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HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
ADDRESS BY CHAIRMAN.
CHAIRMAN:-Ladies and gentlemen, the meeting is called to order.
MINUTES.
The Minutes of the meeting held on 5th January, 1971, were confirmed.
PAPERS.
The Chairman laid upon the table the following papers:
(1) Report on the work of the Urban Council and Urban Services Department for the month of January, 1971.
(2) Urban Council and Urban Services Department Statistical Report for the period 1st October, 1970 to 31st December, 1970.
(3) Report by the Commissioner for Resettlement on the progress of clearance and resettlement operations for the period 1st October, 1970 to 31st December, 1970.
MR. A. de O. SALES:-Sir, the Recreation and Amenities Select Committee is very gravely concerned with the staffing position in the Recreation and Amenities division of the Urban Services Department. For some considerable time now, the Select Committee has urged upon the Government the need to introduce new grades in the staffing of this particular division of your Department, Mr. Chairman, in order to cope with the increasing demand for leisure time, entertainment and cultural programmes, particularly of a physical recreational nature. (Mr. D. J. R. BLAKER arrived at this point). The Select Committee gave considerable thought to how this should be achieved, particularly at the last meeting when discussion took place in depth. Sir, you, as Director of the Urban Services Department, were asked to take up this issue with the Government as soon as possible because the Council must ensure that all its play facilities are put to best use. Optimum utilization of all such facilities will certainly go a long way towards promoting more and better programmes for young people in the many areas in which our facilities are found, more particularly in the thickly populated districts of Hong Kong. So, Mr. Chairman, we trust that the Government will recognize the urgent need for action and that, having regard to the difficult position obtaining at the present time, a new attitude towards this problem will result on the part of the Establishment Office of the Colonial Secretariat. Sir, we would like to be assured that this matter is receiving your attention and that you have taken up the issue with the Government in the interval since the last Select Committee meeting took place.
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
393
MR. H. CHEONG-LEEN:-Mr. Chairman, in connexion with the January Report by the Urban Services Department on hawker activities, I would like to mention that in recent weeks I visited a number of resettlement estates in Kowloon where hawker conditions are not improving and are even to some extent deteriorating.
It will be recalled that when the general survey of the number of hawkers on Hong Kong Island and in Kowloon was made last year, it was discovered that there were over 12,000 hawkers in resettlement estates.
It is now estimated that since then the number of hawkers in resettlement estates has increased by about 5%, all illegal hawkers of course, and many of them are young people in their early or late teens.
I would request that the Director of Urban Services bring this to the attention of the Colonial Secretariat, as the longer it takes to allocate to the Urban Council the necessary manpower and other resources, the more difficult it will be for the Urban Council to establish more orderly trading conditions for hawkers in the resettlement estates and other heavily congested hawker areas in Kowloon.
The Urban Council has a responsibility to see that hawking is carried out in an orderly and hygienic manner, both for the convenience of the general public as well as to help hawkers make a living, but the Urban Council must be given the required resources to do so as soon as possible.
During the month of January, a number of Hawker Associations have sent a joint memorandum both to the Chairman of the Urban Council and to me as Chairman of the Hawker Policy Select Committee putting forward a number of points in connection with the Urban Council's general policy on hawkers. I anticipate that this Memorandum will be carefully studied by the Urban Services Department and that a reply will later on be sent to the various hawker associations. I would assure all registered hawkers associations that the Urban Council will continue to welcome and carefully study their suggestions, and will do everything possible to assist licenced hawkers to ply their trade consistent with the over-riding public interest of good hygiene and sanitation, and the need to keep streets free from obstruction.
MR. SOLOMON RAFEEK:-Mr. Chairman, I seek your indulgence to make a short statement which I have been asked to make by certain members of the public. It concerns paragraph 34 of the Monthly Report.
A few days ago, it was the public-spiritedness of typical representatives of the USD that averted a great tragedy in Hong Kong. I am
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Page 207 of 241
392
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
ADDRESS BY CHAIRMAN. CHAIRMAN:-Ladies and gentlemen, the meeting is called to order.
MINUTES.
The Minutes of the meeting held on 5th January, 1971, were con- firmed.
PAPERS.
The Chairman laid upon the table the following papers:
(1) Report on the work of the Urban Council and Urban Services Department for the month of January, 1971.
(2) Urban Council and Urban Services Department Statistical Report for the period 1st October, 1970 to 31st December, 1970.
(3) Report by the Commissioner for Resettlement on the pro- gress of clearance and resettlement operations for the period 1st October, 1970 to 31st December, 1970.
MR. A. de O. SALES: -Sir, the Recreation and Amenities Select Committee is very gravely concerned with the staffing position in the Recreation and Amenities division of the Urban Services Department. For some considerable time now, the Select Committee has urged upon the Government the need to introduce new grades in the staffing of this particular division of your Department, Mr. Chairman, in order to cope with the increasing demand for leisure time, entertainment and cultural programmes, particularly of a physical recreational nature. (Mr. D. J. R. BLAKER arrived at this point). The Select Committee gave considerable thought to how this should be achieved, particularly at the last meeting when discussion took place in depth. Sir, you, as Director of the Urban Services Department, were asked to take up this issue with the Government as soon as possible because the Council must ensure that all its play facilities are put to best use. Optimum utilization of all such facilities will certainly go a long way towards promoting more and better programmes for young people in the many areas in which our facilities are found, more particularly in the thickly populated districts of Hong Kong. So, Mr. Chairman, we trust that the Government will recognize the urgent need for action and that, having regard to the difficult position obtaining at the present time, a new attitude towards this problem will result on the part of the Establishment Office of the Colonial Secretariat. Sir, we would like to be assured that this matter is receiving your attention and that you have taken up the issue with the Government in the interval since the last Select Committee meeting took place.
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
393
MR. H. CHEONG-LEEN:-Mr. Chairman, in connexion with the January Report by the Urban Services Department on hawker activi- ties, I would like to mention that in recent weeks I visited a number of resettlement estates in Kowloon where hawker conditions are not improving and are even to some extent deteriorating.
It will be recalled that when the general survey of the number of hawkers on Hong Kong Island and in Kowloon was made last year, it was discovered that there were over 12,000 hawkers in resettlement estates.
It is now estimated that since then the number of hawkers in resettlement estates has increased by about 5%, all illegal hawkers of course, and many of them are young people in their early or late teens.
I would request that the Director of Urban Services bring this to the attention of the Colonial Secretariat, as the longer it takes to allocate to the Urban Council the recessary manpower and other resources, the more difficult it will be for the Urban Council to establish more orderly trading conditions for hawkers in the resettlement estates and other heavily congested hawker areas in Kowloon.
The Urban Council has a responsibility to see that hawking is carried out in an orderly and hygienic manner, both for the convenience of the general public as well as to help hawkers make a living, but the Urban Council must be given the required resources to do so as soon as possible.
During the month of January, a number of Hawker Associations have sent a joint memorandum both to the Chairman of the Urban Council and to me as Chairman of the Hawker Policy Select Com- mittee putting forward a number of points in connection with the Urban Council's general policy on hawkers. I anticipate that this Memorandum will be carefully studied by the Urban Services Depart- ment and that a reply will later on be sent to the various hawker associa- tions. I would assure all registered hawkers associations that the Urban Council will continue to welcome and carefully study their suggestions, and will do everything possible to assist licenced hawkers to ply their trade consistent with the over-riding public interest of good hygiene and sanitation, and the need to keep streets free from obstruction.
MR. SOLOMON RAFEEK: --Mr. Chairman, I seek your indulgence to make a short statement which I have been asked to make by certain members of the public. It concerns paragraph 34 of the Monthly Report.
A few days ago, it was the public-spiritedness of typical representa- tives of the USD that averted a great tragedy in Hong Kong. I am
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