216
HONG KONG ANNUAL REPORT
The Kaifong Associations strive to promote wholesome leisure-time activities in their respective districts. Their 55 basketball, miniature football and table tennis teams played 544 games, providing free entertainment for thousands of spectators. Two public libraries run by the North Point and Hung Hom Kaifong Associations, with a collection of over 10,000 Chinese classics and periodicals, were used by more than 10,000 readers each month. Two exhibitions, one on educational toys and the other on needlecraft, held by the Tsim Sha Tsui and Mong Kok Kaifong Associations respectively, attracted over 60,000 visitors.
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Other
in) ways which the Kaifong Associations have shown their genuine concern over the welfare of their districts are by co-operating closely with the medical authorities in health measures such as vaccinations, inocula- tions and propaganda on blood donation, and the repre- sentations they have made to government on such matters as street lighting, road repairs, public latrines, market facilities, hawkers, etc. Mention is made elsewhere in this report of the part they have played in emergency relief.
Similar to the Kaifong Welfare Associations in the nature of their grouping are the Clan and District Associations, whose sudden expansion is mainly due to the influx of refugees from China. These refugees have come from various provinces, speaking different dialects; they feel like strangers in their new home, and long to belong to a group which shares with local residents a common origin, whether it be a clan or district. During 1957 the staff of the Com- munity Development Section made contact with and visited 60 different Clan and District Associations in order to encourage co-operation between these associations and the Government. Although comparatively little is known as yet about their activities, it is hoped that, while retaining their individual characteristics, these associations will in future prove a strong and beneficial force in the field of local community development.