HK lowers flags at half-mast to mourn mudslide victims
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All government offices in Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) lowered flags at half-mast Sunday to follow the national mourning for mudslide victims in Zhouqu county in China's northwest Gansu Province.
At the government office compound, the national flag and the HKSAR regional flag flew at half-mast. People observed a three-minute silence in the mourning ceremony at Golden Bauhinia Square in memory of those who died in the mudslide.
The HKSAR government called on the public to express their condolence in appropriate ways after the State Council, China's Cabinet, declared Sunday as an official national day of mourning for the victims of the devastating mudslide.
"A Symphony of Lights", the famous light and sound show along the Victoria Harbor, will also be suspended on Sunday evening.
Flags were also lowered at half-mast on buildings of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government, Offices of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Chinese People's Liberation Army garrison in Hong Kong.
The HKSAR government has already granted about 2.44 million HK dollars (313,900 U.S. dollars) from the disaster relief fund to provide emergency relief to the victims in Gansu Province.
The HKSAR government has also planned another 50 million HK dollars of donations to Gansu Province, which needs to be approved by the Finance Committee of the Legislative Council.
