ENG-2012 — Page 356

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Communications, the Media and Information Technology

North America

In 2012, the ETO in Washington, DC organised the visits of the then Chief Executive, Mr Donald Tsang, to Brazil and Chile as well as visits by the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Professor KC Chan, and the Under Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Ms Julia Leung, to Washington, DC; and gave support to the Financial Secretary, Mr John C Tsang, when he attended the G-20 meeting in Mexico.

The Washington ETO presented the 17th annual 'Made in Hong Kong' Film Festival co- sponsored by the Smithsonian Institution.

The Toronto ETO presented a series of business seminars featuring speakers from Hong Kong in Toronto and its environs to promote Hong Kong as a listing destination and international insurance market, as a hub for technological co-operation, and as a regional logistics centre. Similar events were held jointly with the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) and Hong Kong-Canada Business Association in western Canada to promote Hong Kong's role as an international financial and trading centre. A Port of Hong Kong video was produced and telecast on Canadian networks.

Over 10 major cultural and community events were organised to celebrate the HKSAR's 15th anniversary, including the Canadian debut of the Hong Kong Sinfonietta in Toronto and Vancouver, and the performances by the Hong Kong Ballet at the opening of the 16th Festival des Arts de Saint-Sauveur in Quebec.

Other promotional activities included featuring recent award-winning Hong Kong films, such as Ann Hui's A Simple Life, at Canadian film festivals, and exhibitions to promote Hong Kong creativity. The Toronto ETO also supported some of the 27 Canadian dragon boat teams that took part in dragon boat races in Hong Kong in July.

In 2012, the New York ETO arranged visits to 30 US cities to promote Hong Kong. It also organised a number of visits by officials from Hong Kong, including that of the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Professor KC Chan, to New York and Boston.

To celebrate the HKSAR's 15th anniversary, the New York ETO organised receptions in New York and Montgomery, Alabama and conducted a number of cultural programmes, including an Arts and Design forum featuring Hong Kong designers and an exhibition on Hong Kong buildings designed by US architects. Hong Kong films were highlighted at the New York Asian Film Festival and the 'Hong Kong!' film series in Chicago. In addition, the New York ETO provided support and sponsorship to the Hong Kong Ballet's debut performance at the Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival in Massachusetts, the Hong Kong Sinfonietta's first concert in New York and the inaugural Manhattan Hong Kong Music Festival. The New York ETO also organised the 15th Anniversary Hong Kong Cup Chinese Speech Contest for university students and held dragon. boat festivals in Boston, New York and Atlanta.

To commemorate the HKSAR's 15th anniversary, the San Francisco ETO organised a series of events, including hosting a reception in San Francisco and producing a special video incorporating local leaders' views about Hong Kong's achievements in the past 15 years. A

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