Fears relics removed from To Kwa Wan MTR site

Concern groups have renewed calls for relics unearthed at the To Kwa Wan MTR site to be preserved in situ after photographs emerged over the weekend of empty pits at the site.

A photo of the Sacred Hill site snapped on Saturday by the History Needs Us group from buildings near the station - which is part of the Sha Tin-Central Link - showed several empty ditches surrounded by steel piling.

The group fears construction may have begun before an archaeological survey could be conducted in the area, and that the relics may have been removed from the pits without public knowledge.

But an Antiquities and Monuments Office spokeswoman said yesterday no new relics had been removed according to its latest inspection, carried out on Friday.

Albert Lai Kwong-tak, chairman of the Professional Commons think tank, which is working with the group, said the MTR had to change its excavation strategy. "It removes opportunities for in situ preservation and violates the procedure set out in the China Principles for Heritage Conservation, which requires such relics to be removed only if no alternative can be found."

An MTR spokeswoman said the area was part of the third phase of the recently expanded excavation site, which was not covered by the link's original environmental impact assessment that stipulates all archaeological work must be complete before construction can begin.