Attention TV/radio announcers:

Please broadcast the following as soon as possible and repeat it at regular intervals:

     The Leisure and Cultural Services Department announced today (August 23) that due to an insufficient number of lifeguards on duty, the lifesaving services at Clear Water Bay Second Beach in Sai Kung District are suspended until further notice.

     First aid services will be maintained at the beach.

The following is issued on behalf of the Secretariat to the Hong Kong-Taiwan Economic and Cultural Cooperation and Promotion Council:

     The Hong Kong-Taiwan Economic and Cultural Cooperation and Promotion Council (ECCPC) is inviting applications for the Exchanges with Taiwan Funding Scheme (the Scheme).

     The Scheme aims to enhance exchanges and understanding between Hong Kong and Taiwan at the community level through providing funding support to local non-government organisations to organise relevant activities.

     Application forms can be downloaded from the ECCPC website at www.eccpc.org.hk/eng/scheme.htm; The deadline for application is September 30, 2019.

     For enquiries, please contact the ECCPC Secretariat at 2810 2011.

     The Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau (CMAB) is inviting a new round of applications under the Basic Law Promotion Activity Sponsorship Scheme and Basic Law Promotion Research Sponsorship Scheme (Sponsorship Scheme).

     The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region has been promoting the Basic Law to members of the public through various channels. The Sponsorship Scheme aims to promote the Basic Law among different sectors of the community and to encourage different groups or organisations to conduct research on ways to further enhance the promotion of the Basic Law, with a view to enhancing public understanding of the "one country, two systems" principle and the Basic Law.  

     Year 2020 marks the 30th anniversary of the promulgation of the Basic Law. The maximum amount of sponsorship to be granted to each project of this round of applications will be increased to $800,000, with the aim of encouraging different groups to organise events of larger scale and to conduct research in greater depth.

     Application information can be downloaded from the Basic Law website (www.basiclaw.gov.hk/en/sponsorship/index.html). The deadline for application is September 30, 2019.

     For enquiries, please contact the Secretariat of the Sponsorship Scheme at 2810 2106.

     The Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau (CMAB) is inviting applications under the "2020 Children's Rights Education Funding Scheme" (the Scheme). The deadline for application is October 31, 2019.

    A spokesman for the CMAB said today (August 23), "The Government is committed to working together with community organisations to promote the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and enhance the public's understanding of children's rights." 

     Enthusiastic support from organisations for the Scheme has been received in every round of applications since the establishment of the Scheme in 2006. The community activities previously supported through the Scheme targeted a variety of social groups, and served to enhance public awareness of children's rights. So far, the Scheme has funded over 330 projects carried out by various non-governmental organisations, including community organisations, children's groups, ethnic minority groups, as well as primary and secondary schools.
    
     The Scheme in 2020 will offer sponsorships under the "District-focused Project" and "Territory-wide Project" categories. Applicants may engage children and other stakeholders in learning proactively about the rights of children enshrined in the Convention through organising different types of activities or services. The Government aims to encourage and enable more community organisations to undertake educational projects under the Scheme.

     Application forms are available from the website of the CMAB (www.cmab.gov.hk/en/issues/child_funding.htm). For enquiries, please contact the Children's Rights Unit of the CMAB at 3655 4179.

     The 2019 provisional register and the omissions list for the Rural Representative Election (RRE) are available for public inspection during ordinary business hours from today (August 23) to September 9.  Members of the public may visit the RRE Voter Registration Information Enquiry System through the Rural Representative Election website (www.had.gov.hk/rre) to check their own registration particulars and whether they are listed on the omissions list.

     A full copy of the provisional register and the omissions list can be inspected during ordinary business hours (Monday to Friday from 9am to 1pm and 2pm to 6pm) at the office of the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) at the Home Affairs Department, 30/F, Southorn Centre, 130 Hennessy Road, Wan Chai. A copy of the specific divisions of the provisional register and the omissions list for a rural area that belongs to the rural committees concerned can be inspected at the offices of the Assistant Electoral Registration Officers (AEROs) in the respective New Territories District Offices.
      
     The names and relevant particulars of electors recorded in the Existing Villages register, the Indigenous Villages and Composite Indigenous Villages register and the Market Towns register will be available for public inspection. Particulars of persons who are no longer eligible for registration as electors will be shown on the omissions list.
      
     Anyone who considers a registered person not eligible for registration may lodge a notice of objection at the office of the ERO or the relevant AERO during ordinary business hours on or before September 9. Objections must be lodged in person.
      
     Anyone who has made an application for registration but whose name is not recorded in the provisional register, or is included in the omissions list, or who has a claim to make about his or her particulars in the register, may lodge a notice of claim in person during the above-mentioned period.
      
     Those whose principal residential address is not in Hong Kong may submit a notice of claim by post, fax or electronic means (an electronic record authenticated by a digital signature) on or before September 9 (Hong Kong time). He or she may also lodge in person, or authorise a person in writing to lodge on his or her behalf, a notice of claim at the office of the ERO or the relevant AERO during ordinary business hours on or before September 9.
      
     The specified forms for notices of objection and notices of claim can be obtained from the ERO office and the AERO offices at the relevant District Offices. They can also be downloaded from the RRE website.
      
     For further details, please call 2152 1521 or visit the RRE website.