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RECREATION AND THE ARTS
Cultural Services Department, the Yuen Long District Board, and the Yuen Long District Arts Committee, was spread over 15 days. In August, the first New Territories Arts Parade was organised in association with the arts associations of seven districts.
International Film Festival
The Hong Kong International Film Festival is now recognised internationally as a major film festival. Since its inception in 1977 it has also become an important showcase for Asian cinema. The eighth festival held in April attracted more than 125 000 people to a varied programme of film shows, exhibitions, seminars and discussions. The festival included a total of 140 feature films, 61 short films and 15 video works from 26 countries.
International Youth Dance Festival
The Urban Council, in association with the Cultural Services Department, presented the Hong Kong International Youth Dance Festival in-July. The festival was aimed at promoting international friendship and providing entertainment and cultural programmes to young people and children during their summer holidays. Seven groups of young dancers from England, China, Japan, Korea, Macau and the United States, together with 11 local dance groups, gave a total of 27 combined performances at the City Hall, prominent shopping arcades and civic centres in the New Territories.
Libraries
The Urban Council operates 23 static libraries and two mobile libraries. The Waterloo Road Library was closed and its facilities incorporated into the Kowloon Central Library, the first phase of which was completed in 1984. The second phase of the project is expected to be completed in mid-1985. Four other libraries were opened and the council has now achieved its target of providing at least one static library in each of the 10 urban districts.
New materials acquired during the year included 335 546 books, 4 397 gramophone records, 7 958 audio-cassettes, 980 video-cassettes, 61 slide sets and 64 items of microform materials, bringing the total stock of resources to 1.4 million items. Around 100 000 people joined the libraries as new members, bringing total membership to 1.20 million. About 1.27 million people took part in extension activities which were organised to promote the use of libraries.
In the New Territories, the Cultural Services Department operates 16 public libraries, one of them mobile. During 1984, two district libraries were opened in North Kwai Chung and Sai Kung, while a full scale district library was opened in Yuen Long to replace the existing small Yuen Long Public Library. Plans are in hand to open a second mobile library and four small libraries.
During the year, 187 664 new books were acquired, bringing the total stock to 0.74 million volumes. The library stock also included 1 250 newspapers and periodicals, 280 reels of microfilms, 722 video-cassettes, 121 sets of slides and 24 276 records and cassette tapes. New members numbered around 63 311, bringing total membership to 262 312. Some 220 801 people took part in extension activities.
Hong Kong Museum of History
The Hong Kong Museum of History started the year with the exhibition Nature Con- servation in China, a joint venture with China's Ministry of Urban and Rural Construction and Environmental Protection and the Natural History Museum in Peking. This colourful and informative exhibition was made up of 80 panels showing precious species of