ENG-1974 — Page 297

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CONSTITUTION AND ADMINISTRATION

At the City District Offices and sub-offices, almost all of which are located in shop- type premises easily accessible to the public, enquiry service counters are combined with the reception facilities. The primary objects of the enquiry services are to give the man in the street information and guidance on the services provided and functions performed by government departments, to explain rules and procedures, and to supple- ment broadcast information during tropical storms and other emergencies. During the year, the Home Affairs Department handled a total of about 1.6 million enquiries of all kinds.

In the New Territories the Secretary for the New Territories and his seven District Officers exercise co-ordinating responsibilities, and in addition perform certain execu- tive functions, principally in relation to land administration. The arrangements for consultation with the public are more formalised to the extent that there is a village representative system. More than 900 village representatives are chosen from over 600 villages. Villages are grouped under 27 rural committees each of which has an executive committee. With one exception, all the executive committees of the rural committees are selected by secret ballot every two years by village representatives. The rural com- mittees execute minor works and carry out certain tasks on behalf of the government, receiving a small monthly subvention to cover part of their expenses. Within its own area the rural committee acts as spokesman for local public opinion, mediates in clan and family disputes, and generally provides a bridge between the government and the people.

The chairman and vice-chairman of the 27 rural committees, with the unofficial New Territories Justices of the Peace and 21 special councillors, elected every two years, form the Full Council of the New Territories Heung Yee Kuk, whose title may be translated into English as 'rural consultative council'. Under the constitution es- tablished by the Heung Yee Kuk Ordinance, the Kuk has an executive committee which meets monthly and consists of the chairmen of rural committees, the unofficial New Territories Justices of the Peace and 15 ordinary members elected every two years by the Full Council. The Full Council also elects the chairman and two vice- chairmen of the Kuk, through whom close contact is maintained with the Secretary for the New Territories.

Use of the Chinese Language

Following the emphasis on the use of Chinese in Government departments, the Home Affairs Department continued to recruit and train new staff during 1974. Many graduates from the two universities have joined the government service as Chinese language officers. Two induction courses were held for the new recruits. In addition, two extensive in-service training programmes for Chinese language officers were launch- ed in May-July and September-December to improve the standard of translation. In March, officers from the Chinese Language Authority went to Singapore to study the efforts and achievements made by its multi-lingual community. In July, the Controller of Translation Services of the Chinese language division represented the Hong Kong Government at a seminar on computational linguistics in the United States and visited the Chinese Division of the United Nations Secretariat. He returned with a wealth of