Society

  Couriers for the online food and grocery delivery app Foodpanda, owned by European company Delivery Hero, gathered at the company's offices in Sheung Wan on Tuesday, deadlocked in negotiations with the company over setting a standard base wage. The two sides sat down to negotiate after 300 disgruntled courier workers went on strike Saturday and Sunday to protest wage cuts, expanded delivery areas and inadequate insurance for self-employed operators, an action that involved several regions and affected the food delivery service, according to Headline Daily. Strike organizers drew up a list of 15 demands to give company’s representatives during the negotiation on Tuesday, ranging from a minimum service fee to time limits for completing orders. During negotiations that lasted from 5 p.m. until late at night, labor and management failed to reach an agreement. From August to November, Foodpanda's minimum service fees decreased in more than 40 regions in Hong Kong, ranging from 7% to 11%, according to the order service fee range sheet of Foodpanda. In negotiations, couriers asked for a minimum service fee of $50 for motorcyclists and $30 for walkers and cyclists, and asked the company to calculate service charge based on actual delivery distance instead of straight-line distance. “In August, I can earn about $900 a day, but after the fall in service fees, I can only earn $600 a day,” said Lam Chi-yung, a part-time delivery person for Foodpanda.  “If Foodpanda doesn’t answer our appeals, other couriers and I will probably continue to strike,” Lam added. Foodpanda and its couriers will restart negotiations on Thursday, as Tuesday's seven-hour discussion was inconclusive. Ho Hung-hing, the administrator of the Catering and Hotel Industries Employees General Union, told RTHK on Wednesday that it is difficult to reach a consensus on the requests over service fees as it …

  The M+ museum did not shy away from displaying artworks by the controversial Chinese artist Ai Weiwei on its opening day today, despite previous accusations that one of Ai's works violated national security law. The exhibition currently features two of Ai’s works, including Whitewash, a series of ceramic urns, some painted white, and Chang’an Boulevard, a video that captures the environment of Beijing from a rural village to the business district and the political core.  “By displaying, adapting and destroying historical artifacts, Ai reinstates, transforms, and also questions the value placed on objects, in a criticism of both politics and tradition,” M+ Museum wrote on its website. These two pieces will not be taken down, and curators will stand up for core artistic values and principles “within limits,” Tang Ying-yen, chairperson of the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority, said at a press conference on Thursday.  “We will uphold and encourage the freedom of artistic expression and creativity,” Tang said. “On the other hand, our dedicated curatorial team will ensure the exhibitions comply with the law, including the Basic Law, the national security law, and all other laws in Hong Kong.” He confirmed that one work in particular, Ai's photograph Study of Perspectives, which drew criticism from the pro-Beijing camp, will not be shown to the public in the museum opening.  “Any display of the photo would require further review,” he added. The photograph depicts Ai raising his middle finger at Tiananmen Square in Beijing, the site of a crackdown on pro-democracy protesters on June 4, 1989.  The picture of this artwork has also been removed from the M+ website. When searching for the work, it returns a description of the piece without the image. John Batten, president of the International Art Critics Hong Kong, said the decision is necessary …

A member of the moderate political party and think-tank Path of Democracy, Wong Wing-ho, said he will run in the Legislative Council election after the party called on Election Committee members to nominate their four candidates yesterday. Environmental and sustainability expert Wong, with 10 nominations from the Election Committee, will fight for a seat in the New Territories North East geographical constituency, according to a Path of Democracy social media post on Monday morning. Candidates in the same district include Chan Hak-kan of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong and Lee Tsz-king of the New People's Party. The party released an open letter on social media Sunday saying that none of their members had enough nominations to run in the Dec. 19 election. A minimum of 10 nominations is required to run for the election. Environmental and sustainability expert Wong, with 10 nominations from the Election Committee, will fight for a seat in the New Territories North East geographical constituency, according to a Path of Democracy social media post on Monday morning. “Since the release of yesterday’s open letter, we have been receiving calls from various constituents, some of whom, after learning about the think tank's philosophy, were so impressed with our aspirations and sincerity that they decided to nominate our candidates to run in the Legislative Council, ” the letter said. With nominations closing on Friday, the party continued to call on the Election Committee to nominate three other candidates to run in the Legislative Council Election in December, including Yao Jie-ning, Chan Chun-hung and Mak Hing-fun. Mak, who wants to run for the legal sector in the functional constituency, said she only got three nominations. “The election committee members I contacted told me to wait. But there are only four days left in …

The 21st Hong Kong International Literary Festival launched today is titled “The Rebound Edition”. The theme this year is  resilience, recovery and mental health amid the ongoing pandemic. The annual event features 50 online and on-site forums and webinars. “We want a theme that reflects the challenging times that the world is going through at that moment with the pandemic,” said Festival Director, Catherine Platt who went through three weeks of mandatory quarantine in Hong Kong. One panel titled “Behind Closed Doors: The Hong Kong Quarantine Experience” is moderated by Kate Whitehead,a journalist and therapist, who won the Mind HK Award for the best English-language journalism coverage on mental health issues in 2019 and 2020. Ms Whitehead will interview  three Hong Kong exporters who weigh up the long term impact of quarantine and their personal experiences of being locked up for 21 days in a hotel. They will also explore issues on mental health as a result of the longest quarantine in the world. “It's really obvious that some people find it very difficult to cope. A discussion can maybe help people and put forward some resources and some ideas for coping with it,” Ms Platt said.  This panel is available both online and on-site and ticket prices vary depending on the type of participation.  Chen Yuanxiang, a Hong Kong resident, finished a 14-day quarantine two months ago. She returned to Hong Kong from the mainland to take care of her husband who is in hospital. Ms  Chen felt anxious and was unable to do anything during the quarantine. She is considering attending the panel to listen to other people’s experiences and get some inspiration to survive her anxiety.  Ms. Platt said because of the current state of the global epidemic, the 21st HKILF cannot bring all of the event …

Halloween revellers dressing up as characters of Squid Game - the viral Korean dystopian drama on Netflix -  carry imitation guns on the streets on Sunday, despite police warning that possession of fake firearms may violate the law.  Phoebe Ng, 24, dressing up as one of the guards in Squid Game, wore a red hooded red jumpsuit and pair of black leather gloves - and held a fake gun labelled “TOY” by herself.  “The label can lower my risk of being suspected by the police. I don’t think it looks like a real gun,” she said.  Squid Game, the first Korean drama that hit the No.1 spot on Netflix, features a story of 456 indebted players completing a series of Korean children’s games to win a reward of KRW$45.6 billion (HK$301.1 million). The guards shoot the participants who lose in the games.  “According to past experience, some members of the public would wear costumes or pose as TV or movie characters during Halloween and bring all kinds of theatrical props with them. In this regard, police urge members of the public not to carry any imitation firearm as props,” a police statement released on Friday read.  Offenders may face a maximum of two years of imprisonment if convicted of owning any imitation firearms.  “I don’t think the police statement has stopped people from buying fake guns as part of their props to celebrate Halloween,” said Kelvin Li, a shop owner of a wholesale and retail of soft guns which he has run for over 10 years.  “The sales of our imitation and toy guns have grown drastically this month compared to September,” he added.    Firearms arms are defined as an air gun, such as an air rifle, air gun or air pistol from which a bullet or missile can …

Ocean Park’s Halloween Festival ended last Sunday without the traditional haunted house because of the pandemic. It’s the first time in  20 years that the spooky experience is missing  since the annual event started in 2001. Instead, visitors were treated to  “ghosts” performances in open space and three themed interactive games.  On top of the regular entrance fee, visitors who wanted to play the games had to pay an extra HK$280 for all three or HK$100 for one. "I lined up for more than two hours for a game, but I only played for five minutes, and it was over," said Christy Lau, 23, who paid for one of the interactive games. “I don’t think the games were worth my time and ticket money.” The three games include “Forbidden Rainforest Treasure Hunt”, in which participants have to protect their treasure maps from water gun attacks. The other two are “Survivors of the Undead” in which players go on a treasure hunt in a mock up wasteland while under attack, and “The Supernatural Ghost Tour,” where they are haunted by soul catchers.  “I don't think the Halloween events this year are as fun as the haunted house before,” said Yu Jin, 19, who had spent four Halloweens at Ocean Park in the past. “The games are all basic and not scary at all. I think Ocean Park is perfunctory about Halloween this year.” Tourists can also join the free outdoor attractions during specified time slots, and “ghosts” with different costumes will scare people in and around the park. Timothy Ng, executive director of Ocean Park said in a press release that Halloween events are mainly carried out in open space this year due to Covid prevention measures. Ticket prices have gone up because more resources and manpower were needed to host …