XN000022-1995-04-26 — Page 22

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Drug Trafficking (Recovery of Proceeds) (Amendment) Bill 1995

Following is the speech by the Secretary for Security, Mr Peter Lai, in moving the second reading of the Drug Trafficking (Recovery of Proceeds) (Amendment) Bill 1995 in the Legislative Council today (Wednesday):

Mr President,

I move the second reading of the Drug Trafficking (Recovery of Proceeds) (Amendment) Bill 1995.

The Drug Trafficking (Recovery of Proceeds) Ordinance provides for the tracing, restraining and confiscation of proceeds derived from drug trafficking and the criminalization of assisting a drug trafficker to launder his drug proceeds. It also provides for the designation of countries and territories outside Hong Kong so that external confiscation orders can be enforced here. The Ordinance helps to reduce the profitability of drug trafficking and acts as a deterrent to money laundering. It enhances Hong Kong's cooperation with overseas countries in the fight against illicit drugs. Since the coming into operation of the Ordinance in September 1989, assets to the value of $233 million have been ordered to be confiscated; of these $ 194 million have been paid to the Government. Further assets amounting to $153 million are under restraint.

The purpose of the present Bill is to improve the operation of the Ordinance in the light of experience since its enactment, and to bring its provisions into line with the standards in the 1988 United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances.

The Bill empowers the court to make a confiscation order, where proceedings in respect of a drug trafficking offence have not concluded because the defendant has absconded or died. It also empowers the court to increase the amount to be recovered under a confiscation order where additional proceeds are discovered subsequent to the making of the confiscation order.

The Bill seeks to extend the scope of production orders to cover information that is likely to become available, as well as information which is already in existence; and to make it clear that it is an offence for a drug trafficker to launder his own proceeds of crime.

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