Paralysed Hong Kong Mirror dancer’s medical funding thrown into jeopardy

Medical treatment for a Hong Kong dancer paralysed during a Mirror concert is now uncertain after his father revealed that a major donor’s verbal promise to cover the medical expenses may no longer be upheld.

Reverend Derek Li Shing-lam, the father of 30-year-old Mo Li Kai-yin, said in a letter on Saturday that the dancer’s path to recovery now faces a “vacuum of resources and a struggle of faith”, without naming the donor.

“A promise ‘…cover Mo’s medical expenses’ opened the door to his treatment and became the strength that carried him forward over the past three years. But it now seems this support is not certain to continue, and we still do not know how to move forward,” he said.

Two months after Mo Li was struck by a 500kg (1,102lbs) LED screen falling from the ceiling of the Hong Kong Coliseum in July 2022, billionaire Richard Li Tzar-kai, chairman of PCCW and parent company of concert organiser MakerVille, said he would provide HK$10 million (US$1.3 million) to support the dancer in addition to covering medical fees.

At that time, Li said he turned down the offer because the concert organisers, MakerVille and Music Nation, had promised to settle medical expenses.

He added that although the family had found a path and contacts for cutting-edge medical treatment, sufficient resources were still required to truly move forward.