Photo taken on April 15, 2021 shows a flag-raising ceremony held at the Hong Kong Police College in south China's Hong Kong. (Xinhua/Li Gang)
HONG KONG, April 15 (Xinhua) -- "March!" A team of Hong Kong police officers strode forward and performed the Chinese-style goose-stepping at a flag-raising ceremony held in the Hong Kong Police College on Thursday.
April 15 marked the first National Security Education Day since the implementation of the Law of the People's Republic of China on Safeguarding National Security in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) in late June last year.
Colleges of five disciplined services of the HKSAR government, including the Hong Kong Police Force, the Fire Services, the Correctional Services, the Customs and Excise, and the Immigration, held an Open Day and performed the People's Liberation Army-style foot drills to show nationalism and enhance awareness of safeguarding national security.
Among them included the police college, when a guard of honor composed of dozens of instructors performed the Chinese-style marching for the first time.
At around 10 a.m. local time, the police band played the "Ode to the Motherland" and the flag-raising team goose-stepped into the playground.
The flag bearer unfurled the five-star red flag in the air while the national anthem was played.
"Align to the right", "look forward", "salute to the national flag" ... the team completed a series of actions according to the commands called out in Cantonese Chinese.
One side of the playground was filled with spectators who responded excitedly with loud applause at the end of the marching performance.
"This year's marching team looks more refreshing and dignified," said Lee Hoi-woo, who watched Chinese-style foot drills for the first time, adding that she was deeply impressed by the performance.
The British-styled marching has been practiced in Hong Kong for years before the Chinese-style marching gained popularity here.
Hong Kong College Students Military Life Experience Camp was launched in 2011, when training of the Chinese-style marching was introduced, attracting a large number of young people to sign up.
In 2015, the Hong Kong Army Cadets Association, the only uniformed group trained with the Chinese-style military marching in Hong Kong, was established. At the flag-raising ceremony to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the May Fourth Movement last year, many youth uniformed groups in Hong Kong switched to the Chinese-style marching.
"Marching is an important part of discipline and team spirit training," Secretary for Security of the HKSAR government John Lee said, adding that all departments are encouraged to adopt the Chinese-style marching that meets their development needs. Enditem
