- 7.
Letters Patent, which came into operation on the same day as the Bill of
Rights, says: -
"The provisions of the International Covenant on Civil
and Political Rights, adopted by the General Assembly
of the United Nations on 16th December, 1966, as applied
to Hong Kong, shall be implemented through the laws of
Hong Kong. No law of Hong Kong shall be made after the
coming into operation of the HongKong Letters Patent 1991
(No. 2) that restricts the rights and freedoms enjoyed in
Hong Kong in a manner which is inconsistent with that
Covenant as applied to Hong Kong."
This provision entrenches the Bill of Rights until 1997 when the Letters
Patent will cease to have effect. Thereafter, a provision in the Basic
Law with a similar effect; namely, Article 39 will come into operation.
Commission.
commission.
But the
There have been strong calls in Hong Kong to set up a Human Rights
This has been rejected by the Hong Kong Government.
ICJ, in its report, has also recommended the setting up of such a
The purpose would be to research, inform and educate the
public on human rights issues, advise and assist claimants or potential
claimants for redress under the Bill of Rights, and conciliate disputes
between the Government and citizens under the Bill. I am amongst those
who strongly favour a Human Rights Commission to give full expression to
the Bill.