CO129-514-3 Mui Tsai system- correspondence 27-8-1929 - 21-11-1929 — Page 39

HONG KONG LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL.

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It is always possible to overlook particular and unusual provisions and it might very well happen that in prosecution for this purpose there might be failure to call medical evidence. That might con- ceivably lead to questions as to whether any conviction on the prosecu- tion should be allowed to stand or not. It is possible the conviction might be quashed on that ground. Then again, the medical evidence in a case of cruelty may very well be negative. It sometimes happens that the doctor does not see the person assaulted until some time after the assault and even gross cruelty may fail to leave marks which the doctor can point to after a lapse of some time, The absence of that evidence might tend to weaken the other evidence as to gross cruelty. Section 7 is therefore repealed, but the essential features of the section are reproduced in the new section 18 which is contained in clause 7 of this Bill. There you will find repeated the provisions that the magistrate must find whether the acts or omissions charged amount to gross cruelty and if he so finds he has no option of fining the offender but must impose a sentence of imprisonment.

The case of section 8 of clause 7 which is also repealed by clause 3, is somewhat different. That again was inserted in Committee and was useful for the time perhaps in drawing attention to the fact that the existing provisions of the Offences against the Persons Ordinance and the Protection of Women and Girls' Ordinance would apply to mui tsui as well as to other persons, but as attention was drawn to that fact at the time it seems unnecessary to preserve a section which in effect says that the law already in existence shall continue to exist. Further, there is a certain inconsistency between the Women and Girls' Ordinance and the principal Ordinance. That inconsistency has been dealt with in a later section of this Bill and in the Protection of Women and Girls' Amendment Ordinance.

Then, Sir, follow two sections which make the powers of the. Secretary for Chinese Affairs under the principal Ordinance subject in every case to the provisions of a particular section in that Ordinance, namely section 10. Section 10 provides that any mui tsai who wishes to be restored to the custody of her parents or natural guardian, and any mui tsai under 18 whose parent or natural guardian wishes such mui tsai to be restored to his custody, shall without any payment whatsoever be restored to such custody, unless the Secretary for Chinese Affairs shall see some grave objection in the interest of such mui tsai to such restoration, and the effect of these amendments will be that all the powers of the Secretary for Chinese Affairs shall be subject to that particular provision.

The next clause, Sir, to which I would refer is clause 8. That proposes to insert various sections in the principal Ordinance. The new section 20 provides that if a prosecution is instituted for ill treatment of a mui tsai and the magistrate does not find that the girl in question was a mui tsai he can still convict of common assault.

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