A number of major public events in Hong Kong have been canceled or postponed amid fears for public safety as the anti-government protests gripping the city entered their fourth month.

Heading the list of the cancellations is this year’s National Day Fireworks Display — a signature event on the evening of Oct 1 to celebrate the founding of the People’s Republic of China.

The Leisure and Cultural Services Department said on Wednesday this year’s National Day fireworks gala scheduled to be held over Victoria Harbour will not go ahead due to public security concerns.

Our concerns are tied to potential social unrest in the vicinity tonight

Jockey Club spokesperson

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It’s the third time since Hong Kong’s return to the motherland that the fireworks extravaganza has been scrapped.

The display was canceled in 2013 to mourn the victims of the Lamma Island ferry collision on Oct 1, 2012, and was dropped again in 2014 at the height of the “Occupy Central” campaign.

Racegoers were taken aback on Wednesday after the Hong Kong Jockey Club decided to cancel the evening’s race meeting at Happy Valley, citing an “imminent threat to the safety of racegoers, jockeys and employees, and to the welfare of racehorses”.

“Our concerns are tied to potential social unrest in the vicinity tonight, the very real threat of a disturbance or possible violence at Happy Valley Racecourse, and uncertainty regarding transportation in and around Happy Valley and Causeway Bay for racegoers, jockeys and employees and horses entering or leaving the racecourse throughout the evening,” a Jockey Club spokesperson said.

Radicals had earlier threatened online to disrupt Wednesday night’s races, in which a horse, “Hong Kong Bet”, partly owned by lawmaker Junius Ho Kwan-yiu, was to run in the first race of the eight-race card.

Ho has become a target of radical protesters for his alleged links to white-clad men involved in the beating up of protesters and commuters at Yuen Long MTR station on July 21. Ho has denied the allegations.

Another casualty is the 2019 Hong Kong Tennis Open — one of the city’s mainstay sports events due to be held from Oct 5 to 13 — that has been postponed. In a statement issued on Friday, the organizers said they could not guarantee a smooth running of the tournament at this time.

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The award-winning musical, Matilda, planned to be presented for a month starting from Sept 20, has also been called off. In a statement, the organizer explained that the decision was made as the ongoing protests have affected ticket sales and threatened the safety of performers.

Brave Chan Yung, acting chairman of the Hong Kong Celebrations Association, told China Daily the protracted violence has greatly impoverished Hong Kong residents’ cultural lives, which will have an adverse effect on people’s emotional well-being, and will not help in youth development.

The cancellation of these key cultural and sports events will also impair Hong Kong’s attraction among tourists and deal a heavy blow to the local economy, he said.

jefferygu@chinadailyhk.com