The Legal System | 41
Equal Opportunities Commission
The Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) is an independent statutory body established in 1996 under the Sex Discrimination Ordinance to implement the Sex Discrimination Ordinance, the Disability Discrimination Ordinance, the Family Status Discrimination Ordinance, and the Race Discrimination Ordinance.
The EOC's functions include handling complaints, encouraging conciliation, providing assistance to aggrieved persons, and running public education, research and training programmes to promote equal opportunities and to eliminate discrimination on the grounds of sex, marital status, pregnancy, disability, family status and race.
In 2010, the EOC received 3 248 enquiries and 829 complaints relating to the four anti-discrimination ordinances. A total of 192 complaint cases were successfully conciliated.
Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data
The Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data (PCPD) was established in 1996 as an independent statutory body under the Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance (PDPO) to monitor, supervise and promote compliance with the PDPO.
In 2010, the PCPD handled 1 438 complaints and 18 000 enquiries, issued 10 enforcement notices, referred 12 cases to the Police for prosecution and handled 23 matching procedure applications and 127 compliance checks. The PCPD also published five investigation reports on significant complaint cases.
The PCPD organised a number of seminars for the general public and various industry sectors in 2010 to promote awareness and general understanding of personal data privacy. It also held five workshops on the collection and use of personal data in direct marketing, as well as 37 seminars conducted for insurers specifically.
On the international front, the PCPD organised 'Privacy Awareness Week 2010' jointly with members of the Asia Pacific Privacy Authorities in May 2010, and joined the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation Cross-border Privacy Enforcement Arrangement in August 2010. The Government, with the support of the PCPD, has conducted a comprehensive review of the PDPO in 2009 to strengthen personal data privacy protection and held further public discussions on the legislative proposals in 2010.
Websites
Administration Wing, Chief Secretary for Administration's Office:
www.admwing.gov.hk
Department of Justice: www.doj.gov.hk
Judiciary: www.judiciary.gov.hk
Legal Aid Department: www.lad.gov.hk
Home Affairs Bureau: www.hab.gov.hk
Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau: www.cmab.gov.hk Intellectual Property Department: www.ipd.gov.hk