For the first time in 33 years, church services to commemorate the Tiananmen crackdown will not be held in Hong Kong, erasing one of the last reminders of China's bloody suppression of the 1989 protests.Since Beijing imposed a sweeping national security law in 2020 to snuff out pro-democracy demonstrations, once-packed candlelit vigils have been banned, a Tiananmen museum has been forced to close, and statues have been pulled down.The annual Catholic masses were one of the last ways for

Much of the world remains focused on the grisly developments in Ukraine, where Russian President Vladimir Putin’s army continues to commit war crimes against a sovereign country he claims is an inalienable part of Russia. Meanwhile, the story in Hong Kong has gone from very bad to even worse. In a farcical selection process dressed up as democracy, the Communist Party of China (CPC) recently installed a former policeman, John Lee, as the new chief executive of its puppet reg

A former security chief who oversaw the crackdown on Hong Kong's democracy movement was anointed the business hub's new leader on Sunday by a small committee of Beijing loyalists.John Lee, 64, was the only candidate in the Beijing-backed race to succeed outgoing leader Carrie Lam.The elevation of Lee, subject of United States (US) sanctions, places a security official in the top job for the first time after a tumultuous few years for a city battered by political unrest and debilitat

Jenny Leung, who lost her job as a waitress last month due to Hong Kong's zero-COVID strategy, has one question: "What was it all for?"Her frustration was in response to Hong Kong indicating it could transition towards living with the virus, though the city's leaders have since said it will stick with zero-COVID.Leung, 29, called it a "half-hearted attempt" after more than two years of "a zero-COVID mindset that really hurt all of us".China finds itself

Two United Kingdom (UK) Supreme Court judges resigned from Hong Kong's top court on Wednesday, as the government in London said it was "impossible" for them to keep serving in the former colony famed for its hybrid legal system.British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said that senior UK judges continuing to occupy roles there risked "legitimising oppression", following the imposition of China's controversial national security law in 2020.The stance taken by Britain –

Most countries are now trying to live with the coronavirus – so how long can China hold on to its "zero-COVID" goal?Striking A BalanceFor the last two years, China's strict measures to contain COVID, enforced by swift lockdowns and aggressive restrictions, seemed to be largely paying off.As the rest of the world grappled with surges in cases and deaths in 2020, China's President Xi Jinping declared the country's handling of the pandemic through lockdowns and widesprea

A pet sneezes, its nose is runny, and it seems sluggish.

Staff meetings are often mundane affairs and rarely end in tears.

The Hong Kong nursing home where Amy’s 78-year-old mother lives battened down the hatches when the COVID-19 pandemic hit.Elderly residents were confined within the walls of their rooms. Families were not allowed to visit. As the Chinese territory battled its biggest outbreak of coronavirus cases, staff at the private facility camped out in the office for weeks to avoid bringing the virus with them from outside.Even so, the inevitable happened.

One of Hong Kong's top coronavirus experts on Thursday joined a growing chorus of criticism over plans to test the entire city, saying doing so during its worst-ever outbreak would have little impact.The Asian financial hub is registering tens of thousands of new cases each day, overwhelming hospitals and shattering the city's zero-COVID strategy.China has ordered local officials to stamp out the current wave even as studies estimate as many as a quarter of the city's residents