Giant panda Ying Ying gifted by Central Government to HKSAR gives birth to pigeon pair of cubs
The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) announced today (August 15) that the giant pandas, Ying Ying and Le Le, gifted by the Central People's Government to the HKSAR in 2007, succeeded in natural mating at Ocean Park in March this year. After a pregnancy period of nearly five months, Ying Ying gave birth to a pigeon pair of cubs at 2.05am and 3.27am today.
This is a very critical period for the health of the newborn giant panda cubs. Ocean Park's animal care and veterinary teams, together with experts from the China Conservation and Research Centre for the Giant Panda (CCRCGP), are monitoring Ying Ying and her cubs round the clock until their conditions become fully stable.
The Chief Executive, Mr John Lee, said "This year marks the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, which makes the birth of the first lovely Hong Kong-born pigeon pair of cubs by Ying Ying and Le Le even more special. We would like to express our deepest gratitude to the Central Government again for gifting the giant pandas to the HKSAR which fully demonstrates its care and support for our city. We would also like to thank Ocean Park's team for taking good care of An An, Jia Jia, Ying Ying and Le Le over the years, as well as the experts from the CCRCGP for their continuous support, which enabled Ying Ying and Le Le to give birth to the pigeon pair of cubs."
Hong Kong Customs detects two dangerous drugs cases and seizes suspected ketamine worth about $9.2 million
Hong Kong Customs on January 19 and yesterday (January 20) detected two drug trafficking cases at Hong Kong International Airport and seized about 20 kilograms of suspected ketamine. The total estimated market value of the drugs was about $9.2 million.
The first case involved a 29-year-old male passenger arriving in Hong Kong from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on January 19. During Customs clearance, Customs officers found a total of about 6kg of suspected ketamine inside his check-in suitcase. The man was subsequently arrested.
The second case involved two male passengers, aged 41 and 31, who arrived in Hong Kong from Zurich, Switzerland, yesterday. During Customs clearance, Customs officers found a total of about 14kg of suspected ketamine inside their check-in suitcases. They were subsequently arrested.
The arrested male in the first case has been charged with one count of trafficking in a dangerous drug and will appear at the West Kowloon Magistrates' Courts tomorrow (January 22). An investigation of the second case is ongoing.
Customs will continue to step up enforcement against drug trafficking activities through intelligence analysis. The department also reminds members of the public to stay alert and not participate in drug trafficking activities for monetary return. They must not accept hiring or delegation from another party to carry controlled items into and out of Hong Kong. They are also reminded not to carry unknown items for other people.
Customs will continue to apply a risk assessment approach and focus on selecting passengers from high-risk regions for clearance to combat transnational drug trafficking activities.
Under the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, trafficking in a dangerous drug is a serious offence. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a fine of $5 million and life imprisonment.
Members of the public may report any suspected drug trafficking activities to Customs' 24-hour hotline 182 8080 or its dedicated crime-reporting email account (crimereport@customs.gov.hk) or online form (eform.cefs.gov.hk/form/ced002).