Hong Kong's Disciplined Services practice Chinese-style foot drill on Saturday during a grand parade in the special administrative region. The parade, organized by the Security Bureau of the SAR government, was held to celebrate the 73rd anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China. (EDMOND TANG / CHINA DAILY)
The Security Bureau led the disciplined services, auxiliary services and nine youth groups to hold the "Together We Prosper" grand parade in Hong Kong on Saturday.
Speaking at the ceremony, Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu said that colleagues from the disciplined services are at the forefront of maintaining law and order.
"They protect the lives and property of Hong Kong citizens with selfless dedication and work tirelessly to prevent and suppress acts endangering national security," he said.
READ MORE: Disciplined services' grand parade marks HKSAR's 25th anniversary
He also praised the disciplined services and auxiliary services for their commitment to epidemic prevention work, and pointed out that they are the most steadfast of Hong Kong's anti-epidemic workers.
The parade was held to celebrate the 73rd anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China and the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.
Participating services included the Customs and Excise Department, the Government Flying Service, the Correctional Services Department, the Fire Services Department, the Hong Kong Police Force, the Immigration Department, the Auxiliary Medical Service and the Civil Aid Service.
Opening the grand parade, a flag-raising ceremony featured a Hong Kong Police Band performance, the singing of the national anthem by the youth groups and a fly-past by GFS helicopters.
Performances that followed included a joint Chinese-style foot drill by the disciplined services, which was the first since the disciplined services adopted the drill.
The disciplined services and auxiliary services conducted a military tattoo and music performances, and dog handlers staged demonstrations of enforcement operations with working dogs.
ALSO READ: HK police to fully adopt Chinese-style foot drill
In addition, youth groups under the disciplined services performed dragon and lion dances and military boxing with the Hong Kong Army Cadets Association and the Hong Kong Air Cadet Corps.
carol@chinadailyhk.com