XN000022-1986-07-23 — Page 10

8

+ONLY WITH A TIME TABLE COULD WE "APPROPRIATELY ALDOGSW RESOURCES FOR AND TO EFFECTIVELY SUPERVISE THE PROGRESS OF THIS MAMMOTH WORK, HE SAID.

HE SAID THE WORK ON A BILINGUAL LEGAL SYSTEM SHOULD BE

COMPLETED BEFORE 1997.

+❘ THEREFORE SUGGEST THAT TRANSLATION WORK SHOULD BE COMPLETED BETWEEN 1992 AND 1994, ALLOWING THREE TO FIVE YEARS BEFORE 1997 FOR THE SYSTEM TO BE PRACTISED AND TESTED, HE SAID,

MR CHEUNG ADDED THAT THE QUALITY OF TRANSLATION SHOULD NOT BE LOWERED AT THE EXPENSE OF SPEED.

IN PARTICULAR, THE SPIRIT OF THE COMMON LAW AND ITS FLEXIBLE APPLICATION MUST BE PRESERVED, HE SAID.

MR CHEUNG ALSO CALLED FOR A RECONSIDERATION OF THE PROPOSAL THAT THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL OR ITS COMMITTEES SHOULD NOT VET THE TRANSLATED LAW.

+ THE FUTURE CHINESE VERSION OF THE LEGISLATION SHOULD ENJOY EQUAL STATUS AND HAVE SAME LEGAL EFFECTS AS THE ENGLISH TEXT.

+1 CONSIDER THAT THE ENACTMENT OF LAW IS THE PREROGATIVE OF THE LEGISLATURE.

+ BEING ITSELF A LEGISLATIVE BODY, THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL SHOULD UNDERTAKE THE RESPONSIBILITY OF VETTING THE CHINESE TRANSLATED VERSION OF THE LEGISLATION, HE SAID.

COUNCIL SHOULD HAVE FINAL SAY ON INTERPRETATION

*****

THE INTERPRETATION OF THE LAWS MUST FIRST BE STUDIED AND APPROVED BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL BEFORE THEY BECOME EFFECTIVE, THE HON MARIA TAM SAID TODAY (WEDNESDAY).

THIS WAS SUPPORTED BOTH BY THE BAR ASSOCIATION AND THE LEGCO AD HOC GROUP'S LEGAL SUB-GROUP THAT EXAMINED THE LEGAL ASPECTS OF THE DISCUSSION PAPER ON THE LAWS IN CHINESE, SHE ADDED.

MEMBERS OF THE SUB-GROUP INCLUDED MISS TAM, THE HON MARTIN LEE AND THE HON TAI CHIN-WAH.

SPEAKING DURING

Page 10Page 11