Confiscation of goods.
Sew-sew women Barber
Photographers
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(We consider that though the ex- istence of street barbers is un- desirable on grounds of hygiene, they have to be tolerated for the time being owing to the present insufficiency of barbers shops.)
Bamboo furniture repairers
Chop-cutters (to be gradually eliminated) Cobblers (to be gradually eliminated) Locksmiths
Umbrella-repairers
Furniture-repairers
Tinkers
Knife-grinders.
D. METHODS OF CONTROL.
IX.-POLICE POLICY AND MEASURES.
40. All hawkers except tobacco hawkers are controlled by the Urban Council and the Police under the Hawkers Ordinance, No. 22 of 1935, and the by-laws made thereunder. The total number of hawkers at present licensed by the Council is 10,524, there having been a decline in the numbers licensed owing to so many, who were formerly licensed, having taken advantage of the prevailing immunity of unlicensed hawkers and failed to renew their licences. On the Police, already at a great disadvantage through lack of adequately trained and experienced staff, is thrown the immense burden of coping with unlicensed hawkers to a number which would not be over-estimated at 50,000. As the Police have their hands more than full with their activities against major criminals, they are inadequately equipped at present to establish a continuous, efficient control over hawkers, and have thus had no alter- native but to resort to the expedient of making spasmodic raids in order to make conditions difficult for and check the spread still further of unlicensed hawkers. We cannot say that this method of spasmodic raids though effective as far as it goes in present circumstances and successful in keeping down the spread of unlicensed hawkers, appeals to us as any complete and permanent solution, since in our opinion such raids may tend to lead the hawker to believe that at times he will be tolerated and at times not tolerated. We hope that when the Police Force is fully trained and up to strength and when adequate facilities, as we have suggested above, are provided for hawkers in limited numbers, it will be possible to establish a continuous twenty-four hour control or at least more regular patrols than at present to ensure that no hawking offences take place.
X. HAWKERS ORDINANCE, No. 22 of 1935,
AND BY-LAWS THEREUNDER.
41. We examined carefully in detail the provisions of the Hawkers Ordinance, No. 22 of 1935, the Hawkers Amendment Ordinance No. 25 of 1946, and the by-laws under the main ordinance.
42. The Hawkers Amendment Ordinance, No. 25 of 1946, gives to the Urban Council the power to enact by-laws for the seizure, confis- cation and disposal of the goods of unlicensed hawkers. No such by-laws have however yet been enacted.
43. After lengthy consideration we have concluded that it would be unwise on the whole to proceed with the by-laws of this nature, and instead we recommend that the somewhat modified powers of confis-