Repair hope for tomb of Sun Yat-sen's mother
Government and private offers are being made to help repair the damaged tomb of Dr Sun Yat-sen's mother at Kowloon Peak.
A research group is trying to raise $1 million to rebuild Madam Yang's 90-year-old grave at Pak Fa Lam, where a large hole was discovered last week on top of the tomb. The police are investigating whether the damage was caused by grave robbers.
A Leisure and Cultural Services Department spokesman said officials were trying to identify the owners of Madam Yang's tomb to see whether they needed help to carry out repair works and wanted the site declared a protected monument. 'The tomb is private property. The Government cannot undertake any action or declare it a protected monument without the consent of the owner,' the spokesman said. But he said it might be difficult to locate the landlord as the tomb was built a long time ago.
But Hong Kong Chung Shan Research Institute chairman Hopkins Chan Chi-mong said it had been authorised to repair the tomb last week. The institute studies Sun's history.
'We have obtained the handwritten consent from Dr Sun's eldest grandson to repair the tomb after it was reported to be damaged,' he said. 'We may need to dig up the whole tomb and rebuild it as it's too old and we're worried that more supporting planks will collapse.' Mr Chan said Home Affairs Department Sai Kung district officials told him recently that Madam Yang's grave - about half the size of a basketball court - might actually be owned by the Government. While Mr Chan said it might be difficult to confirm the real landlord, he said the Government could still declare the site a monument and offer protection by getting the consent from Dr Sun's family.
Madam Yang gave birth to Dr Sun on November 12, 1866, in the Cuiheng village of Xianshan, Guangdong. She died in Hong Kong on her 83rd birthday in 1910.
Mr Chan believes the hole was caused by the collapse of decaying planks used to separate cover soil from the coffin three metres underground.
A group of district councillors started a fund-raising campaign for the tomb's repair yesterday. Councillor Chan Wai-yip said: 'It's Mother's Day. I think every Chinese has a responsibility as it's the tomb of the mother of our national father.'
