Thirty Customs officers on July 9 arrived in Xian to participate in the "Mainland, Hong Kong and Macao Course on Capacity Building to Prevent Illegal Trafficking of Cultural Heritage", which was jointly organised by the National Cultural Heritage Administration and Hong Kong Customs for the first time. They successfully completed the course and attended the closing ceremony today (July 14).
At the closing ceremony, the Deputy Commissioner (Control and Enforcement) of Customs and Excise, Mr Chan Tsz-tat, said that the course was an invaluable and unprecedented opportunity that enhanced the participants' capability of detecting and deterring illegal trafficking activities of cultural heritages and fostered ties between Hong Kong and Mainland Customs, contributing to the establishment of a solid co-operation foundation to combat related crimes in the future. Mr Chan also mentioned that the National Cultural Heritage Administration and Hong Kong Customs will sign a memorandum of co-operation this year to strengthen enforcement efforts against the illegal trafficking of national cultural heritage between the two sides.
The course members comprised 61 officers from Hong Kong Customs and different departments of the Mainland, Hong Kong and Macao. A series of lectures about anti-smuggling of cultural heritage, relevant laws and enforcement strategies on the Mainland were covered in the course. In addition, the participants visited several institutions, including the Shaanxi Archaeological Museum, the Shaanxi History Museum, and the Shaanxi Institute for the Preservation of Cultural Heritage, to study and enhance their capacity in identifying and handling cultural heritages.
Mr Chan and the Hong Kong Customs participants will return to Hong Kong tomorrow (July 15).
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