Fans bid farewell to Anita Mui

HONG KONG: Thousands of mourning fans and celebrities thronged a Hong Kong funeral parlour yesterday to pay their last respects to pop star Anita Mui, Asia's self-styled Madonna who won the hearts of Chinese across the world. 

Wreaths lined the walls of the Hong Kong funeral home where fans had begun to queue up from Saturday night so as to be among the first to pay their respects yesterday afternoon. 

“After hearing about her death, I was so upset I couldn't eat for several days,” said Joey Chung, a teacher in her mid-20s. “Her death is a big loss to Hong Kong's music sector.” 

Not only the young wept for the singer and film actress, who died of cervical cancer last month aged 40. 

“Rather than going to see my grandson today, I've come to attend the funeral even though I have to walk with a stick,” said Tang Foon-yung, a 72-year-old woman, her eyes glazed with tears. 

Most fans wore black. Some carried flowers and sobbed. Others sang, played Mui's songs, or prayed in silence. 

Among the mourners from all over Asia, including South Korea and mainland China, was prominent Chinese dissident Wu'er Kaixi. 

Wu'er, who was one of the leaders of the 1989 Tiananmen Square pro-democracy protests, flew in from Taiwan to pay his respects to Mui, who had supported the Tiananmen movement. 

White roses adorned the funeral hall, along with a picture of Mui and screens displaying clips of her performances. – Reuters