Hong Kong Watch meets BNO community at Lunar New Year Festival in Bristol
Last Saturday, Hong Kong Watch joined the South West Lunar New Year Market in Bristol to meet with the BNO community and celebrate Lunar New Year. The two-day fair featured over 100 stalls, offering a wide selection of Lunar New Year treats, Hong Kong-style street food, crafts, festive decorations, and cultural performances. With over 1,000 visitors, the fair was a vibrant display of how Hong Konger-led small businesses and community organisations have established roots in the UK.
At the Hong Kong Watch stall, we informed visitors about our advocacy initiatives and community activities. Our Research and Policy Advisor, Thomas Benson, also addressed attendees on the main stage and spoke about Hong Kong Watch’s advocacy and community work with the BNO community, including our efforts to fix the gap in the BNO visa scheme for those born before the 1997 handover and securing Home Fee status for BNO students at UK universities.
Our visitors were also encouraged to leave a message for political prisoners in Hong Kong and the greater Hong Kong diaspora. Heartfelt messages recreated a colourful ‘Lennon Wall’-style display, to remember all Hong Kong political prisoners and to foster solidarity with the diasporic community during this festive period.
We were delighted to be part of this community initiative to connect with Hong Kongers across Britain. Thank you for your support and we wish you a happy and peaceful Year of the Snake.
香港監察赴碧仙桃年宵市集與港人同賀新歲 連儂牆重現為香港政治犯及海外港人打氣
上週六,香港監察前往碧仙桃參加「英國South West最大喜慶年宵市集」,與BNO港人見面並慶祝農曆新年。市集為期兩天,設有超過100個攤位,提供各種賀年美食、香港街頭小食、手工藝品、賀年裝飾和文化表演。市集吸引了超過一千人入場參與,攤位琳瑯滿目、活動豐富精彩,展現了在英港人小型企業和社區組織日漸在英國扎根。
在香港監察的攤位中,我們向參加者介紹我們的倡議工作和社區活動。香港監察研究及政策顧問Thomas Benson亦在台上致辭,與參加者講述我們的BNO倡議及社區工作,包括拓展BNO簽證計劃至1997年主權移交前出生的合資格港人、容許BNO港人享有英國大學本地生學費資格。
我們亦鼓勵參加者向香港政治犯和海外港人社群留下祝福信息。多張寫上真摯心意字句的便條紙令色彩繽紛的「連儂牆」重現眼前,在佳節時分顧念所有香港政治犯,並團結海外港人社群。
香港監察很高興能夠參與這個社區活動,與在英港人社群建立連繫。感謝大家的支持,祝願各位蛇年快樂平安。