many popular films during the 60s. In the 80s appearing with Chow Yun-Fat in A Better Tomorrow and its sequel, and films like John Woo’s The Killer and Rush Hour 2 raised Tsang’s international profile and saw him appear in The Replacement Killers in the James Bond film Die Another Day.
In his 50-year career, Tsang appeared in over 200 films, directing three.
Tsang has a star on the Avenue of Stars on the Tsim Sha Tsui waterfront.
Satirical Cartoonist Ah To Forced to Flee Hong Kong
Satirical cartoonist 阿塗 Ah To has announced that he has been forced to leave Hong Kong because he no longer feels safe…
A statement on Ah To’s facebook page explains his reasons for leaving so abruptly:
抱歉，離開香港，係因為我想繼續為香港創作。
呢句說話聽落好自相矛盾，但我內心又真係咁複雜矛盾。如今靈魂遺留在故地，肉體卻已經流亡，要咁撕裂地創作，只擔心往後的作品會魂不附體，難接地氣；但，留喺香港創作時事漫畫，精神壓力巨大，離別係逼不得已的抉擇。
畫咗十一年時事漫畫，2017年社運低潮時有諗過放棄；2021年有諗過轉型畫生活題材，但依家係香港最需要同時又最唔需要時事漫畫的時候，所以我更想堅持。原諒我軟弱無能，只能遙距透過創作繼續與香港同行。
因為離別匆匆，而且必須低調，遺憾無法同朋友一一話別。諗起再會無期的香港親友，諗起在囚或待審的戰友，諗起一直支持我的讀者，諗起要被迫陪我一齊走難的太太⋯⋯心裏非常愧疚。未試過出一個Post 會感到如此吃力，每一個字都令我難過。我會記住呢份愧疚，多替不能發聲的人發聲，希望將來香港歷史書上唔會留低一片靜默；日後提起呢個時代，唔會只剩當代人先能夠理解的零碎記憶，欠缺咗自由的表述，感觸或無從說起。
願良善的人珍重，以各種形式將良善存留下去。
English translation:
“I’m sorry. I’m leaving Hong Kong because I want to continue creating art for HK.
This sounds paradoxical, but that’s reflective of how I feel inside. My soul remains here, but my flesh has fled. I am concerned that my art may be detached from reality once I begin creating with my soul detached from my flesh, but the pressure of continuing to make topical comics in Hong Kong is too great, I am forced to leave.
I’ve been making topical comics for 11 years, I’ve thought about giving up in 2017 when the social movement was at a low point. I considered transitioning to more slice of life topics in 2021, but that was when HK least and most needed topical comics, I wanted to hang in there. Forgive me, I am weak, I can only accompany HK by creating art from afar.
I had to leave in a hurry, and must keep a low profile, so I regret not being able to bid all my friends farewell. I feel much guilt when I think of my readers who’ve supported me all the way, our comrades who are imprisoned or awaiting trial, and my wife who’s forced to flee with me.
I had no idea posting this would be so difficult, every word I type makes me so sad. I shall carry this guilt with me and speak up for those who cannot speak up for themselves.
I hope that the history books of HK will not be filled with silence. In the future, as we try to remember what happened, we’ll have more to rely on beyond the fragmented memories of people who were there. Without expression free, it’s hard to express our feelings.
Take care kind folk, and may kindness be preserved in its many forms.”
23rd Hong Kong Dance Awards 2022
The 23rd Hong Kong Dance Awards were presented in an online ceremony streamed live this month. A total of 20 awards including two Lifetime Achievement Awards and 18 jury awards were presented by emcees Irene Lo and Shirley Loong and accepted remotely by the winners.
Over 50 nominations were shortlisted in 15 categories, covering work created between January 2020 and December 2021. Hong Kong Dance Alliance Chair Allen Lam said “While it was sad that the traditional Awards Ceremony and Gala Performance could not be held due to the current pandemic restrictions. The quality of the shortlisted nominations shows the strength and resilience of the Hong Kong dance community, which has overcome the obstacles of the pandemic over the past two years to create so much truly exceptional work.”
Co-Chair of the Awards Jury, Natasha Rogai, added “In 15 years of working on the Awards, I have never seen stronger shortlists – there were several categories where two awards were presented and all the shortlisted nominations were worthy of an award.”
The Tom Brown Emerging Choreographer Award went to Kelvin Mak, artistic director of Beyond Dance Theater, whose powerful Remnants was named Outstanding Medium Venue Production sharing that award with City Contemporary Dance Company’s Days Are Numbered, which featured choreography by Justyne Li, Bruce Wong and Jennifer Mok.
Kelvin Mak said “I would like to thank the late Mr. Tom Brown for his support to the local dance scene, and to us emerging artists. I hope that this goodwill, passion, and spirit can be inherited and passed on.”
The Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to two women who have contributed to the development of dance in Hong Kong for decades: Tania Tang and Professor Shen Shir Ming.
Accepting the award, Professor Shen commented “I can see that the Hong Kong Dance Alliance set their sights beyond traditional definitions of dance; rather than simply focusing on choreography and performance, they aim to establish exchange and collaboration on all levels of the creative process between the dance sector and other industries, so that talents in dance may develop in a cross-disciplinary manner.”
Ms Tang said “Looking back, there were only a few foreign ballet teachers in Hong Kong. Nowadays, we are all witnessing a diverse ecology of dance arts in Hong Kong taking root and thriving. To the many generations of dancers to come, we must remain steadfast in our beliefs and work ethic; to all workers related to dance, we need to face all challenges head-on, and pass on the torch.”
23rd Hong Kong Dance Awards Winners
Outstanding Performance by a Male Dancer
Huang Lei
Nine Songs, Hong Kong Dance Company and Freespace
Shen Jie as Romeo
Romeo + Juliet, Hong Kong Ballet
Outstanding Performance by a Female Dancer
Hua Chi Yu
Nine Songs, Hong Kong Dance Company and Freespace
Outstanding Ensemble Performance
Dancers of Hong Kong Dance Company
Nine Songs, Hong Kong Dance Company and Freespace
Outstanding Music Composition
Leung Po Wing
I Don’t Mean It, City Contemporary Dance Company Dance Centre
Outstanding Set and Costume Design
Gabriela Tylesova and Albert Au: The Nutcracker, Hong Kong Ballet
Outstanding Choreography
Mui Cheuk Yin
Diary VII • The Story of……, Tai Kwun
Septime Webre
The Nutcracker, Hong Kong Ballet
Outstanding Online Production
Convergence, Hong Kong Dance Company and Freespace
Lifetime Achievement Award
Professor Shen Shir Ming
Ms Tania Tang
images:
Five Tiny Dances – Carbon Footprint – Keith Hiro
Nine Songs – Mak Cheong Wai
Convergence – Hong Kong Dance Company
46th Hong Kong International Film Festival
Originally scheduled for March, the postponed 46th Hong Kong International Film Festival will now run from 15-31 August 2022.
Similar to last year’s HKIFF45, the festival will feature a mix of in-person and online screenings and events. The Hong Kong International Film Festival Society will announce the HKIFF46 programme in July.
Aaron Kwok returns as festival ambassador for the fourth consecutive year saying that “There is no better platform for the Hong Kong public to reconnect with the best cinema offers.”
46th Hong Kong International Film Festival
Date: 15-31 August, 2022
Venue: various
Tickets: tbc
Anglers Can Fish All Year
The Water Supplies Department (WSD) has announced that from 21 April 2022 the fishing period in Hong Kong’s reservoirs will be relaxed, allowing anglers with valid fishing licences to fish in all reservoirs throughout the year.
There are 17 reservoirs and 9 irrigation reservoirs in Hong Kong that are open to the public for fishing and previously anglers were only allowed to fish in local reservoirs from 1 September to 31 March.
Anyone wishing to fish in local reservoirs must apply for a licence, which costs $33 and is valid for 3 years, from the WSD.
The WSD reminded anglers that they should keep the reservoirs clean and that:
All Black Bass under 360 mm, all Snakehead under 300 mm and all other fish species under 180 mm in length measured from tip of nose to fork of tail shall be immediately returned alive to the water.
Images: Water Supplies Department
Mainland Judgments in Civil and Commercial Matters (Reciprocal Enforcement) Bill to be introduced into LegCo
“A spokesman for the Department of Justice (DoJ) said today (April 20), “With the increasingly close interaction and co-operation between Hong Kong and the Mainland in terms of trade and economic activities as well as social interactions, there have been calls from the legal and business sectors for the early implementation of the REJ Arrangement to establish a more comprehensive mechanism on reciprocal recognition and enforcement of judgments”
“In formulating the REJ Arrangement, reference has been drawn to the then draft version of the Hague Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Judgments in Civil or Commercial Matters (Hague Judgments Convention) (Note).
As far as the scope of application is concerned, taking into account the practical needs and circumstances of Hong Kong and the Mainland, the REJ Arrangement goes beyond the Hague Judgments Convention by not only covering a wide range of judgments on contractual and tortious disputes, but also expressly includes judgments given in respect of certain types of disputes over intellectual property rights.”
“The Bill establishes the following mechanisms:
(1) A mechanism for registration in Hong Kong of Mainland Judgments in Civil or Commercial Matters; and
(2) A mechanism for application to Hong Kong courts for certified copies of and certificates for Hong Kong Judgments in Civil or Commercial Matters to facilitate parties in seeking recognition and enforcement of the Judgments in the Mainland.
In the Mainland, the REJ Arrangement will be implemented by way of judicial interpretation. In Hong Kong, after the enactment of the Bill, the Government will make relevant rules for the operation of the above mechanisms.”
Note: The Hague Judgments Convention was signed on July 2, 2019, and is yet to be in force.