Together, Progress, Opportunity – Hong Kong Special Administrative Region celebrates its 20th anniversary

July 1 marked the 20th anniversary of Hong Kong’s return to China and the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR). To share the joy of the 20th anniversary with the communities in Central and Eastern Europe, HKETO Berlin joined hands with various institutions to organise an array of celebrations and events.

The celebrations started in late May with an exhibition on the West Kowloon Cultural District (WKCD) project in Berlin, organised in collaboration with the AEDES Architecture Forum and the WKCD Authority. The WKCD project serves as an example for the sustainable integration of arts and culture into the steadily changing urban landscape of a metropolis and reveals Hong Kong’s achievement in infrastructure development and cultural pursuits. Another exhibition on Hong Kong comics featured Hong Kong-based artist group Ping Pong in Berlin’s Museum for Communication, with the support from Hong Kong Art Centre. The young comic artists combine Chinese and Western techniques to create new ideas, and thus paint a picture of Hong Kong’s diverse and vibrant culture with a distinct flavour of “East meets West”.

In late June, a groundbreaking production of William Shakespeare’s tragedy “Macbeth” by Tang Shu-Wing Theatre Studio from Hong Kong was staged in Berlin, Vienna and Warsaw. Around 1 000 guests attended the performances, which was characterised by vivid imagery and poetic minimalism, displaying a sophisticated and hybrid of Western and Eastern aesthetics in contemporary theatre. As another part of the celebrations, the HKETO Berlin supported dragon boat races in Eglisau, Switzerland, and Berlin. At both competitions, the Office hosted booths to promote Hong Kong to visitors and athletes and presented trophies to the winning teams.

A highlight of the event series were the gala dinners in Berlin, Geneva and Budapest, featuring special Hong Kong cuisines prepared by culinary masters of the Chinese Culinary Institute and their students, flying all the way from Hong Kong. The gala dinners showcased Hong Kong’s exquisite diversity as well as the excellent quality the city has to offer as a culinary paradise. Around 800 guests attended the dinners, amongst them are high-ranking diplomats, senior government officials, as well as leading figures from the business, cultural and media sectors. Furthermore, the celebrations also included musical performances, like concerts by the Hong Kong Sinfonietta and the Asian Youth Orchestra as well as the Hong Kong Vienna Music Festival, and film festivals in Munich and the Creative Visions film series in Berlin.

The events reflected on Hong Kong’s achievements in the past 20 years, from completion of new infrastructure projects to achievements in economic performance, academic and cultural pursuits. The HKETO Berlin expresses its gratitude to all who joined in the celebrations!