🌊Peeled Frescgoed

China may have committed some human rights crimes in Xinjiang

Sep 1

Good morning,

Oops!

We made a mistake yesterday when saying

“Heavy police presence all day, no arrests have been reported but police stopped and searched many individuals with either protest slogans or flowers on their body”
~ Cyril yesterday

Someone did get arrested.

Yesterday’s Tide will be corrected, please don’t refer to the email version if quoting me.

I.e. Don’t quote me on this.

Hong Kong Free Press HKFP @hkfp

1/ A man was arrested near Prince Edward MTR Station on Wed evening according to local media. On August 31, 2019, baton-wielding riot police stormed the station following hours of protest clashes. Officers were filmed deploying pepper-spray as they drove away reporters & medics.

— Cyril today who got factchecked

On Today’s Tide

Culture | Peel Fresco closes after 16 years
COVID 10k |
- Badminton championships cancelled
- Mainland and Macau arrivals reduced testing requirements
Sports | Best of Sports Stars ceremony: Edgar and Siobhan
Events | Start-up festival up and running

Behind the paywall:

Greater China | UNHRC releases Xinjiang report against China’s wishes
Politics | 47 Democrats case adjourned
Appointments | Simon Peh advising the ICAC

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Peeled Frescgoed

After 16 glorious years, Hong Kong’s premier Jazz club, Peel Fresco, is closing its doors. Fresco, like many other live music establishments, was hit incredibly hard during COVID. While other historic locations like the Wanch went onto an extended hiatus, Fresco stayed open selling bar snacks and drinks.

However, they announced yesterday that they have decided to shut their doors permanently.

“This HKSAR continuous illogical and unsubsidized « Live Performances ban » simply made it impossible for us to go on and match a Soho commercial rent and related expenses […]
Live music was our blood, our core business for all these years, accounting for 90% of our revenue : we couldn’t suddenly turn our place into a tacos joint or a fancy steakhouse”
Peel Fresco Facebook Post

It was also there (in goddamn Nov) that I basically last flexed my sound tech muscles.

Cyril Ma @Cyrildoesthings

Peel Fresco is closing. Last I was there, there was actually a live performance (shock horror) but a weird buzz. @bbchris and I investigated, I took out my spectrogram. Found likely feedback caused by a faulty lead. Never got to see if it was fixed.

Hong Kong SAR Government News @newsgovhk

The Government will continue its prevention and control measures taking into account the #COVID19 epidemic development and its anti-epidemic policy which is maintained according to five points, the Chief Executive's Office says

news.gov.hkAnti-epidemic policy explainedThe Government will continue its prevention and control measures taking into account the COVID-19 epidemic development and its anti-epidemic policy which is maintained according to five points, the Chief Executive’s Office says.

COVID-19 in Hong Kong

New cases: 10586 (244 imported)
Total cases: 1,551,389
New deaths: 11
Total deaths: 9,701
Compulsory Testing locations: 58

Less testing if you’re from the Mainland

From Saturday, travelers coming from the Mainland or Macau will no longer need to test and hold, nor take tests on Days 4 and 6 of their arrival into HK. Instead they will only need to test on day 1 and 2.

The rule applies to all those in hotel quarantine or home quarantine.

‘Reverse isolation’ for Mainland visitors

The government is also currently in discussions for a ‘reverse isolation’ procedure for those traveling into China. Under this plan, instead of isolating when one crosses the border, they will instead quarantine in Hong Kong before traveling. Guangzhou and Shenzhen have agreed ‘in principle’ to the plan said CE John Lee.

The government has mooted building an isolation camp in Sha Tau Kok on the border as the quarantine area.

No Badminton for You

The Badminton World Federation has pulled the Hong Kong Opens this year due to quarantine measures. The Hong Kong Badminton Association said in a statement that Hong Kong’s quarantine and isolation requirements are too different to other countries, and has made a decision with the Federation to cancel this year’s opens and focus on next year’s.

Best of Sports

Speaking of sports, what isn’t cancelled is doing quite well.

The Hong Kong Sports Awards, a yearly event acknowledging the best in Hong Kong athleticism was held on Wednesday after a two year hiatus due to COVID.

https://www.thestandard.com.hk/section-news/section/4/245187/Cheung,-haughey-win-cream-of-sports-awards — Congrats to Edgar and Siobhan! Image via The Standard

The top ‘double star awards’ were taken by world champion fencer Edgar Cheung and multi-olympic award swimmer Siobhan Haughey.

Other recipients included

Cyclist Lee Wai-Sze,
Fencer Vivian Kong
Table Tennis players Doo Hoi-kem and Wong Chun-ting
Karataka Grace Lau and Lau Chi-Ming (her also karataka brother - runs in the family)
Badminton player Chu Man-Kai
Gymnast Shek Wai-Hung.

Events and deals

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StartmeupHK Festival

Curated by InvestHK, this year’s StartmeupHK Festival returns in a hybrid format from 5-10 Sept. Featuring 7 main events and 5 community events, the Festival is a must-attend with insightful and engaging keynotes from world-renowned speakers, discussions around hot topics such as the metaverse, NFTs, gaming, HealthTech, PropTech, sustainability, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), and much more throughout the week.

The festival is a combination of multiple platforms and individual multi-day events. Individual booking for each event is required.

Where: online & in person (various locations)
When: 5-10 Sept (various specific times)

Official media partner: ReThink HK returns 5-6 Oct

FINAL PUSH FOR DELEGATION PASSES:
Sign up here using the code HTP22 for 40% off! ACTIVE ONLY TILL 4 SEPT!
HK$575 instead of $949 after 5 Sept!

HT is proud to once again be a media partner for ReThink - HK’s biggest and most exciting sustainability conference. This year’s conference invites more than 300 expert speakers to share their visions and insights, covering important topics like economic progression while coexisting with nature harmoniously, efficient use of resources, transformation to a low-carbon society, and circular economy for future generations.