ENG-2018 — Page 25

Calendar of Events

2018

The government says in an initial response to the concluding observations of the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination on the HKSAR's third report that the Race Discrimination Ordinance is binding on the government and therefore prohibits discriminatory acts of the government in all the areas specified in the ordinance, including employment, education, the provision of goods and the management of premises.

The month of August ends with a record low 116.2 hours of bright sunshine, about 38 per cent lower than the norm of 188.9 hours.

September

1

4

10

16

20

23

Eligible Hong Kong residents living in the Mainland can start applying for residence permits introduced by the CPG. A residence permit holder is entitled to enjoy a range of rights, basic public services and facilitation measures covering employment, education, medical care and other areas.

The Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link (Co-location) Ordinance. comes into operation today to dovetail with the commissioning of the Hong Kong Section of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link (XRL) on 23 September. Mainland personnel begin work at the West Kowloon Station Mainland Port Area. For the purposes of application of laws and delineation of jurisdiction. in the Mainland Port Area, the Mainland exercises jurisdiction over non-reserved

matters.

The Air Accident Investigation Authority is established under the Transport and Housing Bureau and independent of the Civil Aviation Department to enhance the impartiality of investigations and comply with new standards issued by the International Civil Aviation Organisation.

Super Typhoon Mangkhut, one of the most intense tropical cyclones worldwide in 2018, batters Hong Kong. Hurricane Signal No 10 is in force for 10 hours, the second longest since 1946 and just below the record 11 hours set by Typhoon York in 1999. The increase in water level in Victoria Harbour, as recorded at the Quarry Bay tide station, reaches 2.35 metres, breaking Super Typhoon Wanda's record of 1.77 metres

in 1962.

Ms Ng On-yee retains her crown at the UK Women's Snooker Championship in Leeds.

The Hong Kong Forum: 60th Anniversary of the New York Convention, co-organised by the Department of Justice, UN Commission on International Trade Law and Asian Academy of International Law, takes place to mark 60 years of the operation of the convention. The forum reviews the application of the convention over the last six decades and discusses the implications of mediation on the future of investment arbitration, highlighting Hong Kong's role as a centre for international legal and dispute resolution services.

The 26km Hong Kong Section of the XRL begins services. It connects Hong Kong to the national high-speed rail network of over 29,000km, with direct trains to 44 destinations including Beijing, Shanghai, Xiamen and Wuhan.

ix