Witman Hung partygate

Witman Hung, whose birthday party stirred controversy

Witman Hung partygate refers to a political scandal in Hong Kong that occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic.

On 3 January 2022, during the city's fifth wave of COVID-19 infections, a banquet was held at a tapas bar in Wan Chai to celebrate the 53rd birthday of Witman Hung Wai-man, a delegate of Hong Kong to the National People's Congress. Amidst initial spread of the Omicron variant, the party was attended by at least 225 people including several senior officials, exceeding the legal capacity of the venue. The party was held against advice given by authorities to avoid large gatherings, and some attendees were later scrutinised for failing to use the government's contact tracing app, LeaveHomeSafe, as was legally required.

The party became known to the public after a participant became infected with COVID-19, prompting authorities to order Hung and 170 other attendees to enter quarantine at a government facility in Penny's Bay. The event became a political scandal over possible violation of anti-epidemic regulations. Chief Executive Carrie Lam suspended 13 officials who had attended, including Secretary for Home Affairs Caspar Tsui, who later resigned from his post. ^[1]

Background

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Hong Kong authorities maintained strict public health measures and implemented a zero-COVID policy. The first clusters of the highly contagious Omicron variant of concern appeared in the city on 30 December. ^{[2] [3]} In response, authorities advised citizens to avoid crowds or attending large gatherings. ^{[4] [5]}

Witman Hung Wai-man is the principal liaison officer for Hong Kong at the Shenzhen Qianhai Authority and a delegate of Hong Kong to the National People's Congress. ^{[6] [7]} Described by South China Morning Post as a "flamboyant personality", Hung is considered well-connected among Hong Kong political and business leaders. An anonymous source familiar with Hung also described him as a " party animal ". ^[6]

The 7th Legislative Council of Hong Kong had just been formed after the 2021 legislative election, and was due to convene its first session on 12 January 2022, just days before the scandal broke and implicated several newly elected members. ^[6]

Witman Hung's birthday party

Hung's party was held at Reserva Ibérica Tapas Bar & Restaurant in Wan Chai.

On 3 January 2022, a banquet was held to celebrate the 53rd birthday of Witman Hung Wai-man at Reserva Ibérica Tapas Bar & Restaurant in Causeway Centre, Wan Chai. ^[8] With an indoor dining area of about 1,000 sq ft (93 m²), this Spanish restaurant was estimated to be serving 150 customers under the "type D" mode of operation. ^[9] The number of diners in type D catering businesses could not exceed the seating capacity of the premise and it was the restaurant's responsibility under the law to ensure that all customers had scanned the QR code for the government's track-and-trace mobile application before entering the venue. ^[10]

However, photographs leaked to the press showed more than 200 joined the crowded party, ^{[11] [12]} with some believed to be senior government officials and members of the Legislative Council, ^[13] who had attended their oath-taking ceremony earlier that day. ^[1] Later reports confirmed the event was attended by at least 225 people, ^[14] including fourteen senior officials and twenty lawmakers, ^[15] exceeding the legal capacity of the venue. ^{[16] [17] [18]} Hung was photographed not wearing a face mask while singing karaoke and interacting closely with guests. ^{[19] [20]} Reports suggested that some officials, including Secretary for Home Affairs Caspar Tsui, stayed throughout the banquet, while some others attended for brief periods before leaving. ^[21] Many attendees also failed to use Hong Kong's contact tracing app, LeaveHomeSafe, as was mandated under government guidelines. ^[22]

Consequences

Finance Secretary Christopher Hui

Commissioner of Police Raymond Siu

Director of Immigration Au Ka-wang

Hui, Siu and Au were among the senior officials ordered to enter quarantine facilities following their attendance of Hung's birthday party.

On 6 January, a participant of the party, who had been in close contact with some legislators, tested positive for COVID-19. ^{[23] [24]} Later that day, Chief Executive Carrie Lam confirmed more than ten senior government officials joined the party. She said she was "very disappointed" in ministers joining the party, especially Tsui, and vowed to take action. ^[25]

On 7 January, the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department launched an investigation into social distancing adherence at the restaurant during the event, ^[26] whilst Lam announced Director of the Chief Executive's Office Eric Chan Kwok-ki and Secretary for the Civil Service Patrick Nip Tak-kuen would be tasked with parallel investigations into the actions of attending legislators. ^[27]

In accordance with Hong Kong's COVID-19 contact tracing system, 170 attendees including 20 legislators and more than 10 government officials were ordered to enter a 21-day quarantine at a government facility in Penny's Bay. ^{[6] [28] [22]} Lam suspended 13 officials for the duration of their quarantine. ^[27] A second attendee later tested positive for the virus ^[29] though this was later found to be a false positive, ^[30] leading to 11 officials being permitted to leave the quarantine facility; Lam instead ordered them to self-isolate at home using their own annual leave. ^{[15] [31]}

On 18 January, three officials including Tsui left the quarantine facility early as the 21-day isolation period had been reduced to 14 days. ^[32]

Notable attendees

Category	Attendee	Position	Quarantined	Self-isolated at home	Scanned mandatory track-and-trace app
Principal officials	Caspar Tsui	Secretary for Home Affairs	For 21 days [33] [34]		No [35] [36] [37] [38]
	Christopher Hui	Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury	Until false positive reported [39] [31]	Requested by CE [31]
	Simon Peh	Commissioner of the Independent Commission Against Corruption	Until false positive reported [39] [31]	Requested by CE [31]
	Raymond Siu	Commissioner of Police	Until false positive reported [39] [31]	Requested by CE [31]
	Au Ka-wang	Director of Immigration	For 21 days		No [35] [36] [37] [38]
Political appointees	Jack Chan Jick-chi	Under Secretary for Home Affairs	Until false positive reported [39] [31]	Requested by CE [31]	Yes [40]
	Joseph Chan Ho-lim	Under Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury	Until false positive reported [39] [31]	Requested by CE [31]
	David Chung Wai-keung	Under Secretary for Innovation and Technology	Until false positive reported [39] [31]	Requested by CE [31]
	Clement Woo Kin-man	Under Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs	Until false positive reported [39] [31]	Requested by CE [31]
	Jack Chan Jick-chi	Under Secretary for Home Affairs	Until false positive reported [39] [31]	Requested by CE [31]	Yes [40]
	Joseph Chan Ho-lim	Under Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury	Until false positive reported [39] [31]	Requested by CE [31]
	David Chung Wai-keung	Under Secretary for Innovation and Technology	Until false positive reported [39] [31]	Requested by CE [31]
Other officials	Vincent Fung Hao-yin [41]	Deputy Head of the Policy Innovation and Co-ordination Office	Until false positive reported [39] [31]	Requested by CE [31]	Yes [40]
	Burmie Wong Wing-kwan	Media Officer at the Home Affairs Bureau
Members of the 7th Legislative Council	Rock Chen		For 21 days
	Duncan Chiu		For 21 days
	Benson Luk		For 21 days
	Wendy Hong		For 21 days
	Tan Yueheng		Until false positive reported [39] [31]	Urged by LegCo Pres. [42]
	Lai Tung-kwok		Until false positive reported [39] [31]	Urged by LegCo Pres. [42]
	Junius Ho		Until false positive reported [39] [31]	Urged by LegCo Pres. [42]
	Kenneth Fok		Until false positive reported [39] [31]	Urged by LegCo Pres. [42]
	Nixie Lam		Until false positive reported [39] [31]	Urged by LegCo Pres. [42]
	Judy Chan			Urged by LegCo Pres. [42]	Yes [40]
	Lillian Kwok			Urged by LegCo Pres. [42]
	Chan Pui-leung			Urged by LegCo Pres. [42]
	Elizabeth Quat			Urged by LegCo Pres. [42]
	Eunice Yung			Urged by LegCo Pres. [42]
	Chow Man-kong			Urged by LegCo Pres. [42]
	Kwok Wai-keung			Urged by LegCo Pres. [42]
	Dennis Lam			Urged by LegCo Pres. [42]
	Kenneth Leung Yuk-wai			Urged by LegCo Pres. [42]
	Johnny Ng			Urged by LegCo Pres. [42]
	Nelson Lam			Urged by LegCo Pres. [42]
Other attendees	Chan Chak-ming [43]	President of the Law Society of Hong Kong
	Cally Kwong	Delegate of Hong Kong to the National People's Congress			No [35] [36] [37] [38]
	Ellen Tsang Fung-chu	Member of the Election Committee
	Hermes Tang	Former Commissioner of Customs and Excise
	Yang Wang	Vice-president of HKUST
	Charles Ng Wang-wai	Vice-president of HKUST (Guangzhou), 2021 legislative election candidate (Election Committee constituency)
	Wu Chili [44]	Research centre manager of HKUST Fok Ying Tung Research Institute, 2021 legislative election candidate (Technology and Innovation constituency)

Reactions

Just days before the party, Carrie Lam condemned Cathay Pacific leaders after its staff were blamed for starting the fifth wave of pandemic and asked them to take the responsibility, citing herself as an example, "I need to be responsible for everything as the head of the Special Administrative Region". ^[45] However, after ministers were involved in the partygate, Lam said she doesn't need to bear responsibility for ministers' own mistakes. ^[46] This perceived double standard attracted criticism in local media. ^{[47] [48]} Pro-Beijing politicians Tam Yiu-chung and Kwok Wai-keung continued to criticise Cathay Pacific when asked about the event. ^[49]

In response to the backlash from politicians, local media, and attendees to his party who were being moved into quarantine, Hung apologised for his actions from the quarantine centre in Penny's Bay. When asked if he would resign, he told South China Morning Post , "I am too busy and don't have time to think about whether I should resign from the Qianhai Authority". Tam Yiu-chung, Hong Kong's delegate to the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, said that "Hung has said sorry for triggering the saga. I don't see any need for him to resign as a deputy to the NPC". ^[6]

Senior officials, especially Commissioner of ICAC Simon Peh, were also criticised for attending private parties, which were usually avoided to show neutrality in the colonial era and the early years after the handover of Hong Kong. ^[50] Chung Kim-wah, vice-president of Hong Kong Public Opinion Research Institute, said the Witman Hung partygate and the Evergrande dinner scandal (in which three officials joined a dinner violating pandemic regulations, with one of the attendees arrested for rape) showed that the boundary between the political cultures in Hong Kong and China was further blurred. ^[19]

On 11 January, Raymond Young, former Permanent Secretary for Home Affairs who was said to be dissatisfied with Carrie Lam when the two worked together, ^[51] questioned which rules officials broke, considering that the party was held two days before rules were tightened. He also revealed that Lam attended a wedding recently. ^[52] Lam replied she attended the wedding party for around 10 minutes and it was in late-November or early-December 2021. ^{[53] [54]} Hong Kong Inmedia later reported the party was on 5 December 2021 and Lam had worn a mask during it. ^[55]

Authorities in Beijing reportedly pressured Lam to take action against the officials implicated. ^[15] The scandal also attracted international media attention. ^{[56] [57]}

Aftermath

Caspar Tsui resigned from his post as Secretary for Home Affairs in the fallout from the scandal.

Reportedly facing the sack, ^[58] Tsui resigned on 31 January, awaiting approval from the Chinese government. ^{[5] [59]} At a press conference a few hours later, Lam criticised all officials who attended but singled out Tsui given his role in overseeing Hong Kong's pandemic response. ^[1] The investigation report concluded Tsui had breached COVID rules for not scanning the LeaveHomeSafe tracing app and not wearing a mask during conversations at the party. ^[5] Two other officials, Vincent Fung and Allen Fung, were verbally warned, while the remaining 12 were not punished. ^[1]

On 22 April 2022, a representative of the restaurant operator pleaded guilty at the Eastern Magistrates' Courts to violating COVID-19 restrictions, for which the operator received a fine of 6,000 Hong Kong dollars. ^[60]

In September 2022, one of the guests, Celia Wong Sze-nga, was charged with submitting false information to health officers. ^[61] She claimed dementia as part of her defence, and was found guilty in January 2024 of misleading health officials. ^[62]

In November 2022, Tsui said that he contacted Hung, saying that Hung was "also a victim in some way". ^[63]

See also

• Partygate, a similar political scandal in the United Kingdom
• Oireachtas Golf Society scandal, a similar political scandal in Ireland
• COVID-19 pandemic in Hong Kong
• Political impact of the COVID-19 pandemic

References

1. Cheung, Tony (4 February 2022). "Should host, other officials also take rap for Hong Kong "partygate" scandal?". South China Morning Post . Retrieved 18 February 2022.
2. Yeung, Jessie (31 December 2021). "Hong Kong reports first Omicron cluster as city welcomes New Year". CNN . Retrieved 18 February 2022.
3. "Hong Kong says Omicron has spread locally despite strict rules". Al Jazeera English . 31 December 2021. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
4. Tse, Jasmine (6 January 2022). "HK Chief Executive slams officials for joining party". South China Morning Post . Retrieved 18 February 2022.
5. "Hong Kong minister quits over lockdown birthday party". Deutsche Welle. 31 January 2022. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
6. Yau, Cannix (8 January 2022). "Omicron: not such a happy birthday in end for "party animal" Witman Hung and 170 guests sent to Hong Kong quarantine camp". South China Morning Post . Retrieved 25 January 2022.
7. Hong, Jinshan (10 January 2022). "Hong Kong Finds New Suspected Covid Case at Official's Scandal-Hit Birthday Party". Bloomberg News . Retrieved 25 January 2022.
8. "Birthday party venue attended by top government officials named in testing notice". The Standard. 7 January 2022. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
9. Lau, Chris; Ting, Victor (8 January 2022). "Omicron: lawyers suspect rule breaches at birthday party attended by top Hong Kong officials and lawmakers". South China Morning Post . Retrieved 29 January 2022.
10. "G.N. (E.) 907 of 2021" (PDF). Gazette of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Government of Hong Kong. 22 December 2021. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
11. 主客離座無戴罩 疑違規定 [Host and guests leave seats without wearing masks in potential violation of rules]. Ming Pao (in Chinese). 7 January 2022. Archived from the original on 9 January 2022. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
12. 林穎嫺 (7 January 2022). 港台楊子矜初確診 與夫朱偉星醫生到洪為民生日宴：9時27分離場 [RTHK employee Joyce Yeung infected in preliminary tests following attendance of Witman Hung's birthday banquet with husband Dr Chu Wai-sing and leaving at 9:27]. HK01 (in Traditional Chinese). Archived from the original on 7 January 2022. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
13. 周, 禮希 (7 January 2022). 政界派對爆疫 壽星洪為民、4新丁議員同送隔離 立會開鑼即缺席 [Political sector party involved in disease outbreak. Birthday boy Witman Hung and four junior legislators sent to quarantine, absenting from Legislative Council at opening.]. HK01 (in Traditional Chinese). Archived from the original on 7 January 2022. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
14. 洪為民生日派對出席人數續增 多2人須送檢疫中心 [Attendee numbers of Witman Hung's birthday party further increases. Two more persons need to be sent to quarantine centres.]. Hong Kong Inmedia . 14 January 2022. Archived from the original on 28 January 2022. Retrieved 16 January 2022.
15. Wong, Natalie (10 January 2022). "Beijing calls for "swift action" against officials at birthday party". South China Morning Post . Retrieved 18 February 2022.
16. "CE thinks party restaurant operated beyond capacity". RTHK . 11 January 2022. Archived from the original on 29 January 2022. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
17. 衞生防護中心最新發現洪為民宴會人數為222人 [Centre for Health Protection now finds Witman Hung's banquet as having 222 attendees]. RTHK (in Chinese). 12 January 2022. Archived from the original on 26 January 2022. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
18. 李, 穎霖 (11 January 2022). 洪為民生日宴｜餐廳疑爆座位 流水式運作涉違例 賓客或罰五千 [Witman Hung birthday banquet | Restaurant allegedly fully-seated, with rule-breaking water-like mode of operation (free to enter and leave at any time). Attendees may be fined five thousand.]. HK01 (in Chinese (Hong Kong)). Retrieved 29 January 2022.
19. 【鐵腕清零】人大代表壽宴「播毒」 港20議員10多高官共170人須強制隔離 [【Zero-COVID with a firm hand】Delegate to National People's Congress "spreads disease" at birthday banquet. 20 Hong Kong legislators and some 10 government officials among 170 people requiring quarantine.]. Radio Free Asia (in Traditional Chinese). 7 January 2022. Archived from the original on 7 January 2022. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
20. Riordan, Primrose; Chan, Ho-him (31 January 2022). "Hong Kong minister resigns after Omicron karaoke party scandal". Financial Times . Retrieved 18 February 2022.
21. "Caspar Tsui to be quarantined after attending banquet". RTHK . 6 January 2022. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
22. Lam, Jeffie; Magramo, Kathleen (7 January 2022). "All 170 guests of Covid-19 scandal-hit birthday party sent to quarantine". South China Morning Post . Retrieved 7 January 2022.
23. "多名立法會議員曾與初確者接觸 立法會須消毒". Now新聞 (in Traditional Chinese). 6 January 2022. Archived from the original on 7 January 2022. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
24. "立法會議員陸瀚民及邱達根等曾與初確者接觸 兩名政助亦有出席聚會". Now新聞 (in Traditional Chinese). 6 January 2022. Archived from the original on 7 January 2022. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
25. 11官員出席有初確者聚會 林鄭：感十分失望尤其對徐英偉 [11 government officials attended gathering with person preliminarily testing positive. Carrie Lam: very disappointed, especially towards Caspar Tsui.]. Now News  [ zh ] (in Traditional Chinese). 6 January 2022. Archived from the original on 7 January 2022. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
26. "FEHD investigates suspected contravention of anti-epidemic regulations in Wan Chai restaurant". Government of Hong Kong . 7 January 2022. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
27. Lam, Jeffie; Magramo, Kathleen (7 January 2022). "Omicron: Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam suspends 13 senior officials who attended coronavirus-hit birthday party, orders probe into their actions". South China Morning Post . Retrieved 18 February 2022.
28. "林智遠自爆「19＋1」曾赴洪為民生日會：唔知點解冇提我" [Lam Chi-yuen discloses "19plus1", having been to Witman Hung's birthday party: "don't know why [the government] didn't mention me"]. Hong Kong Inmedia (in Traditional Chinese). 7 January 2022. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
29. 新冠疫情｜灣仔百人宴增一初陽 43歲婦有線電視大樓一公司上班 (17:16) [Coronavirus | One more person tested preliminary positive in Wan Chai's hundred-attendee banquet: a 43-year-old woman working at a company in the Hong Kong Cable Television Company building (17:16)]. Ming Pao (in Traditional Chinese). 9 January 2022. Archived from the original on 10 January 2022. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
30. Yiu, Pak (31 January 2022). "Hong Kong 'partygate' scandal claims cabinet member". Nikkei Asia . Retrieved 18 February 2022.
31. 林, 劍 (9 January 2022). 洪為民派對︱政府：11名官員須在家繼續隔離 完成強檢才可復工 [Witman Hung party | Government: 11 government officials must continue to self-isolate at home, and return to work only after completing mandatory quarantine]. HK01 (in Chinese (Hong Kong)). Retrieved 18 February 2022.
32. Mok, Danny (18 January 2022). "3 senior Hong Kong officials caught up in Omicron 'partygate' scandal leave quarantine camp early after policy eased". South China Morning Post . Retrieved 18 February 2022.
33. "洪門宴11官須以自身假期居家隔離 徐英偉區嘉宏等3人續檢疫" (in Chinese). Yahoo! News. 9 January 2022. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
34. "新冠疫情｜梁君彥：19立法會議員曾出席洪為民生日會 陸瀚民、陳仲尼、邱達根及洪雯須隔離 下周三大會暫如期舉行". Ming Pao (in Chinese). 7 January 2022. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
35. "01消息：入境處長認無嘟安心出行 區嘉宏抗辯因站於生日會場外". 香港01 (in Traditional Chinese). 7 January 2022. Retrieved 10 January 2022.
36. "新冠疫情｜灣仔百人宴增一初陽 43歲婦有線電視大樓一公司上班 (17:16)". Ming Pao (in Traditional Chinese). 9 January 2022. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
37. "洪為民百人宴｜認無掃安心出行出示針紙 楊子矜夫朱偉星：你哋咁守法㗎？". AM730 (in Traditional Chinese). 10 January 2022. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
38. 林穎嫺 (7 January 2022). "洪為民生日宴︱傳鄺美雲有份出席 強調冇入場：見咁多人我調頭走". HK01 (in Traditional Chinese). Archived from the original on 7 January 2022. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
39. 陳傲淇, 楊婉婷 (8 January 2022). "洪為民生日宴｜高官議員晚上陸續離營 黎棟國揮手打招呼". 香港01 (in Chinese (Hong Kong)). Retrieved 18 February 2022.
40. "民政副局陳積志包尾道歉 13官員中僅3人稱有用「安心出行」". 獨立媒體. 9 January 2022. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
41. "新冠疫情｜曾處武漢抗疫 創新辦副總監馮浩賢被揭赴生日宴 員工：站前線抗疫應更敏感 (21:15)". Ming Pao (in Traditional Chinese). 8 January 2022. Archived from the original on 8 January 2022. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
42. "梁君彥強烈勸喻出席生日宴會議員盡量留家避免外出" (in Chinese (Taiwan)). RTHK. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
43. "律師會會長陳澤銘曾短暫逗留 就事件致歉". 頭條日報 Headline Daily. 8 January 2022.
44. Anonym. "Legislative Council election 2021. Interview: Wu Chili, Candidate for Science and Technology Innovation: Researchers Enter the Political Circle". newsrnd.com. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
45. Chan, Ho-him; Creery, Jennifer (31 December 2021). "Hong Kong leader lambasts Cathay Pacific over Omicron cases". Financial Times . Retrieved 18 February 2022.
46. 勞, 顯亮 (7 January 2022). 洪為民飯局｜還原林鄭斥責國泰「特區之首負責論」 三日說法之變 [Witman Hung dinner party | Return to Carrie Lam's "Special Administrative Region's leader takes responsibility saying" in condemnation of Cathay Pacific, as sayings change within three days]. HK01 (in Chinese (Hong Kong)). Retrieved 4 February 2022.
47. 染Omicron女赴百人生日趴！港府10高層也到場 網轟林鄭在推責 [Omicron-infected girl attends hundred-person birthday party! 10 Hong Kong government officials also attended, as internet lambastes Carrie Lam for shifting responsibility]. ETtoday  [ zh ] (in Chinese). 7 January 2022. Archived from the original on 7 January 2022. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
48. 按國泰標準問責高官 [Use Cathay Pacific's standards to hold government officials accountable]. 信報 (in Chinese). Hong Kong Economic Journal. 13 January 2022. Archived from the original on 13 January 2022. Retrieved 14 January 2022.
49. Cheung, Gary; Lau, Chris; Yau, Cannix (8 January 2022). "Omicron: pro-Beijing camp closes ranks over birthday party scandal, shifts blame to Cathay Pacific, as questions emerge over Carrie Lam's political future". South China Morning Post . Retrieved 19 February 2022.
50. 東方日報A1：高官議員隔離 特區政治危機 [Oriental Daily News A1: Government officials and legislators under quarantine as the special administrative region experiences a political crisis.]. Oriental Daily News (in Chinese (Hong Kong)). 8 January 2022.
51. 楊立門爆料 揭與林鄭昔日恩怨 [Raymond Young exposes long-time feud with Carrie Lam]. Hong Kong Economic Times (in Chinese). 12 January 2022. Retrieved 4 February 2022.
52. Young, Raymond Lap-moon (11 January 2022). "Letters | What rules exactly did Hong Kong officials break by attending a birthday party?". South China Morning Post (in Traditional Chinese). Archived from the original on 26 January 2022. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
53. 羅, 家晴 (12 January 2022). 楊立門指「洪門宴」無違法 特首辦批武斷 林鄭赴婚宴僅留10分鐘 [Raymong Yeung claims "Hung banquet" was not illegal. Office of the Chief Executive criticises [Yeung] as dogmatic. Carrie Lam stayed at wedding banquet for only 10 minutes.]. HK01 (in Traditional Chinese). Archived from the original on 23 January 2022. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
54. 楊立門稱目睹去婚宴 林鄭：當時社區無Omicron [Raymong Yeung claims seeing [Carrie Lam] going to wedding banquet. Carrie Lam: there was no Omicron in the community at the time]. Ming Pao (in Traditional Chinese). 12 January 2022. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
55. 婚宴詳情曝光 廠商會會董兼選委嫁女 林鄭與無戴罩人士合照. Hong Kong Inmedia (in Traditional Chinese). 13 January 2022. Archived from the original on 23 January 2022. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
56. Ni, Vincent (7 January 2022). "Dozens of Hong Kong officials in Covid quarantine after birthday party". The Guardian . Retrieved 18 February 2022.
57. "Hong Kong quarantines all 100 guests of scandal-hit birthday party". BBC News . 7 January 2022. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
58. Lau, Chris; Cheung, Gary (25 January 2022). "Home affairs chief Caspar Tsui to leave post as Hong Kong leader prepares to discipline officials for attending infamous birthday bash, sources say". South China Morning Post . Retrieved 29 January 2022.
59. Tsui, Caspar (31 January 2022). "Statement by Secretary for Home Affairs Caspar Tsui". Government of Hong Kong Press Releases. Retrieved 31 January 2022.
60. Chau, Candice (22 April 2022). "Hong Kong restaurant at centre of Covid-19 birthday party scandal fined HK$6,000". Hong Kong Free Press . Retrieved 22 April 2022.
61. Standard, The. "Female guest in "Partygate" scandal charged with giving false information to authorities". The Standard. Retrieved 20 September 2022.
62. "Hong Kong party-goer found guilty of misleading officials tracing Covid cases". South China Morning Post. 12 January 2024. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
63. Cheung, Jane; Wang, Wallis (7 November 2022). "Tsui admits partygate responsibility". The Standard (Hong Kong) . Retrieved 6 November 2022.