Canto-pop stars do their bit to draw attention to mood disorders

A crowd gathered at Harbour City on Monday to catch a glimpse of Canto-pop and TV stars, who were there to perform a series of traditional Japanese 'courting rituals' ahead of Valentine's Day. In Japanese tradition, the female declares her affection in the form of a box of chocolates on February 14, with the male indicating his acceptance of her attention by giving her a box of white chocolates on March 14.

As well as encouraging couples to spend more at the mall during the season of love, the Harbour City event aimed to help raise funds for the Joyful Mental Health Foundation. Television actress and host Victoria Lam Kin-ming was central to the event. Having suffered a mood disorder in the past, she set up the foundation in 2004 to provide support and counselling for people with mood disorders and their families.

Having experienced the frustration of not understanding why she had become depressed, Lam wanted to help educate the public on mood disorders and the symptoms to look out for.

'Most Chinese have a negative connotation when it comes to mood disorders. It used to be a taboo subject. We hope to see an end to discrimination ... one day, especially in the workplace.'

Couples visiting the mall over the next two weeks can have a photo taken of them sitting on a sofa, with the proceeds going to the foundation.

But mood disorders were far from the minds of most young bystanders at the mall.