Tag Archives: China

The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority:      The spokesman for Hong Kong Buddhist Hospital made the following announcement today (May 20):            &… read more

     The Chief Executive, Mrs Carrie Lam, today (May 20) signed in accordance with Article 48(3) of the Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China (the Basic Law) the Public Offices (Candidacy and Taking Up Offices)(Miscellaneous Amendments) Ordinance 2021 (the Ordinance) passed by the Legislative Council (LegCo).  The Ordinance will come into effect after it is published in the Gazette tomorrow (May 21).
      
     “Upholding the Basic Law and bearing allegiance to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) is the legal requirement and the precondition for public officers of the HKSAR. It is also the fundamental obligation and responsibility of persons who stand for election or take up the relevant public office,” Mrs Lam said.
      
     “The Ordinance will be gazetted and come into effect tomorrow. It stipulates very clearly for the first time the legal requirements for oath-taking of public officers, marking an important step for safeguarding the ‘patriots administering Hong Kong’ principle.”
      
     The Ordinance clearly explains the meaning of a reference to “upholding Basic Law and bearing allegiance to HKSAR”; introduces the oath-taking requirement for members of the District Councils; specifies oath-taking requirements; standardises arrangement of oath administrators; enhances the mechanism to deal with breach of oaths; and introduces restrictions on participation in public elections for related situations.
 
     Article 104 of the Basic Law states that five categories of public officers, that is the Chief Executive, principal officials, members of the Executive Council and of LegCo, judges of the courts at all levels and other members of the judiciary in HKSAR must, in accordance with law, swear to uphold the Basic Law and swear allegiance to HKSAR of the PRC when assuming office. The Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress endorsed the Interpretation of Article 104 of the Basic Law (the Interpretation) on November 7, 2016, which explains that oath-taking is the legal prerequisite and required procedure for public officers specified in Article 104 of the Basic Law to assume office, and must comply with the legal requirements in respect of its form and content. The Interpretation also makes it clear that an oath taker who makes a false oath, or, who, after taking the oath, engages in conduct in breach of the oath, shall bear legal responsibility in accordance with the law.
      
     Apart from the five categories of public officers specified in Article 104 of the Basic Law, Article 6 of the Law of the People’s Republic of China on Safeguarding National Security in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (the National Security Law) stipulates that a resident of the HKSAR who stands for election or assumes public office shall confirm in writing or take an oath to uphold the Basic Law and swear allegiance to the HKSAR in accordance with the law. 
      
     The Ordinance seeks to implement the oath-requirements for public officers as stipulated in the Interpretation and the National Security Law accurately. The Bill was introduced into LegCo for First Reading and Second Reading on March 17, 2021, and was passed by LegCo on May 12.
      
     “To implement ‘One Country, Two Systems’ fully and accurately, we must act in accordance with the Constitution and the Basic Law. The Ordinance improves the oath-taking arrangements as required by the Basic Law and effectively deals with legal responsibility that a public officer has to bear if he/she engages in conduct in breach of the oath after taking the oath and assuming the office.  It will be conducive to the full and faithful implementation of ‘One Country, Two Systems’,” Mrs Lam said.   

    

     The Government announced today (May 20) the list of designated quarantine hotels for the fourth cycle. A total of 31 hotels will provide about 8 500 rooms in the new cycle, with the contract period running from June 20 to … read more

     Following is the speech by the Chief Executive, Mrs Carrie Lam, at the opening ceremony of the “Mythologies: Surrealism and Beyond – Masterpieces from Centre Pompidou” exhibition today (May 20):
      
Consul General (Consul General of France in Hong Kong and Macau, Mr Alexandre Giorgini), Andrew (Chairman of the Board of the French May Arts Festival, Dr Andrew Yuen), Philip (Chairman of the Hong Kong Jockey Club, Mr Philip Chen), ladies and gentlemen,
      
     Good evening. It is a great pleasure to be here with you for the opening ceremony of “Mythologies: Surrealism and Beyond – Masterpieces from Centre Pompidou”. I’m pleased, as well, that this extraordinary exhibition, designed especially for Hong Kong and featuring more than 100 pieces of distinctive works of art, is being held at our newly renovated Museum of Art.
      
     The exhibition opens at the same time when Art Basel Hong Kong takes place. These major arts events remind us of what a wonderful cultural city Hong Kong is, and that our determined efforts to fight COVID-19 have paid off by making it possible for these events to happen. This exhibition, which runs till mid-September, also serves as a welcoming treat to many art lovers in Hong Kong after a prolonged period of social distancing. And, as if this wasn’t enough of a blessing, the world-class exhibition is in fact one of some 80 cultural events – featuring music, theatre, dance, film, food and more – at this year’s 29th French May Arts Festival, which runs through the end of June.
      
     Since its first edition in 1993, the Festival has been the Hong Kong Government’s close partner in bringing the best of French culture to Hong Kong. This year is a departure, in that the vast majority of artists and performing-arts companies are based right here in Hong Kong, a grand collaboration of French citizens who call Hong Kong home and our local performers. Festival highlights include “Larger Than Life”, a contemporary French play performed in Cantonese and directed by our own Tang Shu-wing. Another winning collaboration is the “Jazz in French Films” concert, featuring the Patrick Lui Jazz Orchestra playing with big-band gusto during the screening of some of France’s greatest movies. Through these two splendid months of French arts and culture, some of Hong Kong’s major performing arts groups, including the Hong Kong Ballet, Hong Kong Sinfonietta and the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, are all taking part.
      
     Co-operation, in culture and other areas, has long marked relations between Hong Kong and France. And I am thrilled to see it displayed so creatively at this year’s French May Arts Festival. For that, I am grateful to the organiser, the Association Culturelle France – Hong Kong, as well as the French May team and of course the Consulate General of France in Hong Kong. My thanks, too, to the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust for its significant support of this welcome exhibition, and its continuing support of French May’s Community Outreach and Arts Education Programme.
      
     Last month, I outlined a new direction in our fight against COVID-19, under which we seek to control the epidemic with targeted measures while allowing activities to resume as far as possible. The French May Arts Festival is yet another remarkable event marking Hong Kong’s gradual return to normality. I know you will enjoy it, and I wish it every success. I hope full normality will resume next year when the Festival hosts its 30th edition to help celebrate the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.
      
     Thank you very much. read more

     An exhibition featuring a selection of outstanding works by surrealist artists from the collection of the Centre Pompidou of Paris, “Mythologies: Surrealism and Beyond – Masterpieces from Centre Pompidou”, will be open to the public tomorrow (May 21) at the Hong Kong Museum of Art (HKMoA). This art spectacular provides visitors with a better understanding of surrealism, an art movement that features bizarre and dreamy imagery, and its profound influence.
 
     Founded in 1924 in Paris, surrealism was of vital importance to the development of visual arts in the West. Many pioneering works featured the use of mythological signs and symbols to create radically imaginative worlds, which exerted a strong influence on the literature, art, films, music and other cultural spheres of the era. The exhibition “Mythologies: Surrealism and Beyond – Masterpieces from Centre Pompidou” is curated by the world authority on the surrealist art movement, the Deputy Director of the Musée National d’Art Moderne, Centre Pompidou, Paris, Mr Didier Ottinger. His significant project showcases a refreshing rendition of surrealist ideas for Hong Kong audiences, with the theme and concept featured for the first time. With mythologies as its narrative thread, this exhibition illustrates all important stages and aesthetics through the lens of mythology, a concept that permeates the journey of surrealism.        
 
     The exhibition showcases over 100 diversified art pieces and archive material by significant surrealist artists such as Giorgio de Chirico, Salvador Dalí, René Magritte, Joan Miró, Max Ernst, Man Ray and Jackson Pollock, among others.
 
     To provide a compelling component from a local perspective, the HKMoA has invited young local artists to contribute original works for the exhibition. New media artist Keith Lam delves into the interface between art and technology, and the nuanced relationships between reality and simulation in his robotic installation work “Artificial Reality”. Artist Hazel Wong created an illustration booklet and the animation “Dreaming in Hong Kong” with a storyline as well as Hong Kong scenery blended with works featured in the exhibition. Audiences will be guided through a Hong Kong dreamscape to experience a different “new normal” with a surrealistic twist amid the pandemic.
 
     The exhibition is jointly presented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) and the French May Arts Festival, and is jointly organised by the HKMoA and the Centre Pompidou, Paris, with major support from the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust. It is supported by the Consulate General of France in Hong Kong and Macao, and sponsored by Shun Tak Holdings Limited and BNP Paribas. It is a programme of the French May Arts Festival.
 
     The exhibition will run from tomorrow until September 15 at the HKMoA (10 Salisbury Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon). According to the Prevention and Control of Disease (Requirements and Directions) (Business and Premises) Regulation (Cap. 599F), visitors are required to scan the “LeaveHomeSafe” QR code or register their name, contact number and the date and time of visit before being allowed to enter the museum for necessary contact tracing if a confirmed case is found. An appeal is made by the LCSD to members of the public to download the “LeaveHomeSafe” mobile app in advance and scan the QR code with the app before entering. Members of the public who opt for registering their personal information at the scene are reminded to arrive early to avoid delaying their visit, as a longer time is required for such registration.
 
     In view of the latest situation of COVID-19, the museum will apply a quota to limit visitor flow. Visitors to the museum will need to use hand sanitiser and will be subject to temperature checks before admission. They also need to wear their own masks. Children under 12 will only be allowed to enter the museum and exhibition facilities when accompanied by an adult. For details of the exhibition and the admission arrangements, please visit the website at hk.art.museum/en_US/web/ma/exhibitions-and-events/surrealism-and-beyond-masterpieces-from-centre-pompidou.html or call 2721 0116 for enquiries.