South China Morning Post Scoops Top Pata Gold Award

Hong Kong, February 20, 2006 – The South China Morning Post has won the Pacific Asia Travel Association 2006 Grand Award for Heritage for its "Hong Kong’s Vibrant Rural Communities Campaign", a seven-part series, published in October 2005.

The project was written by veteran Post reporter Kevin Sinclair and journalist Anneliese O’Young Ruo-hua, to recognize traditional rural communities where residents had taken the initiative to make life better for all.

The entry was selected by PATA judges as an exceptional achievement which set travel industry standards for excellence and innovation. The judges said the series "vividly illustrates how the traditional villages have adapted to the 21st century and the role they play in conserving Hong Kong’s heritage".

Editor of the South China Morning Post, Fanny Fung said the paper was delighted that the project had won such a prestigious award. "This is one of a long list of awards we’ve won recently which recognize the Post’s editorial excellence. This one is particularly gratifying for us as we have such a strong stance on environmental and heritage issues," said Fung.

Sinclair writes the Below the Border column about New Territories affairs and has spent many years encouraging and education people about the preservation of the past. He commented, "The series was well-received in Hong Kong, both by the seven villages which were featured directly, and by the whole community which was equally proud of the work being done to preserve Hong Kong’s traditional way of life."

Over the past half century Sinclair has won five gold awards for travel writing from PATA, the world’s largest travel and tourism body. One of those awards was in 2000 for an earlier SCMP series about beautified villages which encouraged residents to improve their environment.

Sinclair and other winners will receive their awards during the 55th PATA Annual Conference in Pattaya, Thailand, April 23-27, and "Living Villages" will also be on display during the conference.

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About South China Morning Post Publishers Limited

The company publishes the South China Morning Post and the Sunday Morning Post, Asia’s premier English language daily and Sunday newspapers with the highest circulations of any English language newspaper in Hong Kong.

The South China Morning Post is a leading commentator on Greater China and is widely read by government officials, business people, professionals and academics. According to the Nielsen Media Index 2005 Mid-Year Report, the paper has 95% of the English language newspaper readership in Hong Kong. Its current ABC audited circulation figure stands at 103,964 for the period from January to June 2005.

The South China Morning Post produces scmp.com, an award-winning subscription-based web site which offers a global audience access to the editorial content of the print edition, plus breaking news updates throughout the day, e-newsletters, news in traditional and simplified Chinese, podcasts, vidcasts, online business travel guides and news on PDA.

The South China Morning Post is also the market leader for display and recruitment advertising. Classified Post has long been the premier recruitment tool in Hong Kong and is an acknowledged economic indicator, covering every industry sector from Accounting and Finance to Technology, Construction, Marketing, Tourism, Education and many more. The company also produces Jiu Jik, a Chinese language recruitment magazine aimed at a younger audience and distributed exclusively at all MTR stations every Tuesday and Friday.

The South China Morning Post receives constant recognition for its editorial and technical capability. Awards won in the last 12 months include five category wins for excellence from the Society of Publishers in Asia Editorial Awards, two category wins for excellence in printing and picture reproduction from PANPA, 13 winners and runners-up for journalism and photography at the Hong Kong News Awards, two design awards from IFRA and two in the Society for News Design’s 26th Best of Newspaper Design Competition and one category win and five merits in the 10th Annual Human Rights Press Awards.

South China Morning Post Publishers Limited is a wholly-owned subsidiary of SCMP Group Limited. Through other subsidiaries, SCMP Group Limited is also involved in the publication of magazines, books, book retailing, commercial and business video production and property investments. SCMP Group’s shares are listed on The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited.

For more information contact Amanda Turnbull, Director, Marketing and Communication on 2250-3130 or email amanda.turnbull@scmp.com.