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Following is a written reply by the Acting Secretary for Security, Mr John Lee, to a question by the Hon James To in the Legislative Council today (November 28):
Question:
It was reported early this year that a Libyan dissident alleged that he and his family had been detained in Hong Kong by the authorities for about two weeks in 2004 and were forced to board a plane at the Hong Kong International Airport in March of the same year for repatriation to Libya, where he was subsequently subjected to torture and inhuman treatment. It was also reported that the dissident alleged that some intelligence officers from the United States and the United Kingdom had taken part in the repatriation operation and was then suing the United Kingdom Government for that, and the United Kingdom Government was conducting an investigation into the case. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) of the details of the incident of the aforesaid family being detained in Hong Kong and subsequently repatriated to Libya, including the number of Libyans involved, their treatment during their stay in Hong Kong, who were responsible for arranging for their repatriation from Hong Kong and the transportation upon their arrival at the destination, as well as the rank of the government officers in Hong Kong who were responsible for handling the case and the resources involved;
(b) of the justifications for the authorities carrying out the detention and repatriation operations, or on the request of which organisations the authorities had taken such operations; whether such operations were taken in accordance with the established procedures; whether the authorities had, prior to repatriating the aforesaid family, questioned the family members, instituted any judicial proceedings and informed them in writing of the decision of extradition, expulsion or repatriation to Libya;
(c) whether it has assessed the liabilities and rights of and the role played by the authorities in this incident;
(d) whether the authorities, prior to carrying out the repatriation operation, had assessed if the Libyan would be subject to any torture or inhumane treatment after being repatriated to his country, and if such repatriation would contravene the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment; if they had, of the assessment outcome; if not, the reasons for that; and
(e) whether the authorities will conduct an investigation into this incident; if they will, of the expected time of completion and whether they will make public the investigation report; if no such investigation will be conducted, the reasons for that?
Reply:
President,
Member's question concerns a case reported in the media. We note that the parties concerned have already commenced legal proceedings in a jurisdiction outside Hong Kong. The legal representatives of the concerned parties have also issued a pre-action letter to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, indicating their intention to initiate legal proceedings in Hong Kong. At this stage, the Government will not make any comment.
Ends/Wednesday, November 28, 2012
Issued at HKT 12:45
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