BEIJING, July 12 (Xinhua) -- Chinese mainland authorities will work with cultural relic protection and law-enforcement agencies in Hong Kong and Macao to step up the crackdown on cultural relic smuggling, according to the National Cultural Heritage Administration (NCHA) on Wednesday.
A training program jointly hosted by the NCHA and Hong Kong's customs on enhancing the capabilities of preventing crimes related to cultural relic smuggling was launched recently in Xi'an, a historic and cultural city in northwestern China.
During the five-day program, which is the first of its kind, 60 trainees will learn about China's cultural relic resources, as well as the laws and regulations on protecting the relics, according to the NCHA.
They will also learn about experiences and practices relating to repatriating lost relics, preventing and combating smuggling, and the authentication of cultural relics, said the NCHA.
Li Qun, head of the NCHA, said he looked forward to close cooperation between the mainland and Hong Kong and Macao in preventing and cracking down on crimes involving cultural relics, thus better protecting the cultural heritage of the motherland. ■
