XN000022-1986-07-23 — Page 3

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WEDNESDAY, JULY 23, 1986

BILINGUAL LAWS PROGRAMME SET FOR NEXT SESSION

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AFTER CONSIDERING THE COMMENTS RECEIVED THE REVISED PROPOSALS ON LAWS IN CHINESE WILL BE REFERRED TO THE GOVERNOR-IN-COUNCIL AS SOON AS PRACTICABLE, AND IT IS EXPECTED THAT THE NECESSARY LEGISLATION TO GIVE EFFECT TO THE CHINESE LAWS PROGRAMME WILL BE PRESENTED TO THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL EARLY IN THE NEXT SESSION, THE ATTORNEY GENERAL, THE HON MICHAEL THOMAS SAID TODAY (WEDNESDAY).

+ I HOPE TO SEE THE FIRST AUTHENTIC CHINESE TEXT IN THIS COUNCIL BY THE END OF THE YEAR, HE SAID.

WINDING UP THE ADJOURNMENT DEBATE ON LAWS IN CHINESE,

MR THOMAS SAID THAT ALTHOUGH MANY OF THE QUESTIONS RAISED IN THE PAPER ALLOWED FOR NO SIMPLE ANSWERS, AND MEMBERS HAD DIFFERENT VIEWS ON HOW INDIVIDUAL PROPOSALS SHOULD PROCEED IT WAS CLEAR THAT MEMBERS WERE IN FULL SUPPORT OF THE PRINCIPLES AND OBJECTIVES OF THE HISTORIC PROJECT TO PRODUCE BILINGUAL LEGISLATION FOR HONG KONG WHICH THE GOVERNOR-IN-COUNCIL APPROVED JUST ONE YEAR AGO,

+THE COMMENTS MADE BY MEMBERS THIS AFTERNOON WILL BE OF GREAT VALUE IN ASSISTING THE ADMINISTRATION TO DETERMINE THE BEST WAY FORWARD, HE SAID.

MR THOMAS SAID THE OBJECTIVE OF THE BILINGUAL LAWS PROGRAMME WAS TO ENSURE THAT ALL OF HONG KONG'S STATUTORY LAW WAS PUBLISHED IN ENGLISH AND CHINESE AND THAT BOTH TEXTS WERE EQUALLY AUTHENTIC.

+AUTHENTICITY HAS TWO ASPECTS,+ HE SAID, +FIRSTLY IT MEANS THAT, AS A MATTER OF LAW, BOTH TEXTS CAN BE CONSIDERED BY THE COURTS IN ASCERTAINING THE LAW.+

+SECONDLY IT MEANS THAT THE TWO TEXTS MUST BE EQUALLY GOOD.

+EXPERIENCE IN CANADA, WHERE ALL FEDERAL LAWS ARE IN BILINGUAL FORM, SHOWS THAT THE COURTS ARE RELUCTANT TO ACCEPT A TEXT AS AUTHENTIC, WHATEVER THE LAW MAY SAY, IF IT READS LIKE A MERE TRANSLATION OF ANOTHER TEXT, + MR THOMAS SAID.

THE AIM WAS, THERFORE, TO HAVE A SYSTEM OF PARALLEL DRAFTING WHERE COUNSEL DRAFTING THE ENGLISH TEXT WORKS ALONGSIDE COUNSEL DRAFTING THE CHINESE TEXT WITH FULL DISCUSSION BETWEEN THEM AT EVERY STAGE, HE SAID.

NOTING THAT COMMENTS ON THE DISCUSSION PAPER FROM ALL THE MAIN INTEREST GROUPS HAD BEEN EXTREMELY FAVOURABLE, MR THOMAS SAID THE PARTICULAR ISSUES RAISED WERE MANY AND HIS CHAMBER WAS STILL ANALYSING THEM.

A MAJOR