In a consultation paper, the
Culture and Heritage Commission suggests that the cultural development
of Hong Kong should base on six principles: people-oriented,
pluralism, freedom of expression and protection of intellectual
property, holistic, partnership, and community-driven, so as
to assimilate the best of Chinese and other cultures, and build
a cultural environment that is grounded in Chinese culture but
pluralistic.
What is the present culture in Hong Kong? In fact, Hong Kong
is a cosmopolitan society that has a mix of eastern and western
heritage because of its history rather than a 'pure' form of
traditional Chinese culture. Then should we base our cultural
development on the former or the latter? This needs clarification.
We agree that cultural development
should be people-oriented; we suggest, in addition, that the
emphasis be to raise citizens' cultural quality. Equal access
and sufficient opportunities to cultural education and freedom
of expression for all residents are the prerequisite. For minorities
who may have a different heritage, they should be respected
so their culture can be retained.
We think cultural development
is diverse, dynamic, and vibrant. If it is government-driven,
it may become homogeneous and static. Community-driven doesn't
mean the government should stay out of the picture, but rather
it plays an important role of an "investor" to commit
into cultural development. This will warrant enough support
and freedom for a vibrant development and will not stifle diversity.
Moreover, cultural development should be supported by proper
policies in social welfare, housing, education, medical, and
the mass media. These public policies will provide citizens
basic living standard so they can partake in cultural development.
Along the same line of argument,
i.e. the government has a commitment to ensure sufficient resources
for cultural development, it will encourage involvement from
the industry and business sectors, especially through financial
support. However, their involvement must not commodify cultural
activities to become instruments solely for business development
or tourist attractions. Otherwise, the harmful culture of utilitarianism,
shortsightedness, and money-oriented attitude (as oppose to
people-oriented) will only be reinforced.
In considering resource allocation,
the government should also take into account all ages of citizen,
that is, not to 'invest' solely in formal education, which serves
only school-age children and youths, but should also cater to
pre-school children, adults, and older persons. In order to
promote cultural education to a wider public, we suggest the
public libraries reach out to the community and organize educational
activities for them. In the same token, the role of museums
can be extended to not only display "valuable" exhibits,
but also to proactively motivate citizens to appreciate the
historical development and achievement of Hong Kong. Other suggestions
such as government-sponsored display on public billboards or
tele-broadcast on public transport system, improve mobile library
service, encourage more community-based cultural and arts activities,
organize cultural and heritage tours for locals and tourists,
and sponsor children and youth centres to set up mini-libraries
which are equipped with collections introducing the cultural
characteristics of the specific community.
When the government plans for
cultural provisions, it should not base entirely on the population
ratio, but should also consider and utilize the cultural characteristics
of a community. For instance, the government can consider setting
up local cultural information centers utilizing its cultural
characteristics, and invite local residents to partake of the
administration and promotion of the center.
About cultural exchange activities,
the government should avoid turning them into a competition
or a reward system for the best. For instance, sending outstanding
students abroad may not be appropriate as the "not-so-elite"
students may indeed need to expand their horizon. Moreover,
the government should also set up funds for cultural education
in addition to funds for cultural exchange activities.
In conclusion, the cultural
development of Hong Kong should launch from the history of a
converging East-West (perhaps even Sino-Japanese) culture, develop
in the direction of pluralism, and to reinforce its root in
Chinese culture.
