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LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL.
No. S. 121.--The following Bills were read a first time at a Meeting of the Council held on the 23rd April, 1914 :-
Short title.
Amendment of section 4 of Principal Ordinance.
Amendment
A BILL
ENTITLED
An Ordinance to amend the Protection of
Women and Girls Ordinance, 1897.
BE it enacted by the Governor of Hongkong, with the advice and consent of the Legislative Council thereof, as follows:-
1. This Ordinance may be cited as the Protection of Women and Girls Ordinance, 1914, and shall be read and construed as one with the Protection of Women and Girls Ordinance, 1897, (hereinafter called the Principal Ordi- nance), and this Ordinance and the said Ordinance may be cited together as the Protection of Women and Girls Ordi- nances, 1897-1914,
2. Section 4 of the Principal Ordinance is hereby amended by the substitution of the figures "20" for the figures "18" in the second line thereof.
3. Section 17 of the Principal Ordinance is hereby
of section 17 amended as follows :~~~
of Principal
Ordinance.
cf. 2 & 3
George V
c. 20 s. 7 (1).
of. 2 & 3 George V
c. 20 s. 7 (4).
Amendment
of section 31 of Principal Ordinance.
(a.) by the deletion of the words "and has no "visible means of subsistence" in the second and third lines of sub-section (3) theroof and by the substitution therefor of the words “or is proved to have exercised control, direction or in- 'fluence over the movements of a prostitute "in such a manner as to shew that he is aid- ing, abetting, or compelling her prostitution with any other person or generally ";
(b.) by the addition thereto of the following sub-
section (4):-
<2
(4) Every female who
proved to have, for the purposes of gain, exercised control, direction or influence over the movements of a prostitute in such a manner as to shew that she is aiding, abetting or compelling her prostitution with any person, or generally, shall be liable to imprisonment for any term not exceeding 3 months."
4. Section 31 of the Principal Ordinance is hereby. amended by the substitution of the figures "17" for the figures "18" in the third line thereof.
Objects and Reasons.
The International Convention for the suppression of the White Slave Traffic was signed at Paris on May 4, 1910. The ratification of the adherence of Great Britain to the terms of this important International Congress was de- posited at Paris on August 8, 1912. This Colony has declared its accession to the Convention and it has accord- ingly become necessary that certain modifications should be made in the local law dealing with this matter in order to carry out the obligations which are imposed upon all those Governments which adhere to the resolutions of the Congress. This Bill carries out some of the required modifications in the local law by amendments of the local Protection of Women and Girls Ordinance, 1897.
In the first place the age of girls the subjects of pro- curation offences has been fixed by the Convention as that of 20 as a minimum; section 2 of the Bill brings up the age, which at present stands locally at 18, to the necessary minimum.
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