Bill 1998

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Following is the speech by the Secretary for Security, Mrs Regina Ip, in moving the second reading of the Marriage (Certificate of Absence of Marriage Record) Bill 1998 in the Legislative Council today (Wednesday):

Madam President,

I move that the Marriage (Certificate of Absence of Marriage Record) Bill 1998 be read a second time.

The purpose of this Bill is to remove the inconsistency between the English and Chinese texts of section 13 of the Marriage Reform Ordinance and section 26 of the Marriage Ordinance which provide for the issue of the Certificate of Absence of Marriage Record.

Under section 26 of the Marriage Ordinance and section 13 of the Marriage Reform Ordinance, the Registrar of Marriages may issue a certificate to the effect that there is no record of a marriage between certain named persons having taken place or having been registered. The certificate is known as a "Certificate of Absence of Marriage Record". It is required by some jurisdictions to establish that Hong Kong residents are free to marry their nationals. The certificate states that there is no record of a marriage having taken place between the Hong Kong resident named in the certificate and any other person.

A review completed by the Immigration Department this year revealed that while the wording of the certificates was in line with the Chinese texts of section 26 of the Marriage Ordinance and section 13 of the Marriage Reform Ordinance, it was inconsistent with the original English texts of these sections which provide that the certificate may be issued to the effect that "there is no record of a marriage between certain persons named".

The Bill provides that the English texts of section 26 of the Marriage Ordinance and section 13 of the Marriage Reform Ordinance be amended, so as to bring the wording of these enabling provisions in line with the wording now adopted in the certificates. In order to put beyond doubt the validity of certificates already issued, the Bill also provides that certificates issued prior to enactment of the Bill are deemed to be valid.

Eliminating the inconsistency between the Chinese and English texts of the aforementioned provisions of the two Ordinances will remove any public doubt about the validity of the wording in the certificate.

Madam President, I move that the debate on this motion be now adjourned.

End/Wednesday, November 11, 1998

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