President Xi Jinping gave a reply letter to students of Pui Kiu Middle School in Hong Kong on July 24, conveying his earnest expectations for the young generation of the city. The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) today (August 11) held a sharing session on the "Important spirit of President Xi Jinping's reply letter to Hong Kong students" at the Central Government Offices. It started with remarks by the Chief Executive, Mr John Lee, with the supervisor of Pui Kiu Middle School, Mr Jasper Tsang, and the Secretary for Education, Dr Choi Yuk-lin, as keynote speakers to enable the political and education sectors to obtain a deeper understanding of the significance of President Xi's letter in nurturing talent in Hong Kong. Deputy Director of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the HKSAR Ms Lu Xinning attended the sharing session.
In his letter, President Xi reiterated that patriotic education is the core of the spirit of the Chinese nation and acknowledged Hong Kong people's noble tradition of loving both the country and Hong Kong. He said he was pleased that the younger generation of Hong Kong was shouldering their mission and responsibility with a strong sense of national pride. The letter especially encouraged students to combine reading and travelling, "gain a deeper understanding of global trends, delve into the history and culture of the country and national affairs, strengthen their affection for and sense of belonging to the country and sharpen their skills and abilities so that they can shoulder great responsibilities and make contributions to building an even better Hong Kong and advancing national rejuvenation."
Mr Lee said in his speech that President Xi's letter has great significance on Hong Kong which is advancing from stability to prosperity. The letter demonstrates President Xi's care and encouragement to Hong Kong students, motivates all schools in Hong Kong, and serves as an important guide for the entire education sector.
He said that the HKSAR Government is committed to strengthening patriotic education and national education and promoting national education in schools within and beyond the classroom, so as to enable students to understand the history, culture and national affairs of the motherland from an early age, cultivate a strong affection for home and country, enhance their sense of national identity and national pride, and raise their awareness of safeguarding national security. He hoped that the education sector of Hong Kong will carefully study and understand President Xi's letter to grasp its core essence, integrate it into their work and strive together for nurturing capable talent ready to shoulder great responsibilities for Hong Kong.
Dr Choi said that President Xi's reply letter not only affirms Hong Kong's efforts in patriotic education, but also has earnest expectations for Hong Kong's education. To live up to the spirit of the President's reply letter, the Education Bureau, with the mission to cultivate values and nurture talent, will continue to strive to foster in the younger generation a strong sense of belonging to the country as well as sharpen their skills and abilities. The bureau will take forward its work on the following aspects: (i) leading students to deepen their understanding on global, national affairs and the principle of "one country, two systems"; (ii) helping students to strengthen their affection for and sense of belonging to the country; (iii) further enhancing Chinese history and culture education; and (iv) sharpening students' skills and abilities, and stepping up the promotion of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Mathematics) education.
In addition, a teacher and a student of Pui Kiu Middle School and other participants shared their feelings.
The sharing session was attended by around 230 participants, including Hong Kong deputies to the National People's Congress; Hong Kong Standing Committee members of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference; Members of the Legislative Council Panel on Education; the directorate of the Education Bureau; representatives of education organisations; the principal, teachers and students of Pui Kiu Middle School; heads of primary schools, secondary schools and kindergartens, as well as secondary school teachers and senior secondary school students.
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