The picture on the left shows steel cages with recycling materials placed where Yang Quyun was assassinated in 1901. The other photo shows the original Site of Yang Yao Ji looking like a mini rubbish collection point. Photo: Cable TV, Apple Daily
EJ Insight » Hong KongToday, 15:42
History buffs and heritage preservation advocates are expressing concern at the poor state of the facilities at some of the spots on the Dr Sun Yat-sen Historical Trail in Hong Kong.
An inspection recently has revealed that the exhibition panels at some of the 15 stops on the historical trail in Central and Western District were surrounded by garbage, Apple Daily noted.
The trail, established in 1996 by the Central & Western District Council and stretching over a distance of 3.3 kilometers, highlights 15 spots related to the history of the Xinhai Revolution and its leader Sun Yat-sen.
Sun, the first president and founding father of the Republic of China, studied for a while in Hong Kong and also met some fellow revolutionaries here.
In 2006, the Central & Western District Council, the Architectural Services Department and the Hong Kong Tourism Board spent a combined HK$4 million to overhaul and repair the historical sites on the trail.
At one of the stops on Gage Street, Central, where Yang Quyun, the first president of the Revive China Society (Xing Zhong Hui) was killed in 1901, the exhibition panel was found to have been relocated from the spot of the assassination on 52 Gage Street to the entrance of the nearby Pak Tsz Lane Park, right next to a rubbish collection point.
According to Cable TV reports early this week, there are several steel cages, intended for collection of recycling materials, blocking the exhibition panels.
When an Apple Daily reporter arrived at the site on Wednesday, he saw some scribbling on the exhibition panels
At the former Hong Kong College of Medicine site, not only were the exhibition panels damaged, there were also stickers put on a photo of Sun.
At the original Site of Yang Yao Ji – a meeting place for “The Four Bandits” on 8 Gough Street — the scene looked like a mini rubbish collection point, with the place stuffed with unwanted folding chairs, foam boxes and bamboo cages, the report said.
Yeung Pei-hon, secretary general of an association dedicated to Yang Quyun, said the lack of respect shown to the exhibits on the trail breaks his heart.
He slammed the government for failing to ensure adequate protection for historical spots in the city.
Councilors from the Central and Western District have blamed the Home Affairs Department for doing a poor job of managing the educational trail.
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