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No change to illegal immigration policy
In response to press enquiries about recent newspaper reports on illegal immigration, a Government spokesman said today (Monday) that there will be no amnesty for illegal immigrants (IIs) before or after July 1, 1997.
Stressing that there is no change to the illegal immigration policy, the spokesman said that all IIs found in Hong Kong would be repatriated immediately.
He said that the existing controls applied on both sides of the land border would not be eased post-1997.
"We will continue to take stern action against those caught in smuggling IIs. We will also continue our close liaison with the Chinese with a view to stopping the problem at source," he said.
The spokesman described as "deplorable" the snakeheads' total disregard of safety of pregnant women and young children.
He added that a system existed for entry into Hong Kong for settlement in an orderly manner through the one-way permit system.
According to the Government's estimate of the population of the children in China aged under 20 who would have right of abode in Hong Kong after June 30, 1997, all these eligible children would be able to come to Hong Kong before the end of 1998.
"There is no need for their parents to risk their lives to arrange their entries into Hong Kong illegally," the spokesman said.
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