Tung Chee-hwa state funeral details expanded for weekend
Thestandard · 4 SOURCESabout 1 hour ago2 MIN
Summary
Hong Kong's first chief executive, Tung Chee-hwa, who died on September 8 aged 89, will be given a state funeral this weekend at Hong Kong Funeral Home in North Point. The arrangements include a vigil at 3pm on Saturday, September 19, followed by a public memorial and funeral ceremony at 9am on Sunday, September 20, and a farewell ceremony at 11am before the procession begins. New details published on Tuesday show the vigil will run from 3pm to 10pm, and Tung's family asked that donations be made to charities of mourners' choice instead of sending flowers. The funeral committee is led by Politburo member and CPPCC leader Shi Taifeng, in what local reports described as a higher-level arrangement than previous state funerals for Hong Kong figures.
Key Points
- Tung Chee-hwa, Hong Kong's first chief executive and a former CPPCC National Committee vice-chairman, died on September 8 at the age of 89.
- His vigil will be held at Fuk Hoi Hall on the first floor of Hong Kong Funeral Home in North Point from 3pm on September 19.
- A family obituary published in the South China Morning Post said the Saturday vigil will continue until 10pm, adding a fuller timetable
- The public memorial and funeral ceremony will begin at 9am on September 20, with the farewell ceremony at 11am followed immediately by the procession.
- An 87-member funeral committee headed by Shi Taifeng includes deputy heads Leung Chun-ying, Wang Dongfeng, Xia Baolong and Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu.
Why It Matters
The committee lineup and state funeral format point to exceptionally high-level official recognition of Tung's standing in both Hong Kong and the national political system. For Hong Kong readers, the published schedule and public memorial arrangements indicate that the weekend ceremonies will be a major official event with broad participation from political, business and community figures.