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answer questions merely on matters under their jurisdiction. Perhaps in the Standing Committee of the Whole Council meeting, right after this Open Meeting, we could take up this issue since we don't have any particular committee to be responsible for this. It is therefore preferable to discuss it in the Standing Committee although promotion of languages is not our major task.
5. MR. B. A. BERNACCHI asked the following question (in English):---In crematoria run by this Council, what assurance can the relatives of the deceased have that the ashes presented to them are the complete ashes of the deceased, and not mixed with those of other deceased people? In particular, are the ashes of the dead gathered up after each cremation or is the procedure to gather up the ashes at the end of the day and then divide them into the appropriate number of separate piles equalling the number of deceased persons cremated in that specific oven during the day?
DR. RONALD D. B. LEUNG, CHAIRMAN OF THE PUBLIC HEALTH SELECT COMMITTEE, replied as follows (in English):-Mr. Chairman, this question concerns the separation of each set of ashes resulting from cremation of human remains of different deceased persons returned by the Council's crematoria to the concerned relative of the deceased.
First of all, some people have the misconception that cremators operate in the same manner as an ordinary waste incinerator which is capable of being continuously fed with waste for burning without any break. The opposite is true.
Each and every cremator in the Council's crematoria is designed and constructed for the purpose of individual cremation of encoffined bodies. Efficient functioning of these cremators depends entirely on complete combustion of the correct fuel/air mixture within the cremation chambers. Excessive accumulation of ashes and fragments of bones inside a cremator would upset the designed fuel/air mixture ratio thus rendering proper functioning of the cremator impossible. To ensure each encoffined body is individually cremated and to prevent malfunctioning of the cremator, it is a routine and standard practice that ashes and fragments of bones after each cremation are required to be racked out from the cremator into a separate stainless steel tray. During the cremation process the cremator is name-tagged as is the repository tray holding the racked out ashes. The fragments of bones will, after cooling, be separated from the wood ashes and pulverized in an electric-driven cremulator and thereafter placed in a name-tagged cloth bag for collection by a relative of the deceased or the undertaker/funeral parlour responsible. This is the departmental code of practice which staff of the Council's crematoria have been following for years. Based on this, I am confident that the mixing of different sets of cremated ashes does not arise.
Incidentally, this is the reason why the number of cremation handled by our cremators is limited in capacity because it is a time-consuming process to complete the different stages of the cremation, separations of bone fragments and ashes, pulverisation, and separate packing of each case.
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6. MR. LAM CHAK-PIU asked the following question (in Cantonese):—As there has been much more publicity about all sorts of political and cultural activities in Hong Kong in recent years, publicity materials (such as banners, posters and slogans) of various types, sizes and colours can be found in conspicuous places (particularly walls, railings, lampposts, direction signs and road signs etc.) throughout the streets in the urban area. Some of them have been left unattended for years and become very unsightly, thus affecting the amenity.
I would like to know if the Council has any good measure to ensure that all those poster owners have completely removed these materials afterwards?
DR. D. B. LEUNG, CHAIRMAN OF THE PUBLIC HEALTH SELECT COMMITTEE, replied as follows (in English):-Mr. Chairman, the question concerns the measures taken by the Urban Council to remove those dilapidated and unsightly posters, banners and slogans left unattended for long periods of time in conspicuous places of the streets after the completion of the political, election and cultural activities.
Section 104A of the Public Health and Municipal Services Ordinance Cap. 132 prohibits the display of bills or posters without permission of the owner/occupier in respect of private land and the Urban Council in respect of Crown Land in the Urban Council area. Under the Crown Lands Ordinance (Cap. 28) the Director of Buildings and Lands is the principal authority in the management of Crown Land. As such and as agreed with the Administration in the case of election material the Director of Buildings and Lands has agreed to be the Approving Authority.
Invariably, permission is granted with a condition that such publicity material should be removed by the grantees within 7 days of the completion of the function or event. The Buildings and Lands Department is responsible for enforcing this condition.
Section 104B requires that any bills or posters displayed be maintained in a clean and tidy condition. Bills or posters displayed in contravention of the above provisions may be removed by the Urban Council under Section 104C and the costs of removal recovered from the person displaying the bill or poster and the offenders prosecuted.
Despite the situation mentioned above, unsightly and outdated posted posters and banners displayed on railings, lamp posts and other places will also be removed by the cleansing staff of the Department as ordinary street rubbish.
However, the removal of publicity material put up in connection with election or other campaigns or any rallies organized by political groups will be handled with flexibility and sense in order not to arouse embarrassment and confrontation. In this regard, posters, banners, etc. put up in contravention of the provisions of the ordinance will be removed discreetly while torn or dilapidated publicity materials will be removed as waste.
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