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"International Museum Day 2009, Hong Kong (IMD 2009 HK)", which was opened today (May 16), offers the public a fun-packed weekend with more than 100 entertaining educational and extension activities to gain better understanding about the missions and functions of local museums.
The opening ceremony was held today at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre Piazza. Officiating guests included the Under Secretary for Home Affairs, Ms Florence Hui; the Director of the Macao Museum, Cultural Affairs Bureau of the Macao Special Administrative Region Government, Mr Chan Ieng Hin; the Director of the Guangzhou Provincial Administration of Cultural Heritage, Mr Long Jiayou; the Head of the Division of Museums, Beijing Municipal Administration of Cultural Heritage, Ms Liu Chaoying; the Executive Director of the Hong Kong Tourism Board, Mr Anthony Lau, and the Director of Leisure and Cultural Services, Mr Thomas Chow.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, Ms Hui said this was the ninth year that the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) was hosting the IMD to provide the public with an array of extension activities.
She said, "The participation of the cultural institutes from Guangdong and Macau in 2004 made this event a key programme of ．Greater Pearl River Delta Cultural Co-operation・. Since the participation of Beijing in this event in 2007, its scale has been getting larger year by year. This year, more than 30 museums and heritage institutions from Beijing, Guangdong, Macau and Hong Kong join together to provide an eclectic mix of programmes for Hong Kong people and tourists,"
Under the theme of ：Museums On the Go；, a fleet of parade lorries carrying performance teams including museum mascots and international cultural ambassadors participated in shows for the public at the opening ceremony and gala held today at the Cultural Centre Piazza. The parade lorries will visit major tourist attractions and shopping areas on Hong Kong Island, in Kowloon and the New Territories tomorrow (May 17) from 10am to 6pm to show the rich offerings of the museums.
The parade lorries will stop at Golden Bauhinia Square, Hong Kong Park, The Peak Galleria and Times Square on Hong Kong Island; the Hong Kong Cultural Centre Piazza, Sai Yeung Choi Street South in Mong Kok, Kowloon Park, and Hong Kong Science Museum in Kowloon; and Sha Tin Town Hall Plaza, Tsuen Wan Town Hall Plaza, Tin Shui Wai Ginza Square, and Mau Yip Road in Tseung Kwan O (MTR Po Lam Station) in the New Territories.
To encourage people to participate in this cultural event, admission is free on May 16 and 17 to LCSD・s 17 museums and other participating local museums, namely the Hong Kong Correctional Services Museum, Police Museum, Museum of Ethnology, Tung Wah Museum, Po Leung Kuk Museum, University Museum and Art Gallery of The University of Hong Kong, Stephen Hui Geological Museum of The University of Hong Kong, Art Museum of Institute of Chinese Studies, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Dr & Mrs Hung Hin Shiu Museum of Chinese Medicine of Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong Museum of Education, The Hong Kong Institute of Education, The Hong Kong Racing Museum, Lions Nature Education Centre of the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department, and Tao Heung Museum of Food Culture. Activities such as guided tours of museums and exhibitions, lectures, workshops, demonstrations, children・s programmes, and video programmes will also be provided in various museums.
IMD 2009, HK is organised in support of the designation of May 18 as International Museum Day by the International Council of Museums in 1978 to stimulate public awareness of the role that museums play in society. Participating institutions of IMD 2009, HK are Hong Kong Museum of History and its branches, Hong Kong Museum of Art and its branch, Hong Kong Heritage Museum and its branches, Hong Kong Science Museum, Hong Kong Space Museum, Hong Kong Film Archive, Central Conservation Section under LCSD, Antiquities and Monuments Office and its Hong Kong Heritage Discovery Centre and Ping Shan Tang Clan Gallery cum Heritage Trail Visitors Centre, Art Promotion Office, Museum of Ethnology, Tung Wah Museum, Po Leung Kuk Museum, University Museum and Art Gallery of The University of Hong Kong, Stephen Hui Geological Museum of The University of Hong Kong, Art Museum of Institute of Chinese Studies, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Dr & Mrs Hung Hin Shiu Museum of Chinese Medicine of Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong Maritime Museum, Hong Kong Museum of Education, The Hong Kong Institute of Education, Hong Kong Planning and Infrastructure Exhibition Gallery, Hong Kong Wetland Park, The Hong Kong Racing Museum, Hong Kong Museum of Medical Sciences, Hong Kong Correctional Services Museum, Lions Nature Education Centre of the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department, Tao Heung Museum of Food Culture, Police Museum, Guangdong Provincial Department of Culture, Guangzhou Municipal Bureau of Culture, Cultural Affairs Bureau of the Macao Special Administrative Region Government, and Beijing Municipal Administration of Cultural Heritage.
Programme details of IMD HK are now available on LCSD・s website http://www.lcsd.gov.hk/imd2009. For enquiries, please call 2180 8188.
Ends/Saturday, May 16, 2009
Issued at HKT 16:45
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