Hong Kong is taking a different approach as it begins the New Year – less loud, less chaotic, more meaningful – as a response to the tragic fire that occurred there earlier in the year.
While the celebrations for the New Year will not be as noisy as past years, the message of The Night Will Not Be Loud still holds true.
Rather than a huge firework display, a countdown event will be held in a pedestrian-only area on Chater Road, a busy commercial district in the city. There will be no explosions or elaborate light displays; rather, there will be a gathering of people reflecting on the past year and anticipating the new one in a much softer manner.
The objective of the event is to simply provide positive energy, goodwill, and peace to all who attend, both from within and from outside of Hong Kong, according to a local tourism office.
The tragedy in November profoundly affected the emotions and celebrations in the city. On November 29, a catastrophic fire in Tai Po resulted in the loss of approximately 160 lives, thereby creating a ripple effect throughout the city. The loss was so overwhelming that the government declared several days of mourning and lowered flags to half-mast.
Since that time, it has been difficult to consider celebrating the same way that Hong Kong had traditionally celebrated.
Almost immediately following that incident, the nightly laser lights that light up the skyline across Victoria Harbour came to a standstill. In this instance, silence seemed to be a more suitable tribute to the lives lost than spectacular shows of light.
The city continues to move ahead with planned event, i.e., New Year celebrations. Life cannot stop indefinitely according to City officials (i.e., Employees on the Executive Council) and Mayor of City. The need for Empathy in the re-establishment of a normal lifestyle was stated by one of Executive Council members. The City will begin to slowly get back to normalcy whilst maintaining Empathy towards those affected by the tragedy of September 11th. The changing of time and emotion surrounding any celebration is therefore, Why the New Year Celebration Event will still take place, simply a different format without Fireworks display.
Although the format has changed for this New Year, there will in fact still be many visitors to the city. The Border checkpoint hours have been Expanded to accommodate the increase of Travelers coming to celebrate the New Year.
As a community, we want to ensure that the City maintains its hospitality to All while we attempt to maintain a down to earth approach.
The City is known for the fantastic New Year’s Eve celebrations, Most notably the Fireworks at the Harbour in past years, that has attracted Millions of Travellers from around the Globe.
For the New Year Celebration of this year, there will be no Fireworks, but in fact, a Good Thing!
The current New Year’s Eve is different from the typical celebration. Rather than focusing on a loud party with lots of fireworks and large crowds, it focuses instead on a shared experience through the acknowledgement of community tragedy.
To welcome the New Year with the greatest meaning, reduce your volume, listen to others around you and remember that respect is more important than routine.
