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conferred no rights in the child, and to strengthen
the existing powers given to the Secretary for
Chinese Affairs under the Protection of Women
and Girls Ordinance, 1897.
(2) To reinforce the law dealing with
cruelty to children.
Thus far there is nothing in the Ordinance
which was not provided for under existing legislation.
What was new was the restrictions on the employment of girls as Mui Tsai and of girls under the age of 10
as domestic servants. There has been no lack of
will on the part of the Colonial Government to
enforce this measure. It has admittedly been found impracticable to proceed otherwise than slowly. Rapid progress is impossible for the following
reasons:
(a) The custom is deep-rooted in Chinese
family and economic conditions.
(b) Hong Kong, with its very large Chinese population (thousands move in and out of the Colony every day), cannot break away too far or too fast
from Chinese customs.
(c) The great majority of the Chinese live
so close to starvation that the too numerous children inust find work or die and they cannot always find work in their own villages.
(d) The existing Mui Tsai, whose numbers constantly fluctuate owing to the arrival of new families from China or the departure of Hong Kong
families