HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
ADDRESS BY CHAIRMAN
CHAIRMAN (in English):-Ladies and Gentlemen, the meeting is called to order.
MINUTES
The minutes of the meeting held on 10 November 1987, were confirmed.
PAPER
The following paper was laid on the table:-
(1) Report to the Urban Council by the Director of Urban Services and Secretary, Urban Council, for the month of November 1987.
QUESTIONS
1. MR. WALTER M. SULKE asked the following question (in English):—Could I please be told whether the Royal Hong Kong Police asked this Council for permission to divert demonstrators demonstrating in front of the Legislative Council Building into Chater Gardens, and if they so asked, then who gave this permission, and why?
MR. SAMUEL P. W. WONG, CHAIRMAN OF THE RECREATION SELECT COMMITTEE, replied as follows (in English):—The question asks whether the Royal Hong Kong Police asked this Council for permission to divert demonstrators demonstrating in front of the Legislative Council Building into Chater Gardens, and if they so asked, then who gave this permission, and why?
The Secretary for Security has advised-
'It is essential that there should be free access to the Legislative Council Building at all times. This being so, the Commissioner of Police has recommended that public gatherings in the vicinity of the Legislative Council Building should take place in Chater Garden rather than in Statue Square. The Commissioner did not seek Council's permission before making this recommendation.'
The Senior Crown Counsel/Urban Council has commented
'The Police do have wide powers under the Public Order Ordinance (Cap. 245) to control and direct the conduct of all public gatherings and prima facie could exercise this power to direct “protesters" into Chater Gardens, a public pleasure ground operated by the Council.
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However, I am of the view that it would not be proper exercise of this power if they directed "protesters" into a public pleasure ground if the "protesters" were not in possession of the written permission of the Council as any person so directed would be in breach of By-law 28 of the Pleasure Ground (Urban Council) By-laws.'
In view of the latter's advice, dialogue with Government will continue with the aim of rectifying the situation and ensuring that Council's interests are protected.
MR. WALTER M. SULKE (in English):-Mr. Chairman, I didn't know the Chairman of Recreation has turned into a diplomat. Could I ask whether he will please remind the Police that when I suggested some years ago to use part of Chater Gardens for speakers' corner, they turned it down. As they have now encouraged demonstrators to use it and they should also have allowed it to be used as a speakers' corner.
MR. SAMUEL P. W. WONG (in English):—Certainly I'll pass on the message. It is a different Commissioner of Police so he might take a different point of view.
2. MR. WALTER M. SULKE asked the following question (in English):—As everyone knows, there is a great loophole in the law which allows restaurants who have not been licenced and are therefore not complying with hygiene and safety regulations to operate. Even though they are being fined daily these fines are too low to deter them. The Food Hygiene Select Committee made a decision more than eighteen months ago to amend the law to allow this Council to actually physically close any premises which are operating restaurants in this illegal fashion. I asked a question in this Council eight months ago about the progress of this matter and was then told that it has been in the hands of various Government Departments since November 1986. Could I please be told why, when this decision was made by us in May 1986, the law has still not been amended and how many unlicenced restaurants are operating at this moment because we cannot physically close them?
MR. L. H. KWAN, CHAIRMAN OF THE FOOD HYGIENE SELECT COMMITTEE, replied as follows (in English):—This question is in two parts. The first part enquires into the progress on legislative amendments to enable the Urban Council to physically close unlicensed restaurants. The second part asks what the total number of unlicensed restaurants in the Urban Council Area is.
This exercise has proven to be rather more complicated than was at first envisaged, given that the proposed amendment had knock-on effects which entailed revisions to related sections in the same ordinance and consequential discussions with other government departments. It was also very necessary for the Department to discuss with their colleagues in the Regional Services Department to see whether it would not be possible to implement the proposed policy on a territory-wide basis. In the event, however, the Regional Council
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