9
ON
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 6, 1985
EXPRESSING CONCERN OVER THE FACT THAT THE PRESENT BRITISH PASSPORT HOLDERS WERE ALWAYS ADVISED TO OBTAIN A CERTIFICATE OF ENTRY TO ENTER THE UNITED KINGDOM, SHE PROPOSED THAT BDTCS AND FUTURE BN(0)S SHOULD NOT BE REQUIRED TO APPLY FOR SUCH A CERTIFICATE AND SHOULD AUTOMATICALLY ENJOY THE RIGHT OF ENTRY INTO THE UNITED KINGDOM.
+ THE IR PERIOD OF STAY WOULD OF COURSE BE SUBJECT TO ENDORSEMENT BY IMMIGRATION AUTHORITIES AT THE IR POINT OF ENTRY, + SHE SAID.
MRS CHOW ALSO CALLED ON ALL HONG KONG TRAVELLERS WHO ENCOUNTERED ANY PROBLEMS WITH IMMIGRATION AUTHORITIES OF ANY COUNTRY TO REPORT THE IR CASE TO THE IMMIGRATION DEPARTMENT OR TO UMELCO, SO THAT THE HONG KONG GOVERNMENT COULD MAKE REPRESENTATION BASED ON EVIDENCE TO THE RELEVANT AUTHORITIES TO PREVENT RECURRENCE OF SIMILAR EPISODES.
ETHNIC MINORITIES' CONCERN RAISED
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THERE HAD TO BE A SATISFACTORY FORMULA TO RESOLVE THE POSSIBILITY OF STATELESSNESS FACING ETHNIC MINORITIES IN HONG KONG AFTER 1997, THE HON CARL TONG SAID TODAY.
SPEAKING ON THE PROPOSED TITLE OF BRITISH NATIONAL (OVERSEAS), MR TONG SAID ALL THAT COULD BE DONE SHOULD BE DONE TO HELP THE ETHNIC MINORITIES,
HE REFERRED TO SIR GEOFFREY HOWE'S SPEECH ON JANUARY 21, ON MOVING THE SECOND READING OF THE HONG KONG BILL IN THE HOUSE OF COMMONS AND SAID THERE HAD BEEN MUCH CONCERN ABOUT THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT'S ARRANGEMENTS TO RESOLVE +STATELESSNESS+ WHICH IN EFFECT GIVE THE BRITISH OVERSEAS CITIZEN (BOC) STATUS ONLY TO PERSONS BORN AFTER JULY 1, 1997 WHO ARE NON-ETHNIC CHINESE.
HE NOTED IN HONG KONG STRONG CONCERN HAD BEEN RAISED BY THE ETHNIC MINORITIES AND IN PARTICULAR, THE COUNCIL OF HONG KONG INDIAN ASSOCIATIONS, ON BEHALF OF ITS 6 000 ETHNIC INDIANS WHO WERE BDTCS, HAD SUBMITTED A PETITION TO THE GOVERNOR ON JANUARY 17.
MR TONG SAID THEIR MAIN POINTS OF CONCERN WERE:
(1) BOC TRANSMISSIBILITY - BOC WAS NOT TRANSMISSIBLE BY
DESCENT. THERE WERE NO ARRANGEMENTS TO PREVENT STATELESSNESS FOR CHILDREN OF BOCS.
/(2) BN (0) RIGHT