THE LEGAL SYSTEM
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is updated continuously. In addition, all new legislation is published in the Government Gazette.
The Department of Justice is responsible for drafting new bilingual legislation. The Law Drafting Division of that department keeps a bilingual legal glossary in a database which has about 23 400 entries and is growing at a rate of about 110 entries per week. An English-Chinese glossary of legal and relevant terms appearing in legislation is published from time to time in booklet form. The second edition, containing about 15 000 entries, was published in June 1996. The next edition will be published in 1998.
Rights of the Individual
As provided under the Sino-British Joint Declaration on the Question of Hong Kong and the Basic Law of the HKSAR of the People's Republic of China, provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) as applied to Hong Kong continue to remain in force after June 30, 1997.
The HKSAR continues to abide by the following major international conventions on human rights: the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women.
The Hong Kong Bill of Rights Ordinance (Cap. 383), which was enacted in 1991 to give effect in the local law to the provisions of the ICCPR, continues in force.
On June 26, 1997, the Family Status Discrimination Ordinance was enacted to outlaw discrimination against a person on the ground that the person has the responsibility for the care of an immediate family member. This Ordinance, together with the Sex Discrimination Ordinance (Cap. 480) and the Disability Discrimination Ordinance (Cap. 487), are overseen by the Equal Opportunities Commission.
The Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance (Cap. 486), enacted in August 1995 to protect an individual's right to privacy with respect to personal data, continues to give statutory effect to internationally recognised data protection principles. In 1997, the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data undertook a variety of activities to promote compliance, awareness and understanding of the ordinance, including the approval of codes of practice, the issue of fact sheets and guidance materials on its application. The commissioner also handled complaints lodged under the Ordinance.
Arbitration and Alternative Dispute Resolution
Arbitration has been a popular method of dispute resolution in the HKSAR for some time. It is governed by the Arbitration Ordinance, which has two distinct regimes a domestic regime derived from English law and an international regime which includes the UNCITRAL Model Law, the model law adopted by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law. Recent amendments to the Arbitration Ordinance give additional powers to arbitrators to facilitate the fair and speedy resolution of disputes by arbitration without unnecessary expense. They also transfer the power to appoint arbitrators from the courts to the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre.