The Leisure and Cultural Services Department today (December 6) announced that four Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) items, namely Lantern Lighting Ritual, Tai Po Night Dragon Boat Parade, Yu Lan Festival, and Guangcai (Canton Famille Rose Porcelain) Making Technique, will be included onto the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (Representative List) of Hong Kong, raising the total number of items on the list to 24. Meanwhile, 34 new items will be integrated into the relevant main items and sub-items in the first Intangible Cultural Heritage Inventory (ICH Inventory), increasing the total number of items from 480 to 507.
 
     Article 12 of the Convention for the Safeguarding of the ICH of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization stipulates that "to ensure identification with a view to safeguarding, each State Party shall draw up, in a manner geared to its own situation, one or more inventories of the intangible cultural heritage present in its territory. These inventories shall be regularly updated." The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) collected public views from August to September this year about the proposed items for inclusion in the two lists. After considering all views received, the ICH Advisory Committee deliberated and reorganised the proposed list. The updated lists were accepted by the Government of the HKSAR and are being promulgated.
 
     The additional items for inclusion in the ICH Inventory include Wai Tau Song; Che Kung (General Che) Festival of Ho Chung, Sai Kung; Tin Tei (Heaven and Earth) Fu Mo (Father and Mother) Festival/Tin Kung (Heaven) Festival/Tin Kung Yuk Wong Tai Tai (Jade Emperor) Festival/Yuk Wong Festival; Lantern Lighting Ritual of Lin Fa Tei Village, Pat Heung; Lantern Lighting Ritual of Shek Kwu Lung Village, Sha Tin; Autumn Ancestral Worship of the Chan Clan in Ma Wan; Cheung Chau Yu Lan Festival; Sham Tseng Chiu Kiu Kaifong Yu Lan Festival; Jiao Festival of the Six Villages in Wang Chau, Ping Shan; Jiao Festival of Tsat Yeuk, Nga Tsin Wai; Jiao Festival of Sheung Shui Heung; Jiao Festival of Lin Fa Tei Village, Pat Heung; Jiao Festival of Shek O Village, Tai Long Wan Village and Hok Tsui Village; On Lung Jiao Festival of Ko Lau Wan Village; Jiao Festival of Lam Tsuen, Tai Po; Traditional Custom of Exhumation (Exhumation of "Gold" (Remains)/Exhumation of Remains/Relocation of Remains); Worship of the Ma Wan Rural Committee at the Free Cemetery; Spring Worship of the Hong Kong Chiu Chow Chamber of Commerce at the Free Cemeteries around Ching Ming Festival; Winter Worship of the Cheung Chau Chiu Chow Association; Kwun Yum (Goddess of Mercy) Treasury Opening Festival; Abacus Calculation Technique; Pork Knuckles with Ginger and Vinegar Prepared for Postpartum Confinement; Kam Wo Tea/Hop Chai Tea; Soybean Product Making Technique; Traditional Shrimp Roe Noodle Making Technique; Patterned Band Weaving Technique (Everyday Objects); Cage Trap Fishing Technique; Rice Cookie Making Technique; Rice Cracker Making Technique; the Art of Chiu Chow Kung Fu Tea; Chinese Brush Making Technique; Neon Tube Making and Styling Technique; Traditional Stone Inscription Carving Technique; and Chiu Chow Food Making Technique.
 
     The Representative List provides the Government with a basis for prioritising its resources and safeguarding measures for ICH items, especially those of high cultural value and with an urgent need for preservation. The four new items inscribed on the Representative List have been included in the ICH Inventory of Hong Kong. Among them, three items are under the category of "social practices, rituals and festive events". Lantern Lighting Ritual is an important tradition of a lineage, which is performed during the first lunar month to inform ancestors, deities and family members about the newborn sons in the family. The newborn sons are also officially recognised as new members of the lineage. The ceremony demonstrates the traditional culture of Hong Kong's lineages and villages. Tai Po Night Dragon Boat Parade also serves to solidify the connections within communities. At Dragon Boat Festival, dragon boat races are held in various districts in Hong Kong. Dragon boat water parades are held in traditional fishing areas, such as Tai O, Tai Po and Cheung Chau. The Tai Po Yuen Chau Tsai Shek clan and members of the Wing Chuen Tong of the Chung's of Tai Po hold the night dragon boat parade on the evening of the fourth day and the morning of the fifth day of the fifth lunar month during the Dragon Boat Festival every year. Being held off the shore of Sam Mun Tsai, Tai Po, the parades are carried out to pray for the blessings of the deities and safety of the community on land and at sea.
 
     Yu Lan Festival is an important festive event in various districts and among different ethnic groups in Hong Kong. Rituals are held by religious and community organisations, in which ritual specialists are commissioned to perform Buddhist or Taoist rites. These include paying homage to ancestors, pacifying wandering ghosts with clothing and food, as well as showing gratitude to the deities. Yu Lan Festival is maintained by various communities in different districts in Hong Kong. These are mainly organised as Chiu Chow Tradition, Hoi Luk Fung/Hoklo Tradition, Boat People's Tradition, and Punti Tradition. Apart from being a religious ritual to pray for wishes and purify the community, it also serves to connect different groups of people.
 
     Guangcai Making Technique is under the category of "traditional craftsmanship". Guangcai is the shortened form of "Guangzhou painted porcelain" or "Canton Famille Rose Porcelain". It is a technique of overglaze decoration that involves painting patterns on white porcelain before firing at a low temperature, with the history dating back to the early Qing dynasty. During the 1920s, Guangcai was transmitted from Guangzhou to Hong Kong. Apart from conserving the traditional hand-painting technique and the style of painting auspicious patterns, the techniques of stamping patterns and applying decals were also adopted. Local painting techniques and special patterns were also added to create a fusion style with both Chinese and Western characteristics. As a result, Guangcai produced in Hong Kong (Xianggang in pinyin) is also known as Gangcai (Hong Kong painted porcelain).
 
     For details of the new items included on the two lists, please refer to Annex I and II.
 
     The updated ICH Inventory and Representative List are now available on the website of the Intangible Cultural Heritage Office for public inspection.

The following is issued on behalf of the Legislative Council Secretariat:

     The Legislative Council (LegCo) Public Accounts Committee (PAC) will hold the first public hearing on "Nano and Advanced Materials Institute" (Chapter 1) of the Director of Audit's Report No. 83 tomorrow (December 7) at 9am in Conference Room 1 of the LegCo Complex.

     Six witnesses have been invited to appear before the above hearing to respond to points raised in the Report and answer questions asked by the PAC members.

     The programme for the public hearing is as follows:

Subject: Nano and Advanced Materials Institute 
(Chapter 1 of the Director of Audit's Report No.83)
Date: December 7 (Saturday)
Time: 9am
Venue: Conference Room 1

Witnesses:
Professor Sun Dong
Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry

Mr Ivan Lee
Commissioner for Innovation and Technology

Mrs Elina Chan
Assistant Commissioner for Innovation and Technology (Research and Development Centres)

Professor Cheng Shuk-han
Chairwoman, Nano and Advanced Materials Institute

Mr Andy Fung
Chief Executive Officer, Nano and Advanced Materials Institute

Ms Jenny Yiu
Chief Operating Officer, Nano and Advanced Materials Institute

     The PAC is chaired by Mr Shiu Ka-fai, and its Deputy Chairman is Mr Paul Tse. Other members are Ms Yung Hoi-yan, Mr Luk Chung-hung, Mr Edmund Wong, Mr Louis Loong and Ms Carmen Kan.

     The Ozone Layer Protection (Amendment) Bill 2024 (Amendment Bill) was published in the Gazette today (December 6) to implement relevant requirements of the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (Montreal Protocol).

     A spokesman for the Environment and Ecology Bureau indicated that the Kigali Amendment was adopted by parties of the Montreal Protocol in 2016 and entered into force in 2019 with a view to progressively phasing down the production and consumption of 18 hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), thereby mitigating global climate change. The Kigali Amendment requires its parties to implement a licensing system for the import and export of these 18 HFCs and meet the relevant phasedown targets.

     The spokesman said, "Our country accepted the Kigali Amendment in June 2021. The Kigali Amendment was effected in our country in September of the same year. Hong Kong is duty bound to promptly complete the legislative procedures to fulfil our international obligations."

     By amending the Ozone Layer Protection Ordinance (Cap. 403), the Amendment Bill proposes to implement a three-pronged control strategy. Amongst which, the Government targets to prohibit the manufacture of the 18 HFCs controlled by the Kigali Amendment and implement a licensing system on their imports and exports, starting from the fourth quarter of 2025. To progressively meet the phasedown targets of the Kigali Amendment and assist the market to smoothly transit to suitable alternatives in a safe and environmentally friendly manner, the Government also proposes to, by separate subsidiary legislations, progressively implement strategies on relevant product regulations and recovery mandates, as well as related safety requirements, with a target from mid-2026 onwards.

     The Amendment Bill will be introduced into the Legislative Council for first and second readings on December 18.

     The Private Columbaria (Amendment) Bill 2024 was published in the Gazette today (December 6), proposing amendments that aim to enhance the current regulatory regime on private columbaria and strengthen protection of consumers' interests.

     A spokesman for the Environment and Ecology Bureau said, "Since the implementation of the Private Columbaria Ordinance (Cap. 630), we noticed some 'pre-cut-off columbaria' (i.e. private columbaria that commenced operation and had ashes interred in them before the Government announced the proposal to establish a licensing system in 2014) that are currently applying for a licence may have to cease operation when they fail to obtain one. It is therefore proposed to appropriately adjust the eligibility criteria for exemption to allow 'pre-cut-off columbaria' meeting certain conditions to apply for such exemption, thus enabling their continued operation at their current scale and averting 'ash-disposal'. However, new sale or letting out of niches is not allowed."

     Specified conditions required from these "pre-cut-off columbaria" include not being located in populated zones for high-density residential development, and the planning application submitted by the subject "pre-cut-off columbarium" pursuant to the Town Planning Ordinance (Cap. 131) has been granted or accepted, has not been refused, or has been refused but subsequently granted or accepted, as of the commencement of the Bill. The spokesperson explained that the said proposal aligns with the prevailing "pragmatic and sympathetic" approach in regulating "pre-cut-off columbaria", while minimising their impact on neighbouring communities and balancing the different interests of the public concerned.
      
     The Government also enhances enforcement-related provisions through the Bill, including increasing penalties for non-compliance with enforcement notices, introducing new offences and amending existing ones to prohibit "overselling niches" and "over-placing ashes", as well as prohibiting the sale of interment rights by private columbaria when their authorisation to sell has been revoked or suspended, in order to enhance the deterrent effect of the Ordinance. Further, the Bill will also stipulate that the Private Columbaria Appeal Board may only receive and consider new materials that were never submitted to the Private Columbaria Licensing Board upon special grounds being shown, ensuring a consistent approach in the handling of appeals; and to enshrine in the Ordinance the current administrative arrangements that allow eligible masons' workshops meeting certain conditions to keep ashes temporarily for operational reasons.

     The existing Ordinance was enacted in 2017, which, through the establishment of a licensing regime, ensures private columbaria's compliance with statutory and government requirements, protects consumers, and fosters sustainable operation within the industry. The Bill will be introduced to the Legislative Council for its First and Second Reading on December 18, and the amendments will take effect upon Gazettal following passage of the Bill by the Legislative Council.

     The Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) is collaborating with Hong Kong Ocean Park to launch new privilege offers. From now until August 31, 2026, Ocean Park Annual Membership holders will enjoy a 10 per cent discount for purchase of a Museum Pass during the promotional period, while Museum Pass holders will enjoy a 10 per cent discount from the published price for the purchase of an Ocean Park Annual Membership.
      
     In addition, latest offers include from December 12, 2024, Museum Pass holders will be offered a 10 per cent discount upon purchase of standard tickets for Hong Kong Dance Company (HKDance) productions (excluding copresented productions) via URBTIX outlets and HKDance merchandise at performance venues during production.
      
     At present, Museum Pass holders are enjoying a wide range of privileges, including unlimited admission to the fee-charging permanent and special exhibitions (except for specified thematic exhibitions) of LCSD museums during the validity period of the pass; admission discounts at Hong Kong Disneyland Park and Hong Kong Maritime Museum; shopping discounts at The Alchemist Cafe in the Hong Kong Heritage Museum, the CHAT Shop in The Mills, and the purchase of souvenirs and publications produced by the LCSD at the gift shops or book shops in LCSD museums (excluding the Dr Sun Yat-sen Museum and the Hong Kong Museum of the War of Resistance and Coastal Defence). Pass holders can also participate in activities organised by museums at discounted prices.

     Members of the public can purchase a physical Museum Pass at seven designated museums under the LCSD (Note 1), or an electronic Museum Pass via the URBTIX website (www.urbtix.hk) or its mobile app. Both the physical and electronic Museum Pass are valid for admission to LCSD museums. The annual fee for a family pass, individual pass and concessionary pass (full-time students, people with disabilities and senior citizens aged 60 or above) are $100, $50 and $25 respectively. There is a 10 per cent discount on the Museum Pass for Hong Kong Disneyland "Magic Access" holders and Hong Kong Ocean Park Annual Membership holders during the promotional period (Note 3). For details of the Museum Pass and its privilege offers, please visit the website www.museums.gov.hk/en/web/portal/museum-pass.html.
      
     More privilege offers are coming, stay tuned.
      
     Note 1: The seven designated museums are the Hong Kong Museum of Art, the Hong Kong Museum of History, the Hong Kong Heritage Museum, the Hong Kong Science Museum, the Hong Kong Space Museum, the Dr Sun Yat-sen Museum (Note 2) and the Hong Kong Museum of the War of Resistance and Coastal Defence Museum.
     Note 2: The Dr Sun Yat-sen Museum is now closed temporarily for upgrading of the permanent exhibition galleries, and for maintenance and renovation works.
     Note 3: The price of each discount Museum Pass will be rounded up to the nearest dollar.