47
HONGKONG LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
on
over them myself, and I thought really I had given him all the information he asked for. He referred to question 6. We told him we had got one nurse already on the spot. and another coming-Miss Bone but I am sorry to say she is delayed through having to pass an extra examination. The successor to Miss Gourley was asked for
On the 21st January, and the successor to Miss Wilkes, now the wife of our much esteemed chief clerk, was applied for the 13th February, and I don't think we could have done it much sooner. Regarding question 4, I must say as I read it there is a great misapprehension. The hon. member was talking about sisters being liable to be sent to KennedyTown Hospital, and of others being liable to be sent out private nursing. No such thing. The sisters sent out private nursing are quite separate. I was extremely sorry to hear the peroration of the hon. member in which he accused the Government of treating the questions of unofficial mem. bers in an adverse and hostile spirit. It would pain me very much if I felt that there was any justification for it, but I know my hon. friend on the left (the Colonial Secretary) is the personification of politeness, if I may say so, and he is always ready to give any information he can: and as for myself, I think I have always shown myself ready to help unofficial members all I possibly could, but I hate to waste my own time and the time of others, and I think if you leave this matter in the hands of the P.C M.O., who has had experience at home and in East Africa, the hou. member on my left, who has had experience in the Federated Malay States and the Straits Settlemen's where there are very large hospitals. and my humble self, who have had experience in the Colony of Fiji, where they have a medical department which can show Hongkong some points, hon. members may rest assured the matter will be properly, sympathetically and adequately dealt with, with due regard to economy.
HON. MR. POLLOCK-I ask for division to be taken on this motion.
a
A vote was then taken, and resulted as follows:-
AYES-Hon. Mr. Wei Yuk, Hon. Mr. Hewett, Hon. Mr. Shellim, Hon. Mr. Pollock. Hon. Mr. Lau Chü Pak.
|
NOES: The General Officer Command- ing, the Colonial Secretary, the Colonial Treasurer, the Director of Public Works, the Captain Superintendent of Police, the Attorney-General.
The resolution was declared lost.
Obscene Publication Ordinance
THE
ATTORNEY-GENERAL
moved
the first reading of a Bill entitled. “An Ordinance for more effectually prevent- ing the Publication of Obscene Books, Pictures and other Articles."
THE COLONIAL SECRETARY second- ed, and the Bill was read a first time.
The "Objects and Reasons" attached state that the object of this Bill is to introduce into the Colony the provisions of the Obscene Publications Act, England, 20 and 21 Vict, e. 83, which empowers Magistrates and Justices of the Peace to issue warrants to search for obscene hooks, pictures, and other articles, and, after giving parties who may be interested an opportunity of being heard, to order the destruction of any obscene articles so seized. does not exist in this Colony at present.
Such a power
Protection of Women and Girls
Ordinance
+
THE ATTORNEY-GENERAL moved the second reading of a Bill entitled, An Ordinance to amend the Protection of Women and Girls Ordinance, 1597. Ini doing so he said-This Bill, Sir, and two other Bills which appear on the agenda for to-day are rendered necessary by the International Convention on the question of the white slave traffic, which was entered into at Paris in the year 1910. The ratification of that convention by Great Britain was deposited in August. 1912, and this Colony has also declared its accession to the convention. That acces sion lays upon the Colony an obligation to amend its legislation dealing with the matter to bring it up to the standard set by the provisions of the convention, and this Bill amends the local law in four respects with that object in view. In the first place it raises from 18 years to 20 the age limit of girls subject to what ma be called the offence of simple pro- curation. without
aggravating any
HONGKONG LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
or
circumstances such &s fraud violence. The age in England is 21. Here it is 18, but in order to bring the law of the Colony into agreement with the convention, this Bill proposes to raise the age to 20 years. In the second place, an alteration is made in the law relating to the offence of living on the earnings of prostitution. At present that offence is proved, either by direct evidence that the male person is living on such earnings, or that he is living with a prostitute or is habitually in her company and has no visible means of subsistence. The present Bill, which is taken from the English Act of 1912, removes the necessity of proving the absence of visible means of subsistence, so that it will be sufficient to prove that the male person charged is habitually in the company of, or lives | with, a prostitute. The Bill will also enable the offence to be proved in third way, by proof that the male person has exercised control, direction or in- fluence over the movements of a prostitute in such a manner as to show that he was aiding, abetting compelling her prostitution with any other person or generally. It also provides that female person shall be guilty of an offence if she exercises such influence over a pro- stitute as to show that she is aiding and abetting prostitution. The fourth respect is to introduce for the first time the penalty of flogging for the offence referred to in Section 17 of the Ordinance on a second conviction.
or
a
a
HON. MR. HEWETT-Does a second
48 558
31 (1)--Whenever any person is convicted either summarily or before the Supreme Court of any offence against the provisions of Section 4 or Section 7 it shall be lawful for the Magistrate or Court to direct that in addition to the punishment hereinbefore prescribed the offender if a male be flogged.
(2). Whenever any person is convicted of any offence against the provisions of Sections 3, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 16, 17, 19 or 20, if it is proved that the offender has been previously convicted either summarily or before the Supreme Court of an offence against provisions of the same or any other of the Said sections it shall be lawful for the Magistrate or Court to direct that in addi- tion to the punishment hereinbefore pre- scribed the offender if a male be flogged.
HON. MR. HEWETT-Does that mean now, Mr. Attorney, that these people can be flogged for a first offence?
THE ATTORNEY-GENERAL-Only in the case of offences against the two sections dealing with simple procuration and indecent assault. That condition is made to bring our law up to the standard of the English law.
Hox. MR. HEWETT-I am not sure. even now, if I clearly understand the Bill, Ir is so difficult to prove a case against these men who are living on prostitution that I think flogging should be permis- sible in each case on a first offence. I don't quite understand whether the Attorney-General covers that point. There is a stream of these creatures pass-
girls and are living on their earnings, and they should be flogged.
offence mean a proved offence in a Courting through the place who procure young
of law?
THE ATTORNEY-GENERAL-Yes, on a second offence and when there is a pre- vious conviction.
THE COLONIAL SECRETARY second- ed, and the Bill was read a second time.
Council then resolved itself into a com- nittee of the whole Council to consider the Bill clause by clause.
On Clause 31,
THE ATTORNEY-GENERAL said-I propose to repeal Section 31 of the principal Ordinance and substitute a new section as follow:
THE ATTORNEY-GENERAL Flog- ging cannot be inflicted for a first offence of living on the earnings of prostitution.
HON. MR. HEWETT--I should like to see the law made so that the Magistrate could himself order flogging in every instance. Conditions here are so different. This class of pimp, a low class blackguard. goes through a place living on prostitutes' earnings. He is here perhaps a few days or weeks, then goes to American territory We or French territory and returns. ought to have much stricter rules to deal with these people, and if your Excellency sees your way to amend the section I shall be very glad.