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HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
MR. SALES: May your thoughts be transformed into practice? We want something practical to be done to improve living conditions in Kowloon, as we cannot live on dreams alone, Mr. Chairman.
(5) MR. H. CHEONG-LEEN asked the following question:
(a) Will the Commissioner for Resettlement please state how many persons were resettled during the third fiscal quarter of October through December 1964?
(b) What is the total figure resettled from 1st April, 1964 (the beginning of the financial year) to 31st December, 1964? (c) How many persons are expected to be resettled for the balance of the financial year January to March 1965? (d) What is the latest estimate of the total number of people who will be resettled (not resited) for the financial year 1st April, 1964 to 31st March, 1965?
THE COMMISSIONER FOR RESETTLEMENT replied as follows:
The answer to the first part of the question is that 25,372 persons were resettled during the quarter ending 31st December, 1964. These included 10,127 squatters on land, 698 boat squatters, 7,347 people from resite areas, 5,865 from cottage areas and 1,335 compassionate cases.
In reply to the second part of the question, we have resettled 72,776 persons between 1st April and 31st December this year.
The answer to the third and fourth parts of the question is that I hope to resettle about 43,000 people in the last quarter, or approximately 115,000 over the whole financial year. In addition to this total, I expect that by the end of March 1965 we shall, over the year, have moved about 7,000 people into the new Mark III blocks from overcrowded rooms in the old estates.
MR. BERNACCHI:--When the Commissioner for Resettlement was answering this question by the use of the term "this year", is he referring to this financial year?
COMMISSIONER FOR RESETTLEMENT:-Yes, this financial year.
MR. CHEONG-LEEN:-Mr. Chairman, the Commissioner's reply, particularly the last paragraph, is most reassuring. Could I ask him to be good enough to elaborate a little and tell us on what basis he expects to arrive at this figure of 43,000 for the period January to March?
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COMMISSIONER FOR RESETTLEMENT:-I could not give a breakdown of the figure from memory, but the point of my reply is that I am hoping that we will do much better in the last quarter than the previous three. In general, I think the explanation is that there have been some delays over clearances in the Tsuen Wan/Kwai Chung area, which have left completed accommodation unfilled in the Kwai Chung central estate, which we should be filling during the coming three months. There have also been some difficulties with structurally complete blocks at Yau Tong, which we will now be filling, although the blocks were completed a few months ago. Thirdly, we have rather held back on resettlement of people from resite areas because we have some very big planned clearances in hand this year, notably on the northeast of Shek Kip Mei and in part of the Ho Man Tin Cottage Area. It is essential to ensure that we have accommodation in hand for these people at the time when it is necessary to clear them. We should now, I hope, be able to make quite a big inroad into resite population during the next three months.
MR. CHEONG-LEEN:-In regard to the people who will be resited in the Tsuen Wan area, where are the squatters going to come from? From the urban areas or from Tsuen Wan itself?
COMMISSIONER FOR RESETTLEMENT:-People going into Kwai Chung Estate are partly from the urban areas and partly from locations in Tsuen Wan and Kwai Chung which are required for the Tsuen Wan/Kwai Chung development scheme. It is the latter clearance which has been delayed.
MR. FUNG HON-CHU:-Mr. Chairman, from the breakdown figures it seems to me that the rooftop squatters are completely forgotten. Is it the standing policy of the Resettlement Department that they should not be resettled?
COMMISSIONER FOR RESETTLEMENT:-My understanding is that for some time rooftop squatters have been resited only when the tenement is to be demolished for development, that is to say, when the owners of the premises have obtained an Exemption Order from the Tenancy Tribunal. At that point, the rooftop squatters on the building to be demolished, together with any on the adjacent buildings where the only access is through the building to be pulled down, are resited. We have been reluctant to resettle them direct in view of the decision not to give direct resettlement to the tenants of exempted premises.
MR. FUNG:-As far as I remember in the White Paper which was put up last month, nothing was mentioned about the resettlement of rooftop squatters?
COMMISSIONER FOR RESETTLEMENT:-I think that is right. I doubt if anything was mentioned in the White Paper, but I will verify for you.
Page 267 of 312
Page 267 of 312
508
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
MR. SALES: May your thoughts be transformed into practice? We want something practical to be done to improve living conditions in Kowloon, as we cannot live on dreams alone, Mr. Chairman.
(5) MR. H. CHEONG-LEEN asked the following question:
(a) Will the Commissioner for Resettlement please state how many persons were resettled during the third fiscal quarter of October through December 1964?
(b) What is the total figure resettled from 1st April, 1964 (the beginning of the financial year) to 31st December, 1964? (c) How many persons are expected to be resettled for the balance of the financial year January to March 1965? (d) What is the latest estimate of the total number of people who will be resettled (not resited) for the financial year 1st April, 1964 to 31st March, 1965?
THE COMMISSIONER FOR RESETTLEMENT replied as follows:
The answer to the first part of the question is that 25,372 persons were resettled during the quarter ending 31st December, 1964. These included 10,127 squatters on land, 698 boat squatters, 7,347 people from resite areas, 5,865 from cottage areas and 1,335 compassionate cases.
In reply to the second part of the question, we have resettled 72,776 persons between 1st April and 31st December this year.
The answer to the third and fourth parts of the question is that I hope to resettle about 43,000 people in the last quarter, or approximately 115,000 over the whole financial year. In addition to this total, I expect that by the end of March 1965 we shall, over the year, have moved about 7,000 people into the new Mark III blocks from overcrowded rooms in the old estates.
MR. BERNACCHI:--When the Commissioner for Resettlement was answering this question by the use of the term "this year", is he referring to this financial year?
COMMISSIONER FOR RESETTLEMENT:-Yes, this financial year.
MR. CHEONG-LEEN:-Mr. Chairman, the Commissioner's reply, particularly the last paragraph, is most reassuring. Could I ask him to be good enough to elaborate a little and tell us on what basis he expects to arrive at this figure of 43,000 for the period January to
March?
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
509
COMMISSIONER FOR RESETTLEMENT:-I could not give a break- down of the figure from memory, but the point of my reply is that I am hoping that we will do much better in the last quarter than the previous three. In general, I think the explanation is that there have been some delays over clearances in the Tsuen Wan/Kwai Chung area, which have left completed accommodation unfilled in the Kwai Chung central estate, which we should be filling during the coming three months. There have also been some difficulties with structurally com- plete blocks at Yau Tong, which we will now be filling, although the blocks were completed a few months ago. Thirdly, we have rather held back on resettlement of people from resite areas because we have some very big planned clearances in hand this year, notably on the north- east of Shek Kip Mei and in part of the Ho Man Tin Cottage Area. It is essential to ensure that we have accommodation in hand for these people at the time when it is necessary to clear them. We should now, I hope, be able to make quite a big inroad into resite population during the next three months.
MR. CHEONG-LEEN:-In regard to the people who will be resited in the Tsuen Wan area, where are the squatters going to come from? From the urban areas or from Tsuen Wan itself?
COMMISSIONER FOR RESETTLEMENT:-People going into Kwai Chung Estate are partly from the urban areas and partly from locations in Tsuen Wan and Kwai Chung which are required for the Tsuen Wan/ Kwai Chung development scheme. It is the latter clearance which has been delayed.
MR. FUNG HON-CHU:-Mr. Chairman, from the breakdown figures it seems to me that the rooftop squatters are completely forgotten. Is it the standing policy of the Resettlement Department that they should not be resettled?
COMMISSIONER for ResettlEMENT:-My understanding is that for some time rooftop squatters have been resited only when the tenement is to be demolished for development, that is to say, when the owners of the premises have obtained an Exemption Order from the Tenancy Tribunal. At that point, the rooftop squatters on the building to be demolished, together with any on the adjacent buildings where the only access is through the building to be pulled down, are resited. We have been reluctant to resettle them direct in view of the decision not to give direct resettlement to the tenants of exempted premises.
MR. FUNG:-As far as I remember in the White Paper which was put up last month, nothing was mentioned about the resettlement of rooftop squatters?
COMMISSIONER for ResettlEMENT:--I think that is right. I doubt if anything was mentioned in the White Paper, but I will verify for you.
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