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Following is a question by the Hon Sin Chung-kai and a written reply by the Secretary for Commerce, Industry and Technology, Mr John Tsang, in the Legislative Council today (December 7):
Question:
The United States, Canada, Australia and some European countries have opened up the frequency band between 26.96 - 27.41 MHz (the Citizen Band) for short-range two-way radio communications of the general public. Their respective spectrum management authorities have designated Channel 9 for emergency communications and deploy staff to constantly monitor the contents of the communications to ensure that rescue agencies can provide immediate rescue services. As the Administration is planning to open up the Citizen Band and designate Channel 9 solely for emergency communications, such as those of the picnickers in distress, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) whether it will, by drawing reference from the practices of the above countries, deploy staff to monitor Channel 9 constantly; if it will, of the details, including the department responsible for the monitoring; if not, the reasons for that;
(b) whether it will install antennae in remote areas and along popular hiking trails to ensure that the monitoring staff will have clear reception of distress signals; if it will, of the locations where antennae will be installed, as well as the scheduled completion dates of the installation works; and
(c) how it will impart to the public, especially the picnickers, that Channel 9 is solely for emergency communications and the proper use of the channel, such as whether it will collaborate with non-governmental organisations, and of the timeframe of such efforts?
Reply:
Madam President,
(a) According to our understanding, the United Kingdom, the United States and Australia have opened Channel 9 of Citizen Band (CB) as an emergency channel for seeking assistance during emergency situations. However, among these countries, there is only one official body of the United Sates (US Coast Guard) that monitors Channel 9 for such calls, and for marine search and rescue purposes only. In Australia, the United Kingdom, and over the inland areas of the United States, Channel 9 of CB is monitored by non-governmental organisations on a voluntary basis.
Our thinking for Hong Kong is that when CB is open, we would recommend the public to reserve Channel 9 for emergency communications only, and encourage users of CB walkie-talkies to tune in to Channel 9 from time to time to look out for distress calls so as to render assistance to those in need, and notify relevant rescue agencies whenever necessary.
(b) Most CB walkie-talkies available in the market are equipped with "dual channel monitoring" function, which allows users to listen to communications on Channel 9 at all times without retuning. The effective communications range of these CB walkie-talkies generally exceeds 5-6 kilometres. Given the small size of Hong Kong, should someone in distress use a CB walkie-talkie to seek assistance, it is highly likely that such calls would be picked up by other users of CB walkie-talkies. As such, we do not consider it necessary to install additional antennae in remote areas or at popular hiking areas.
(c) The Office of the Telecommunications Authority (OFTA) has conducted a consultation on the opening of CB. During the consultation, OFTA approached several amateur radio associations and hiking organisations, and proposed to collaborate with them in promoting the use of Channel 9 of CB for emergency communications, and providing the public with information on the proper use of Channel 9. The responses from these organisations have been encouraging and positive. Besides, after a decision is made on the details of the opening of CB, the Telecommunications Authority will publish and distribute publicity leaflets to enhance public awareness of the use of Channel 9. We aim to launch such public education within the first quarter of 2006.
Ends/Wednesday, December 7, 2005
Issued at HKT 14:50
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