Hong Kong's COVID-19 hamster cull sparks fear of owners abandoning pets - CNA

HONG KONG: A mass hamster cull in Hong Kong sparked fears among animal welfare groups on Wednesday (Jan 19) that panicky people would abandon their pets after 11 of the rodents from one pet shop in the city tested positive for COVID-19.

The local Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA), which runs veterinary clinics, told Reuters it received "numerous" enquiries from worried pet owners, asking what to do about the latest scare.

"We urge the pet owners not to panic or abandon their pets," SPCA said in a statement.

Scientists around the world and Hong Kong health and veterinary authorities have said there was no evidence that animals play a major role in human contagion with the coronavirus.

But having pursued a policy of zero tolerance for COVID-19, Hong Kong government officials took no chances after a series of recent infections with the Delta variant were traced back to a worker at a pet shop.

Hundreds of samples were collected from animals, including rabbits and chinchillas, but only the hamsters tested positive for COVID-19, resulting in officials giving orders for about 2,000 hamsters from 34 pet shops to be put down "humanely".

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2022-01-19 05:22:20Z
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More expats may quit Hong Kong over its tough Covid laws: Survey - BBC News

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A leading business organisation says more than 40% of its members are considering leaving Hong Kong due to the city's strict coronavirus rules.

The American Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong pointed to border closures as a major issue for those surveyed.

The organisation's president has told the BBC she has now left Hong Kong.

The Asian financial hub has some of the world's tightest coronavirus rules as it follows mainland China's tough zero-Covid policies.

The American Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong's (AmCham HK) 2022 Business Sentiment Survey polled 262 individuals and corporate representatives, many of which have moved to the city from overseas.

It found that 44% of individuals said that they may leave Hong Kong due to its border controls and social restrictions. That compares to 26% of the companies surveyed saying they are considering relocating.

"Companies are not keen to go - but for the staff there are all sorts of issues. Because they have personal lives, they have anxieties, they have families back home," AmCham HK's outgoing-president Tara Joseph said.

"One of the things that's really hurting at this point is there seems to be no light at the end of the tunnel," she said.

The survey found that Hong Kong's Covid-19 restrictions are causing businesses significant disruptions, delaying new investment and making it difficult to recruit talent.

However, the survey also said businesses are upbeat when it comes to their prospects in the city.

This is particularly the case in the financial services industry, with almost a third of respondents saying Hong Kong has gained in regional competitiveness in the last three years when it comes to wealth management.

Many of those surveyed also said they saw business opportunities opening up as some companies and individuals left the city.

While firms remained broadly optimistic, strained US-China relations, the high cost of living and other issues have caused concerns.

Almost 70% of respondents said their confidence in Hong Kong's rule of law had worsened over the past year, with issues such as the imprisonment of billionaire Jimmy Lai and the increasing closeness of Hong Kong's government to Beijing weighing on sentiment.

Ms Joseph is herself one of the expats who has chosen to leave the city.

Now back in the US, she is due to leave her post as AmCham HK's president in March and said she has been unable to return to the city after Hong Kong closed its border to America.

"Even if I wanted to go back, I couldn't," she said about the city she's called home for the past 20 years.

"I feel sad but I'm a realist. I would love to see Hong Kong succeed."

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2022-01-19 06:22:44Z
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Covid Cases in China: Beijing Faces Omicron, Delta Threat Ahead of Olympics - Bloomberg

China’s highly guarded capital is seeing signs of further coronavirus spread, with new cases of both the omicron and delta variants found less than three weeks before the Winter Olympic Games.

Beijing’s first omicron patient has passed the virus to at least two close contacts, according to the health commission. Separately, a person in a different part of the capital tested preliminary positive for delta, city spokesperson Xu Hejian said at a briefing on Tuesday.

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2022-01-18 10:40:27Z
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China orders overseas mail disinfection over Omicron fears - CNA

BEIJING: China's postal service has ordered workers to disinfect international deliveries and urged the public to reduce orders from overseas after authorities claimed that mail could be the source of recent COVID-19 outbreaks.

China, where the virus first emerged in late 2019, has stuck to a strict policy of targeting zero COVID-19 cases even as the rest of the world has reopened.

But the country is now battling multiple small outbreaks, including one in Beijing as the capital prepares to host the Winter Olympics.

In recent days, Chinese officials have suggested that some people could have been infected by packages from abroad, including a woman in Beijing whom authorities said had no contact with other infected people but tested positive for a variant similar to those found in North America.

China Post on Monday published a statement ordering workers to disinfect the outer packaging of all international mail "as soon as possible" and requiring employees handling foreign letters and packages to receive booster vaccine shots.

The postal service also asked the public to reduce purchases and deliveries from "countries and regions with a high overseas epidemic risk" and said that domestic mail should be handled in different areas to prevent cross-contamination.

The coronavirus is spread through small liquid particles exhaled by infected people.

Both the World Health Organization and the United States Centers for Disease Control (CDC) have said that the risk of being infected from contaminated surfaces - known as fomite transmission - is low and becomes less likely as time passes.

The CDC has said that there is a 99 per cent reduction in virus traces left on most surfaces within three days.

But China is not willing to take any risks, even more so ahead of next month's Winter Olympics.

The country uses strict local lockdowns, mass testing and people tracing health apps to stamp out infections as soon as cases are detected.

Millions have been confined to their homes in multiple cities in recent weeks after cases of both the Delta and Omicron coronavirus variants flared.

Recent infections have been detected in areas that receive a high volume of international goods, including in the eastern port city of Tianjin and the southern manufacturing region of Guangdong.

China reported 127 new locally transmitted COVID-19 cases on Tuesday.

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2022-01-18 03:15:00Z
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Hong Kong watchdog shell-shocked no crustacean in lobster meatballs - CNA

HONG KONG: It may look like lobster and taste like lobster, but Hong Kong's consumer watchdog is warning hungry hotpot fanatics that the shellfish-tasting meatballs do not, in fact, come from under the sea.

Meatballs are ubiquitous in food-obsessed Hong Kong - offered up on skewers by lunchtime food vendors and also a popular menu item in hotpot and barbeque restaurants.

But anyone with a hankering for lobster meatballs might get a little crabby with Monday's (Jan 17) press release from Hong Kong's Consumer Council, which said it conducted DNA tests on a variety of meatballs for the first time.

"All 10 samples of lobster balls were not detected with crustacean DNA, including a sample which listed lobster in the ingredients list," it said.

Only two samples tested had indicated they were not made from real lobster, calling their products "lobster-flavoured meatballs" and "imitation lobster balls".

The shell-shocking discovery still holds some mystery - specifically what exactly the so-called "lobster balls" contained, said Nora Tam Fung-yee, the chairwoman of the council's research and testing committee.

"We found some other ingredients ... that might be other seafood or even meat-type ingredients," she told the South China Morning Post.

"But our tests focused on lobster-related DNA so we only know that lobster balls to not contain crustacean DNA."

The Consumer Council also found that out of 20 beef and beef tendon balls tested, only seven were found to contain 100 per cent cow DNA - the rest had pig and chicken detected in parts of it.

"(Eight) samples even had a lower proportion of cow DNA as compared with pig and chicken DNA," it said, warning consumers with dietary or religious food restrictions to "pay extra heed".

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2022-01-17 13:20:00Z
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Djokovic 'extremely disappointed' with cancellation of visa - CNA

Djokovic had appealed Immigration Minister Alex Hawke's decision to cancel his visa on the grounds that he was a threat to public order because his presence would encourage anti-vaccination sentiment amid Australia's worst COVID-19 outbreak.

"I will now be taking some time to rest and to recuperate, before making any further comments beyond this," the 34-year-old said in a statement after the court dismissed his case.

"I am extremely disappointed with the Court ruling to dismiss my application for judicial review of the Minister's decision to cancel my visa, which means I cannot stay in Australia and participate in the Australian Open.

"I respect the Court's ruling and I will cooperate with the relevant authorities in relation to my departure from the country."

Djokovic, who is not vaccinated against COVID-19, was granted a medical exemption to compete at the Melbourne Park major, a tournament he has won nine times including the last three editions.

The defending Australian Open champion flew into Melbourne on Jan 5 hoping to win the title for a 10th time, in the process becoming the first men's player in the history of the game to grab 21 Grand Slam titles.

In an 11-day battle over his lack of a COVID-19 vaccine that captured global attention, the tennis ace had his visa cancelled at Melbourne airport, reinstated on a procedural issue and then cancelled again by the government.

He spent his first few nights in Australia at a notorious Melbourne detention centre, walked free to practice on the Australian Open's courts for several days after he won back his visa, and then was returned into detention.

Rafa Nadal, who is tied with Djokovic on 20 major titles, said "too many questions" still needed to be answered concerning the Serb's bid to play the tournament, while other leading players lamented how Slam has been overshadowed by the saga.

"I am uncomfortable that the focus of the past weeks has been on me and I hope that we can all now focus on the game and tournament I love," Djokovic said, while also thanking those that supported him.

"I would like to wish the players, tournament officials, staff, volunteers and fans all the best for the tournament."

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2022-01-16 08:14:24Z
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Concerns mount for Tonga after tsunami triggered by underwater volcano - CNA

WELLINGTON: Pacific nations and humanitarian groups struggled to establish communications with Tonga on Sunday (Jan 16) after a tsunami triggered by a massive volcanic eruption cut telephone and Internet connections, raising concerns for the tiny island nation.

An underwater volcano off Tonga erupted on Saturday, triggering tsunami warnings and evacuation orders on the shores of Tonga as well as several South Pacific islands, where footage on social media showed waves crashing into coastal homes.

Internet and phone lines went down at about 6.40pm local time (1.40pm, Singapore time) on Saturday, leaving the 105,000 residents on the islands virtually uncontactable.

"The images of the volcanic eruption in close proximity to Tonga are hugely concerning," Jacinda Ardern, the Prime Minister of New Zealand, located about 2,383km from Tonga, said in a statement on Instagram.

"Communication as a result of the eruption has been difficult, but our defence force team and Ministry of Foreign Affairs are working as we speak to establish what's needed and how we can help," she said.

The New Zealand foreign ministry said there were no reports of injuries or deaths as yet but communications were limited.

Ardern will address the media at 3pm New Zealand time (10am, Singapore time) to give an update on the situation.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies Pacific Office in Suva, Fiji said it was monitoring the situation and had no updates on damages or casualties.

Tongan churches in New Zealand organised prayers for their families back home.

"We pray God will help our country at this sad moment. We hope everybody is safe," Maikeli Atiola, the secretary of the Wesleyan Church of Tonga in Auckland said, Radio New Zealand reported.

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2022-01-16 02:16:45Z
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