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Speech by Acting Postmaster General

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The following is a speech by Acting Postmaster General, Mr Allan Chiang at "Hong Kong, China - Australia Joint Issue on Dragon Boat Race" Special Stamps Issuing Ceremony today (June 25):

Mr. David MAIDEN, Group Manager, Philatelic, Australia Post; Mr. Bill TWEDDELL, Consul General, Australia Consulate General; Mr. Mason HUNG, General Manager, Research & Development, Hong Kong Tourism Board; Distinguished guests; Ladies and gentlemen,

Thank you for participating in this ceremony which marks the release of our "Hong Kong, China - Australia Joint Issue on Dragon Boat Race" Special Stamps right on the day of the Dragon Boat Festival. Our special thanks must go to the 2001 Shatin Dragon Boat Race Organising Committee for providing this venue for our ceremony. It matches perfectly with our stamp theme today.

Dragon boat racing used to be a traditional Chinese custom but it has now grown to become an international sport. Indeed one sport magazine has rated it as the second most popular sport in the world. A special feature of this very exciting and strenuous sport is the high level requirement for team work and cooperation. This bears close resemblance to the spirit of solidarity with which postal administrations work together in facilitating global communication. As you will probably agree, stamps apart from prepayment of postage also serve as a powerful communication tool and it is no coincidence therefore that many postal administrations adopt joint stamp issues to promote the solidarity among themselves and the goodwill among the peoples that they serve respectively.

Today's stamp issue represents Hong Kong's second in a series of joint stamp issues with other postal administrations. We are very pleased to be able to partner with Australia Post on this occasion. The event does not only marks the very close and amicable relationship we have with Australia Post in the exchange of mail but also symbolizes the strong business and cultural ties between the communities of Hong Kong and Australia.

These linkages, I think, are subtly illustrated by the design of the two stamps we issue today. Against a background of vibrant colours, the two stamps capture animated oarsmen in motion, indicating the enthusiasm for dragon boat racing shared by the people of both Hong Kong and Australia. The stamps also feature Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre as well as Sydney Opera House: the world famous landmarks of Hong Kong and Sydney, set against the beautiful harbours of these two cities.

Bear in mind that a lot of these stamps will be applied on mail items and end up in individual homes and offices locally and overseas. With such an ingenious design, I am sure that the stamps will serve as tourism ambassadors, inviting holiday-makers and businessmen from all parts of the world to visit both Hong Kong and Australia to experience their charm and vigour.

Thank you and have an enjoyable Dragon Boat Festival Day.

End/Monday, June 25, 2001

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