KATIE TAM

Chinese President Xi Jinping, right, and newly sworn-in Macao Chief Executive Sam Hou Fai leave the stage following the inauguration ceremony as part of the 25th anniversary of Macao's handover from Portugal to China, in Macao Friday, Dec. 20, 2024. (Justin Chan/Pool Photo via AP)
China’s Xi swears in new leader of casino hub Macao, telling the city to diversify economy
Chinese President Xi Jinping has urged the casino hub of Macao to diversify its economy as he swore in the former Portuguese colony’s new government at an event marking the 25th anniversary of its handover to China.
 
China's President Xi Jinping speaks upon his arrival at the airport in Macao, China, Wednesday, Dec. 18, 2024, ahead of celebrations marking the 25th anniversary of the casino city’s return to Chinese rule. (Eduardo Leal/Pool Photo via AP)
Xi visits casino hub Macao to mark 25 years of its return to Chinese rule
Chinese President Xi Jinping has begun a three-day visit to Macao to mark the 25th anniversary of the casino city’s return to Chinese rule. Xi and his wife were welcomed at the airport Wednesday by a lavish ceremony.
 
Villager Lo Yuet-ping cleans the head prop that's used in the traditional "Qilin" Dance at the Cha Kwo Ling village in east Kowloon, Hong Kong, Sunday, Aug. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)
Villagers reluctant to say goodbye to one of Hong Kong’s last squatter settlements
In just months, residents of Hong Kong’s Cha Kwo Ling village will bid farewell to their homes for decades.
 
Hong Kong protesters push ahead as territory’s leader unseen
A few hundred protesters opposed to legislation they fear would reduce Hong Kong’s judicial independence have rallied outside the Justice Department.
 
Hong Kong court: Denying same-sex spousal benefits unlawful
Hong Kong’s Court of Final Appeal says the government cannot deny spousal employment benefits to same-sex couples in a ruling hailed as a major step forward for same-sex equality in the semi-autonomous Chinese territory.