Sai Kung District


The Sai Kung District is one of the 18 districts of Hong Kong. Hong Kong itself is a special administrative region of China. The district comprises the southern half of Sai Kung Peninsula and Clear Water Bay Peninsula in the New Territories plus a strip to the east of Kowloon. It is made up of the Sai Kung Town, Sai Kung rural areas, Tseung Kwan O and over 70 islands of different sizes. The administrative centre was located in Sai Kung Town until recently, which the Sai Kung District Office was relocated to Tseung Kwan O. The district's population is concentrated in Tseung Kwan O, as of 2011. As of 2011, the district has the third youngest residents, with median age 39.3. Known as the "back garden of Hong Kong", Sai Kung has been able to retain its natural scenery, and where the Hong Kong Global Geopark is located. Behind the modern buildings, many traditional customs and cultures are still retained in the rural villages.

History

The modern geopolitical entity of Sai Kung District was formed after World War II. Settlements existed in the area prior to the signing of the Convention for the Extension of Hong Kong Territory, which ceded the area to the colony of Hong Kong from the Qing Empire in 1898. Those ceded areas are now collectively known as the New Territories and New Kowloon.
According to Professor, unlike other villages of the New Territories, villages in Sai Kung did not form any yeuk, a kind of inter-village alliances in the 19th century in the Qing dynasty.
Under the colonial rule, villages in Sai Kung were grouped under Tung Yeuk in 1898.
Soon after, the district office of New Territories was established. The New Territories was divided into Northern and Southern District and New Kowloon in the 1920s. The area around the modern day Sai Kung Town was under the District Office North until 1947, which the area was under the administration of the Southern District from 1947. The Southern District was under further reform since 1957.
After the end of World War II, the New Territories was divided into 8 sub-divisions, one of which was named after Sai Kung. Such sub-divisions was soon abolished. The North and South District Office were merged to form New Territories Administration, a department of the executive branch of the government, in 1948–1952, which has 3 sub-divisions: Tai Po, Yuen Long and Southern District. Sai Kung was under the aforementioned Southern District. Tsuen Wan District Officer was established in 1959 and craved out from the Southern District. The Southern District at that time only administrated the modern day Sai Kung District and Islands District. A branch office of the Southern District was also established in Mui Wo in 1957, which now belongs to Lantau Island of the Islands District. It was reported that circa the early 1960s, the Southern District was further split into Sai Kung District and Islands District, but merged back in 1963.
By 1969, the New Territories Administration had 7 district offices, of which one was named after Sai Kung.
In 1977, the Hong Kong Governor announced to establish District Advisory Boards to invite locals to became advisors. Although Sai Kung locals, as well as other rural villages of the New Territories, already established their chambers and voting representatives to Heung Yee Kuk, an advisory body to the colonial government, as early as the 1930s.
The Sai Kung District and its District Council were formally formed in 1982. A year before, the New Territories Administration was merged with its Kowloon and Hong Kong Island counterpart, the Home Affairs Department to form the City and New Territories Administration, although the Administration had transferred some functions to the Lands Department in 1982. Since 1985, the district officers of the Hong Kong Districts no longer chaired their respective districts councils. In a larger scale of history, due to the signing of the Sino-British Joint Declaration in 1984, which would hand over the whole colony to the People's Republic of China, the colonial government had made several political reforms on local politics.
A water route from the northern Sai Kung Peninsula to Tai Po existed at least since the Qing dynasty. For this historical and other reasons, the northern portion of the Sai Kung Peninsula belongs to the Tai Po District, but not part of Sai Kung District.
Sai Kung was a local industrial centre before the 1900s. For example, in Sheung Yu, villagers produced mortar and fertiliser from their own lime kiln. Villages also scattered on the islands of Port Shelter, Rocky Harbour, on Sai Kung Peninsula, on Clear Water Bay Peninsula as well as other land areas of the District. A temple located on High Island, dates back to 1741.
Sai Kung market town was expanded into the local town centre of the district after the 1950s. However, the District's population are now concentrated around the Tseung Kwan O New Town, partially built on reclaimed land in Junk Bay in the 1980s.

Population and settlement

Sai Kung District covers approximately land area as of 2018, It had a population of 461,864 in 2016 by-census, most of it in Tseung Kwan O. Sai Kung Central election constituency, which roughly has the same boundary as Sai Kung Town planning zone, has a population of 9,623 in the same by-census. Tseung Kwan O is a new town and has multiple constituencies. However, all Tseung Kwan O constituencies are belongs to Tseung Kwan O Outline Zoning Plan in term of town planning administration.

Sai Kung Town

is a former fishing village and market township. The designation of the country park areas during the 1970s was a huge boost to the local tourist industry. Sai Kung town underwent significant expansion during the 1970s when the High Island Reservoir and associated water scheme required some villagers and fishermen to be rehoused in Sai Kung. This provided a core of government-funded new development, both housing and commercial, in the town centre. This was followed by the Tui Min Hoi development under the government's market town programme.

Tseung Kwan O

In addition to Sai Kung, Tseung Kwan O, a booming new town, is also part of Sai Kung District. Tseung Kwan O connects Sai Kung Peninsula with the Kowloon urban area.
Junk Bay was once a natural bay area in Sai Kung, quite near the famous seafood village of Lei Yue Mun. There once was an iron and steel factory, and the area around Hang Hau Village was famous for the shipyards. In 1997, the Hong Kong Government started a major development project in this area, developing it into the seventh Hong Kong new town. Reclamation has since covered the whole bay area and it is now able to accommodate around 380,000 inhabitants, accounting for 95% of the district's total population. This new town was renamed Tseung Kwan O, its present name.
Tseung Kwan O now includes several high-rise residential estates and an industrial estate. The MTR metro system was extended to Tseung Kwan O, facilitating access to Sai Kung District.

Geography

In contrast to the densely populated areas of Hong Kong Island and Kowloon, Sai Kung District's heartland is a coastal area characterised by its scenery, small villages and seascapes. The area is known for its pristine beaches and quiet living. In as much as it remains only partly urbanised, Sai Kung is known as the "last back garden" of Hong Kong.

UNESCO Global Geopark & Country Parks

Sai Kung Volcanic Rock Region, Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark">Hong Kong Global Geopark">Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark

Sai Kung Volcanic Rock Region lies in Sharp Island, High Island, the Ninepin Group and the Ung Kong Group, where volcanic rocks, intrusive rocks and world-unique acidic hexagonal volcanic columnar rock joints created by Hong Kong's last large-scale volcanic activity some 16.5 million to 14 million years ago crop out. With a host of volcanic rock coastal landforms, they form a comprehensive showcase of diverse and complex volcanic activities that explain Sai Kung's geological past.

Sai Kung East Country Park

occupies a vast area of east Sai Kung Peninsula. With the High Island Reservoir, High Island, Tai Long Wan, Pak Tam Au, Chek Keng, Sheung Yiu, Wong Shek Pier and the surrounding countryside, the 4,494 hectare protected area consists of the largest number of bays and coves among all country parks in Hong Kong. Part of the Geopark is also located there.

Sai Kung West Country Park

, including the Sai Kung West Country Park, occupies a vast area of west Sai Kung Peninsula. Old preserved villages, such as Pak Sha O, Yung Shue O and Lai Chi Chong are the places of interest.

Clear Water Bay Country Park

occupies the rugged terrain around High Junk Peak in the eastern and the western part of the Clear Water Bay Peninsula. High Junk Peak, one of the Three Sharp Peaks of Hong Kong, is a top attraction in the country park.

Beaches

Sai Kung has some of the most beautiful and cleanest beaches in Hong Kong. Here is a list of the beaches in Sai Kung:
Tai Long Wan, approximately 1.5 hours walk from the nearest road, is one of the few places in Hong Kong where surfing is possible, particularly in the winter months.
On summer nights, many people hire small boats known as kaitos or sampan, some to catch cuttle-fish which is a popular pastime for local residents, others for leisurely trips through the island-dotted inland sea of Port Shelter. Popular islands to visit include:
The large island of Kau Sai Chau is the location for a public golf course developed and run by the Hong Kong Jockey Club.

Local and tourist attractions

There are numerous cultural sites, heritage sites and country parks in the Sai Kung peninsula, such as:
The town centre of Sai Kung has a high concentration of seafood restaurants which attract many tourists.
In addition there are golf courses and nature trails. The golf driving range center in Ho Chung is popular with local residents and tourists alike. Visitors can also enjoy barbecues at Ho Chung.
In recent years, the government has invested heavily in Sai Kung, with improvements being made to the town seafront, such as the Waterfront Park. An attractive mix of small boutique-style shops has sprung up as well, due to a sizeable expat population and increasing numbers of local visitors, selling everything from secondhand books to cat-themed accessories, and alternative lifestyle stores that offer items like surfboards, candles, incense, seashells, etc.

Transport

The MTR system's Tseung Kwan O Line currently has five stations in Tseung Kwan O New Town. The new town is also served by a comprehensive bus network that connects it to Kowloon via several main roads including Tseung Kwan O Tunnel and Po Lam Road.
Hang Hau Road and Ying Yip Road link Tseung Kwan O with Sai Kung Town and Clear Water Bay. The nearest MTR station to Sai Kung Town is Hang Hau.
Some of the most beautiful and thus isolated parts of Sai Kung Peninsula can only be reached on foot or by boat. Where a destination is accessible by public transport, it is usually served via a complicated network of bus routes.

Education

The education in the Sai Kung District is administrated by the Education Bureau and not administrated by Sai Kung District Office. The latter is a division of Home Affairs Department instead. The Education Bureau has its own zoning scheme. For example, Primary One Admission School Net no.95, covers the whole Sai Kung District, as well as Sai Kung North which is part of Tai Po District.
The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, one of the eight publicly funded tertiary institutions in Hong Kong, is located in Clear Water Bay Road, Sai Kung District.
Hong Kong Institute of Vocational Education has in Tiu Keng Leng, Tseung Kwan O, the Sai Kung District. Hong Kong Design Institute is next to the IVE Tiu Keng Leng campus.

Miscellaneous

Sai Kung District is served by Sai Kung Magazine, a free-distribution English language monthly magazine and the community website . The magazine covers areas of Sai Kung Town, Clear Water Bay, Pak Sha Wan, Ma On Shan.