TNAG-0106-FCO40-142-Proposals-to-appoint-an-Ombudsman-1969 — Page 106

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FAR EASTERN ECONOMIC REVIEW

they are opposing would in fact be Hongkong's ombudsman, an innovion which has been discreetly rejected by the { powers

be. Nobody now seems willing to take the matter any further in public. Even the Hongkong Branch of Justice, which under Dhun Ruttonjee's chairmanship produced a first-class report on the need for an ombudsman, is displaying a curious reluctance to put its case before the public. From its own sources within officialdom, the REVIEW has been able to obtain a copy of this important document which undoubtedly deserves immediate publica- ..tion.

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Justice was not the first body to give attention to the task an ombudsman could undertake in the Colony. Sur- prisingly enough, the first moves in this direction seem to have occurred within the administration itself. Well over a year ago, D. T. E. Roberts, the Attorney General, put for- ward a draft bill which outlined the legal powers and responsibilities such an office would require. At the opening of the Assizes this year the Chief Justice Sir Michael ¡Hogan who would make an admirable ombudsman him- self added his authority to the same concept with a reference to the role of the ombudsman. However the bill got short shrift from UMELCO (the Unofficial Members of Executive and Legislative Councils). They preferred instead Ito see their own UMELCO office strengthened.

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In accordance with the Colony's political conventions, the Unofficials' case against the ombudsman has been kept 1 secret. UMELCO hostility to the scheme appears to have centred on finding the right man for the job. They did not yagree to the idea of bringing in a judge from, say, Britain, who would have the stature, experience and impartiality to "handle the job. Any ombudsman, UMELCO insisted, should be a person familiar with Hongkong. The next question was obvious: what about appointing a local resident, perhaps selecting him from amongst the ranks of UMELCO? But, this proposal was also quashed. Apparently, none of the more obvious candidates was willing to take on the post. They feared that the man in the ombudsman's chair would be under constant pressure to deal with the community's grievances and would face public criticism for not finding the right solutions.

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Weak as the UMELCO arguments are, the united hostility of the Unofficials has been sufficient to persuade the Government to view the idea with disfavour. In private, the Governor, Sir David Trench, is still considering ways to open up more effective channels of complaint about the activities of the administration. For him, the introduction of an ombudsman is still an option, but he is worried about a fundamental dilemma in creating such an institution. Should the Government introduce an ombudsman with legal 'powers of investigation, thus giving the appearance of effec- uitiveness even though his powers are limited by law? Or should systems be introduced which, while in fact consider- ably more effective because of the flexibility gained by lack of legal powers, suffer somewhat from an appearance of being ineffectual?

One possible alternative to an ombudsman would be a rule compelling government departments to inform UMELCO of all complaints and the action 'taken on them within certain categories. This approach would permit the Un- officials to vet civil service activities much more closely but would require a very elaborate staff to handle UMELCO's "increased volume of work. Nevertheless, the Governor has felt obliged to follow the advice of his Unofficials, and 'he

JULY 3, 1969

The work of Kuntong's CDO is explained to Legco member Y. K, Kan. The Government has adopted the view that the City District Officers and UMELCO can deal with individual grievances and an ombudsman is not needed.

I poured a a' great deal of cold water over the ombudsman

system earlier this year.

The main criticisms of the ombudsman concept were voiced by Sir David Trench in his Budget Speech. The Governor's first objection was that an ombudsman could not be an "all-powerful rectifier of all grievances"; he could only investigate and make reports. Justice acknowledges this but states: "The influence which may be exercised by him is entirely dependent upon the weight of reasons invoked by him in support of his findings.' Dhun Ruttonjee and his committee, drawing on the experience of the way the ombudsman system actually works in other countries, add: "Practically in all cases his findings and recommendations have been carefully followed and implemented. Furthermore, it has been the experience in Scandinavian countries that the practice of the ombudsman to put before the public, through the medium of the press, the results of his findings has acted as a strong deterrent against serious abuse of ad- ministrative powers."

The Governor went on in his Budget Address to argue that the system in New Zealand where the ombudsman has to refuse to investigate many of the complaints he re- ceives would need to be made more flexible if introduced

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