ISPA Awards Dinner Speech

by Dr. Patrick Ho
Secretary for Home Affairs of the
Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government
at the ISPA Awards Dinner
June 10, 2006

Ms Marty Jones, Madame Pak Suet-sin, Mr Lin Hwai-min, Professor Lo King-man, ladies and gentlemen :

It's a great pleasure for me to be here this evening. In bringing the ISPA to Hong Kong, we celebrate the presence of many distinguished personalities from the international arts arena. I am especially happy to witness the ISPA awards honouring the achievements of artists and arts practitioners in the region. It is clear affirmation that their work has the power and creative energy to reach across cultures.

As someone who grew up in Hong Kong, Cantonese opera is among my earliest memories in music, sound and colour. It embodied life; it was our entertainment, our festive celebration, our moral education, and it colourfully expressed our perception of Hong Kong as a Chinese community.

Today, I am particularly proud to witness the nomination of Madame Pak Suet–sin for the Distinguished Artist Award. Madame Pak has always been an icon, a household name, in Cantonese Opera  not only in Hong Kong but in Chinese communities elsewhere.

Mr Lin Hwai-min is also no stranger to all of us here. His Cloud Gate Dance Theatre has toured extensively; many of his works must have been staged in theatres near you. I continually marvel at his resourcefulness and ability in drawing inspiration and beauty from Asian cultures as he creates a contemporary, relevant, distinct and mature Chinese choreographic language.

Professor Lo King-man, who has been nominated for the International Citation of Merit, has been our pioneer for professional Western opera production since 1964. King-man has written, produced, directed and designed for the stage internationally, with more than 150 works of full length opera to his credit. I have a great admiration for King-man and his profound knowledge in the operatic art, his vision, creative energy and stamina.

The endeavours of all the distinguished artists we are honouring here this evening are changing the face of culture of our future generations. They are our creative inspiration, our pioneers, mentors, and educator. To them all I offer my hearty congratulations!

Ladies and gentlemen, we are embarking on the third Silk Road in the 21st century. The two previous ones, one on land, and one at sea, carried tea, silk, spices, exotic fruits, jewellery, gold and cultures. Our 21st-century version of a silk road transports creative ideas, creative products and creative talents.

This modern Silk Road is on neither land nor sea, but in the inner workings of human minds.

Part of my vision has always been that Hong Kong should become a fairway, a nodal point in today's modern Silk Road, a facilitator for minds to meet in the pursuit of artistic excellence, and a facilitator for the forming of cultural alliances and the sharing of aspirations and dreams in the performing arts.

Along the modern Silk Road we will see communities merging creative markets and aligning cultural policies. They will form alliances, and explore together the common features among cultures and community values, in response to the needs of the 21st century.

Along this modern Silk Road we will see citizens from neighbouring cities and nations sharing one another's aspirations, united in the common dream that life should be celebrated through cultural pursuits. We will witness our people enchanted by the arts, enlightened by cultural differences and enriched by social diversity.

We will come to learn with mutual respect that, despite our different backgrounds and upbringings, there are fundamental values we all hold dear, basic principles we all respect as the reflection of core understandings embraced by us all.

The new Silk Road is our answer and response to the globalisation of our cultural needs.

But make no mistake, the purpose of this "road" is not to establish an empire of might, but to extend the empire of our minds. Afterall, empires, like individuals, come and go, but civilisation must live on.

Thank you.