Schools raise the standard on National Day awareness
More than 1,000 students from 22 Sai Kung schools attended a flag-raising ceremony yesterday which organisers said reflected growing awareness about National Day.
The ceremony at the Chang Pui Chung Memorial Secondary School included a speech on the growing prosperity of the mainland and an orchestra performance. It was organised by the local district council and the Sai Kung Civic Education Promotion Committee.
Committee chairman Chan Yam-cheong said more schools were celebrating National Day this year after a notice from the Education and Manpower Bureau in June urged them to raise the national flag on important days to enhance students' patriotism.
Hui Chun-lung, chairman of the Association of Hong Kong Flag-Guard, said schools were more prepared to fly the flag on National Day with the help of the bureau and the district councils.
Last year some complained they did not know where to get the flag or how to raise it.
'Schools are getting used to the idea that celebrating National Day is part of national education, which makes students more informed about China and develops their national identity,' said Mr Hui.
But a survey by the Seventh-day Adventist Church of secondary students in Tuen Mun showed only 28.9 per cent of 3,523 students said they loved China. More than 45 per cent said the loved Hong Kong more than China.
