Statue of Liberty open during shutdown

The US government's partial shutdown has forced national parks to either close or reduce staff and services, but the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island are staying open.

The New York state government is spending $65,000 per day to keep both attractions running. New York has kept the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island open during federal government shutdowns three times in the past five years.

The statue on Liberty Island in New York Harbor is a universal symbol of freedom.

From 1892 to 1954, more than 12 million immigrants entered the United States through the portal of Ellis Island, a small island in New York Harbor near the statue.

On Thursday, the 13th day of the shutdown, tourists who were in Lower Manhattan to take the ferry to the statue said they were glad it remained open.

Joseph, a 21-year-old tourist from Oxford, England, told China Daily: "It's a special, popular thing to do; it's a once-in-a-lifetime thing. You come to New York, and you want to see all of the big monuments, especially the Statue of Liberty.

"If the government is going to start shutting down everything in New York, especially things like attractions, it's going to cause some issues,'' he said.

Thuy, 20, a student from Vietnam who was stepping off a ferry boat that took her and her friends to the statue, said: "I would be pretty sad if it was shut down. "

Eric Stiller said he is in the kayak-tour business in New York and runs trips to the statue.

"It is one of those places that in a place like New York we can afford to keep open,'' he said.