HKPL and RTHK Launch 'Journey with Words' Online Reading Activity for All Ages

Hong Kong Public Libraries launches "Journey with Words" online reading activities

Hong Kong Public Libraries (HKPL) of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department and Radio Television Hong Kong (RTHK) Radio 5 are jointly organising the online reading activity titled "Journey with Words" from December 2024 to June 2025. With the theme "journey", the activity aims to encourage members of the public to explore new perspectives and gain insights through the power of words, and utilise the e-book collections of the HKPL and various media to travel around different places.

The HKPL has a number of rich electronic collections, allowing readers to enjoy books anytime and anywhere. To encourage more members of the public to enjoy the convenience of e-reading, the HKPL has selected pieces of engaging articles from 100 books in the SUEP Chinese e-book collection and invited programme hosts of RTHK and HKPL Story Ambassadors to narrate the articles. The articles cover eight topics, namely culture, history, intangible cultural heritage, food and dinning, cities, children, world and art.

The first 20 articles and recordings are now available under "Explore the Ocean of Books" on RTHK's Journey with Words website. The remaining articles will be uploaded in phases until June 2025. Besides reading and listening to the articles, members of the public can also access the SUEP e-Book collection to borrow the e-books after logging on to their HKPL accounts. Participants will receive a souvenir after completing the reading tasks and registration as set out on the Journey with Words website on or before June 30, 2025, while stocks last.

In addition, members of the public can participate in the Matching Quotes with Snapshots Competition through the Journey with Words website from now until January 6, 2025. Participants can select one of the 10 designated quotes on the website, take a photo in the theme of the selected quote, and submit the entry from the website after completing the online application form. Winners will receive a certificate and book coupons. The competition is suitable for persons of all ages, particularly children who can express their creativity and imagination under the guidance of their parents.

There are also Cultural and Creative Workshops held as parts of the "Journey with Words", where participants will visit studios of cultural and arts workers to listen to their sharings and exchange reading experiences. Workshops covering various topics will be held between January and May in 2025, which include fun calligraphy, fluid art bookmarks and landscape fan paintings. Details and the enrolment method will be announced on the Journey with Words website.

To encourage the public to integrate reading into their lives, another activity titled "City Hunt" will be launched as part of the "Journey with Words" in 2025. Participants will receive a souvenir after finding designated check-in spots that are related to the reading activities in various districts and tagging relevant photos on their social media accounts within a specified period. Please stay tuned to the Journey with Words website for the announcement of details.

For more information about the "Journey with Words" activities, please visit the HKPL web page: www.hkpl.gov.hk/en/extension-activities/event-category/267805/journey-with-words.

Hong Kong Customs alerts public to unsafe Christmas squeeze toy

Hong Kong Customs today (December 18) reminded members of the public to stay alert to an unsafe Christmas squeeze toy. Test results indicated that the eye component of the toy may detach and pose suffocation risks to children. To avoid an accident, parents should immediately stop their children from playing with the Christmas squeeze toy. Traders should also remove the Christmas squeeze toy from their shelves.

Customs officers earlier test-purchased various models of Christmas toys from retailers in different districts for safety testing. Test results revealed that the eye component of the Christmas toy concerned detached easily and could pass through the base of a testing template, posing a danger of suffocation for children if accidentally swallowed.

Customs later conducted an operation and searched the retailer's premises in connection with the case. Three suspected unsafe Christmas squeeze toys of the same model were seized and a prohibition notice was served at the same time to prohibit the continued sale of the Christmas squeeze toy by the retailer and the related wholesaler.

An investigation is ongoing.

Customs reminds members of the public to observe the following safety tips when purchasing and playing with toys:

Pay attention to age recommendations shown on labels;

Pay attention to and follow the instructions associated with the toys;

Beware of whether the small parts of toys are easily detachable. Detached small parts may block a child's throat and lead to suffocation if swallowed;

Check the structure of the toys to see, for example, whether they have a fragile structure, hidden sharp points, rough surfaces, sharp edges or gaps that may pinch children's fingers;

Throw away plastic packages of toys and children's products to avoid children being suffocated; and

Stop children from playing with the toys immediately if any damage is observed.

Customs is committed to the protection of consumer safety, and regularly conducts spot checks and safety tests on toys and children's products to ensure that they are reasonably safe for use by consumers.

Under the Toys and Children's Products Safety Ordinance, it is an offence to supply, manufacture or import unsafe toys or children's products. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a fine of $100,000 and imprisonment for one year on first conviction, and a fine of $500,000 and imprisonment for two years on a subsequent conviction.

Members of the public may report information relating to suspected unsafe toys or children's products via 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).

Hong Kong Customs alerts public to unsafe Christmas squeeze toy Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Hong Kong Customs alerts public to unsafe Christmas squeeze toy Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases