Hong Kong will celebrate the 56th National Day tomorrow with a flag-raising ceremony in the morning and a variety show and a fireworks display in the evening.

The celebration, with official and community activities, will kick off at 8 am at Golden Bauhinia Square outside the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC) in Wan Chai.

At the ceremony, Chief Executive Donald Tsang will join some 800 guests, including government officials, members of the consular corps, dignitaries and community leaders. About 1,600 members of uniformed groups and local organizations will also participate in the ceremony.

The police band and a mixed choir of Diocesan Boys School and Diocesan Girls School will perform at the ceremony, followed by a sea parade and a fly-past by the disciplined services. As many as 1,000 people will be allowed to watch the event at a designated area through six plasma TVs and an LCD screen.

A reception, to be hosted by the chief executive, will be held after the flag-raising ceremony at the HKCEC Grand Hall.

About 4,000 guests have been invited to the reception, including members of the Executive and Legislative Councils, consular corps, heads of missions in Hong Kong, senior government officials and members of various communities.

Apart from performances by the police band and the mixed school choir, there will also be dancing performances by the Hong Kong Dance Federation at the reception.

The celebrations will culminate in the evening when a variety show will be staged at 7 pm at Hong Kong Coliseum in Hung Hom by the Organizing Committee of Compatriots in Hong Kong for Celebration of the 56th Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China.

At 9 PM, a spectacular fireworks display, sponsored by the Federation of Hong Kong Chiu Chow Community Organizations, will light up the sky over Victoria Harbour for about 23 minutes.

(China Daily HK Edition September 30, 2005)