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It was agreed through the Sino-British Joint Liaison Group in February 1996 that the Hong Kong Government could proceed to negotiate with five countries on bilateral agreements on the transfer of sentenced persons.
"So far, good progress has been made in the talks with the five countries Thailand, the United States, the Philippines, Singapore and Austria," the spokesman said.
"We aim to reach as many new agreements as possible before the handover. If necessary, negotiations will continue after the change of sovereignty, and new agreements applicable to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region can still be concluded then," he said.
The spokesman said that the purpose of transferring sentenced persons to their own countries to serve their sentences was to facilitate their rehabilitation, by returning them to an environment free of language and cultural barriers and where their friends and relatives could visit them on a regular basis.
At present, Hong Kong has transfer arrangements with 23 countries, pursuant to the Council of Europe Convention on the Transfer of Sentenced Persons, which has been extended to the territory by the United Kingdom.
It also has transfer arrangements with Thailand, pursuant to the United Kingdom-Thailand Agreement on the Transfer of Offenders and on Cooperation in the Enforcement of Penal Sentences, which has also been extended to Hong Kong by the United Kingdom.
1997.
The Bill is expected to be introduced into the Legislative Council on April 9,
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