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The Government has made four amendment orders to enable the Correctional Services Department (CSD) to transfer the management of the Castle Peak Bay Immigration Centre (CIC) back to the Immigration Department (ImmD) in mid-April.
The Immigration (Treatment of Detainees) (Amendment) Order 2010 will enable the rules relating to the treatment of detainees as set out in Schedule 1 of the principal Order to apply to the CIC. The amendment order will also add two provisions. One is to ensure the continuation of visits by Justices of the Peace to the CIC, and the other is to ensure that the current arrangement that detainees may smoke in designated areas of the CIC can continue.
The other three amendment orders are the Prisons (Amendment) Order 2010, the Immigration (Places of Detention) (Amendment) Order 2010 and the Smoking (Public Health) Ordinance (Amendment of Schedule 2) Order 2010. They are all technical amendments.
"The relevant detainees are not convicted or sentenced prisoners, but are persons under investigation or pending removal under the Immigration Ordinance. The actual treatment of detainees will not be affected before and after the transfer of CIC management. The current management of the CIC by the CSD is only a temporary measure made in view of the then manpower situation of ImmD and CSD", the Government spokesman said today (February 3).
The four amendment orders will be published in the Gazette on Friday (February 5) and will take effect from April 15.
Ends/Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Issued at HKT 19:00
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