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04/23/2024 11:20:54 pm

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Different Hong Kong New Year with No Times Square Balldrop Event

New Year's Eve 2015 Preparations in New York

(Photo : Reuters) Workers tighten lightbulbs on the giant New Year's Eve "15" numerals after it arrived on a truck in Times Square in New York, December 16, 2014. The giant seven-foot-tall numerals will be installed atop One Times Square where they will be lit at midnight on New Year's eve at the completion of the Times Square 2015 ball drop celebration. REUTERS/Mike Segar (UNITED STATES - Tags: SOCIETY)

The impact of Hong Kong's Umbrella Revolution would go beyond 2014, even if the barricades have long been taken down and the protesters back to their normal lives.

While the aim of the organizers was to have more democratic reforms in selecting the special administrative region's officials, one unintended result of the mass protest that Hong Kong residents - both the marchers and the non-marchers - didn't anticipate is the permanent cancellation of its New Year balldrop event, New Hub reports.

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Patterned after the original balldrop in New York, Hong Kong's version of Times Square balldrop won't be seen at midnight of December 31 for the first time in two decades.

The Times Square spokeswoman announced on Friday night the cancellation of the event held at Causeway Bay as part of the format changes. Also scrapped is the countdown to Christmas Day at Tsim Sha Tsui's Harbour City.

But the organizers of the two venues deny the Occupy Central was the reason behind the cancellation.

However, Times Square offers alternate events such as four concerts beginning December 28. The one-hour musical presentations begin at 4 p.m., and feature performers such as Alfred Hui Ting-hang, the Canto-pop duo Shine and acapella quartet C AllStar.

There would still be a New Year's Eve happening with rock bands Chochukmo, Kolor and Supper Moment as performers.

The Harbour City spokeswoman said that instead of the usual outdoor Christmas Eve countdown on Canton Road, all events this year will be inside the mall such as a fundraiser for the Hong Kong Blood Cancer Foundation, song numbers from six-year-old Celine Tam and a mini piano concert by child prodigy Tsung.

Despite these changes, the protesters are still holding their yearly New Year's Day pro-democracy march but not on January 1, 2015. It was moved to February 1 to mark the second round of public gathering on democratic reforms. The route and theme of the march would still be discussed in January, said convener Daisy Chan Sin-ying.

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