The Young Reporter

Hong Kong High Court on Monday sentenced Apple Daily founder Jimmy Lai to 20 years in prison, the harshest penalty imposed so far under national security law.  The 78-year-old media tycoon was convicted in December 2025 on two counts of conspiring to collude with foreign forces to endanger national security and one count of conspiring to publish seditious materials.    The court described Lai as the “mastermind and driving force” behind a years-long campaign that included urging foreign governments to impose sanctions on Hong Kong and China.   The court ruled that the engagement of a foreign entity in endangering national security is regarded as more serious and “deserving of a more serious penalty".   Lai has already spent more than five years in custody on separate fraud charges related to his media company. The sentence means he will likely remain imprisoned well into his 90s. Eight other defendants, including former Apple Daily staff and members of the “Stand with Hong Kong” activist group, received prison sentences ranging from 6 years and 3 months to 10 years. Three companies linked to the newspaper, who are already insolvent, were each fined more than HK$3 million.  The verdict sparked strong criticism from the international community. The UK’s Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said the term is “tantamount to a life sentence” in a statement. The Committee to Protect Journalists also called the decision the “final nail in the coffin for freedom of the press in Hong Kong”.   Hong Kong and Beijing officials said the ruling upholds the rule of law and safeguards national security. Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu said in a statement, “Lai’s actions sacrificed the well-being of the people, betrayed the country, harmed Hong Kong and damaged the interests of both the nation and the city. Lai deserved the punishment.”    This case marks the first full sentencing under the national security law for “collusion with foreign forces.” It comes nearly five years since Apple Daily was forced to cease operations in 2021 following a series of police raids and asset freezes.  The legal teams representing Jimmy Lai and the other defendants have not yet indicated whether they will appeal the verdict. 

Jimmy Lai Chee-ying, 78, the founder of pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily, was found guilty on three charges of violating national security. Lai was convicted of two counts of "conspiracy to collude with foreign or external forces to endanger national security" under the National Security Law and one count of "conspiracy to publish seditious publications."  He faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.  Judge Esther Toh Lye-ping said in the judgment that Lai's evidence was “contradictory and inconsistent and he was evasive and unreliable in many instances" and dismissed some of his testimony. The court also said in concluding remarks that during the 2019 anti-extradition bill movement, Lai had “constant invitation to the US to help bring down the Government of the PRC with the excuse of helping the people of HK.”  The trial, which spanned 156 days, is the first in Hong Kong to involve the charge of "conspiracy to collude with foreign forces.” Lai was arrested by Hong Kong's national security police in August 2020 and has remained in custody since December that year, a detention of nearly five years.  Hong Kong’s officials and Beijing's official representative body the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in Hong Kong have both issued statements welcoming the court's guilty verdict.  Press freedom organisations around the world criticised the ruling. Reporters Without Borders wrote in a statement that it is a “shame trail” for Lai and “emblematic of a wider and devastating collapse of press freedom” in Hong Kong. The British Consulate General in Hong Kong and the European Union Office in Hong Kong also issued statements to show their concern regarding the verdict. The British Consulate General condemned “the politically motivated prosecution" on Monday evening and called for “immediate release” of Lai. Lai became a British citizen after obtaining a UK …

On a November morning in Hong Kong, the sun scorching the tiled roof of the Wong Tai Sin Temple, hundreds of people pressed together to head to the main altar in a rite for the upcoming Legislative Council election. Devotees walked slowly past the great bronze incense burner, heads bowed, respectfully planting three sticks of incense each. Alan Chan, 68, edged forward in the slow-moving river of bodies, his three incense sticks already lit and trembling between his fingers. For decades this had been his quiet anchor: a bow, a murmured name — Tommy Cheung Yu-Yan. But the 76-year-old lawmaker had just announced his retirement from Legco after 25 years. His prayer caught in his throat. He stared at the altar’s flickering candles, the sea of unfamiliar faces on campaign flyers taped to nearby pillars.  "These young candidates I don’t recognise a single one…How am I supposed to vote? How am I supposed to pray?" he said. Cheung is one of 12 current Lego members aged 70 or above who declared they will not run in this year's election, including former Legco president Andrew Leung Kwan-yin, 74, and convener of the Executive Council Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee, 75, accounting for a little over a third of all 35 lawmakers who announced their election withdrawal. Most veteran lawmakers said that they hope to make way for the younger generation. This unprecedented wave of withdrawals is despite no existing legislation specifying a retirement age limit for members of Legco.  Although the reasons for the generational shift remain unclear, some commentators have speculated that Beijing seeks a younger cohort of legislators who will appeal to Hong Kong’s youth and align more closely with national development priorities. Martin Cheung Tat-ming, Chief Researcher at a leading local think tank, said the most direct reason why …

North of Lantau Island, waves crashed against coastal rocks. In February 2024, a team from Kadoorie Farm and Botanic Garden discovered a white, crumbly solid — the first Eurasian otter feces recorded there in half a century.  Back at the lab, Aiko Leong Kwok-yi, a 30-year-old conservation staff at the Fauna Conservation Department under the KFBG, handled the sample for DNA testing, leaning in to sniff its scent. “Otter faeces do not smell foul, they smell salty like dried salted fish. When fresh, it smells like tea, jasmine tea, not stinky at all,” Leong said. The discovery on Lantau Island has ignited a fragile hope for Eurasian otters clinging to survival in the city. With only seven individuals remaining, primarily in the Mai Po and Inner Deep Bay Wetlands, the otters are at extremely high risk of extinction. In response, KFBG, the only local team dedicated to otter conservation, launched a two-and-a-half-year Eurasian otters research project on Dec. 1 this year. The project received HK$2.2 million funding from the Civil Engineering and Development Department. The study will deepen understanding of the  distribution and status of otters, identify habitats and threats of it within Lantau Island, beginning with the collection of feces samples. Leong, who joined the team in 2020 and now leads the project, set her sights on animal research after reading about legendary conservationist Jane Goodall at the age of 11. “Jane Goodall’s story just hit me that there are people who can work with animals every day. I found my life’s purpose at that moment,” Leong said. “From that day on, I've been heading straight in this way, never turning any corners,” Leong added. The path has been physically demanding. During early fieldwork, she navigated slippery coastal rocks, once nearly falling into the sea.  “I asked myself, why …

Reported by Audrey Fu Rong, Betty Lan Xinbei Edited by Alishiba matloob Aloosh, Carmen Cao Jiawen, Vinci Ao Wei-ying Video Description : Research shows social media increases Gen Z’s anxiety. The idea of "digital detox" is emerging as a trend among Gen Zs to combat mental health damage due to comparisons of doomscrolling. Betty Lan, one of our TYR reporters, embarks on a 24-hour digital detox challenge. Staying away from electronic devices, she was not adapted without them before experiencing different activities with her friends.

Supply stations at Kwong Fuk Estate brimmed with essentials at noon as volunteers urged donors to hold off, confirming sufficient stocks for residents displaced by the Tai Po blaze. The stations offered various supplies, including solid meals, drinks, first aid medicine, adhesive bandages, masks, paper underwear, and shampoo. A group of secondary school students from the nearby Wong Shiu Chi Secondary School, in uniforms, handed out snacks and fruit at the station.  One student told the reporter that they offered displaced residents freshly cooked vegetarian lunchboxes and hot tea provided by local restaurants in the neighborhood .  “Prescription grains and blankets for pets can be obtained. We want to deliver them to people in need as soon as possible,” said Tracy Wong, 30, a volunteer at a pet supplies booth on site.  The pet supplies booth called on the public to stop sending more cat and dog food as it had sufficient resources collected.  Other booths worked on sorting clothes, separating heavy winter garments from lighter clothes on the ground.  Additional services at the stations included blood pressure checks and counseling sessions to comfort residents.

Every day, Zhang Danying, 22, an undergraduate student from mainland China at Hong Kong Baptist University, turns her phone on to enjoy scrolling through clips and image-driven posts on social media from the moment she wakes up. She spends almost 12 hours a day watching netizens dancing to pop music, or trying out various challenges. Zhang aspires to seek learning advice and reach for lighthearted social snippets to feel relaxed. Instead, she grew anxious from social comparison with people, and came down to media addiction that disrupted her daily routines out of the cyberworld, with constant inner struggles.  “It is hard not to watch social media for a day,” Zhang Danying said. “But after watching it, I feel uncomfortable all day.” Zhang is not alone. In mainland China as well as globally, it has become common for Gen Z to jokingly claim they are suffering from “brain rot”—a slang phrase that means poor cognitive skills and fading memory after hours of social media scrolling. As noted by the Oxford University Press in 2024, usage of the term “brain rot” surged by 230% from 2023 to 2024.  According to a 2024 survey by Bazaarvoice in Statista, 34% of interviewees' responses that short-form videos, such as TikTok and Instagram reels, are more effective at spreading online than text-based posts.  Based on Metricool Viral Trends Analysis, popular social media posts include catchy music, timely hashtags, evolving cultural conversations and collective online experiences, shaping as a market strategy.  As noted by the China Trends 2024 by Groove Dynasty, it highlights Douyin phenomena of emerging social experiment-type challenges, one case is that participants stage humiliating acts in crowded elevators to capture bystander reactions. Other examples include the ‘APT. Dance’ that features hand gestures with upbeat music. Zhang Danying is caught up in the wave of …

Young Australians are leading a new trend all over social media, focusing on alcohol-free socialising and personal wellness. The trend is on the news everywhere in Australia. Data shows 76% of 1000 young Australians, aged 18-24, prefer to socialise without alcohol. Meanwhile, one in four Australians has reduced their alcohol consumption over the past year. Instead of bars and clubs, people in Brisbane, Sydney, and Melbourne are flocking to cafes and bakeries hosting 8 am morning raves to kick off the day feeling fresh and energised.

Hong Kong’s Simmi Chan Sin-yuk, 23, lost to Belgium’s Tinne Gilis at the single-elimination round of the Milwaukee Squash Open 2025 on Dec. 3, ending the team’s journey at the tournament. As the tournament entered its third day, Chan was the only one among the six Hong Kong players to advance to the second round of the five-round competition. Chan, who claimed the silver medal at the inaugural Under-23 World Squash Championships this April, found her match when faced against the world’s No. 8 squash player, Tinne Gilis, falling to a defeat with 9–11, 7–11, and 12–14 in the three rounds of the match, respectively, at the Hong Kong Squash Centre. “I have given out everything I could to win the game, so I carry no regret regarding the defeat,” Chan said. The tournament is divided into men’s and women’s main draws, each only featuring the top 30 players worldwide, and the local host was awarded two unrestricted qualifying spots in each draw, granting entry to local players with no restrictions on their world ranking. “It will be a tough game for Chan since Gilis is a formidable opponent,” said Wong Tsz-hin, 30, Chan’s teammate, adding that he hopes Chan can enjoy the game before the match begins. Gilis took the leading position in both the first and second rounds, at one point holding a five‑point advantage in an 11‑point game. Despite reaching the match point at 10–9 in the third game, Chan missed several shots from the same spot on the right forecourt, allowing Gilis to reverse the momentum and win.  “She was able to complete the defence when the situation was unfavourable for her,” Chan said, describing Gilis as a rival who combines physical strength with steady play in the post-game media conference. Chan’s rival Gilis just won her …