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LCQ11: Provision of information in ethnic minority languages on public services
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     Following is a question by the Dr Hon Helena Wong and a written reply by the Secretary for Home Affairs, Mr Tsang Tak-sing, in the Legislative Council today (May 6):

Question:

     Some concern groups have relayed to me that although in recent years, some government departments and statutory bodies have printed, in ethnic minority languages, namely Indonesian, Hindi, Nepali, Tagalog, Thai and Urdu, (ethnic languages), leaflets/brochures outlining various public services, the majority of the people from the ethnic minorities (EMs) still are unaware of the availability of such services (e.g. interpretation services provided by non-profit-making organizations and employment support services of the Labour Department).  In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) which government departments/statutory bodies have printed in ethnic languages leaflets/brochures on their services, and set out the titles and publication/reprint dates of such leaflets/brochures, as well as the number of copies printed this year in a table by name of department/body;

(2) which government departments/statutory bodies provide, in ethnic languages on their web sites, information on their services;

(3) whether the various government departments/statutory bodies have adopted uniform criteria for determining the need for providing, in ethnic languages, printed and/or online information on their services; if they have, of the details; and

(4) given that the recorded messages of the telephone enquiry services currently provided by various government departments are in Cantonese, Putonghua or English only, and it is difficult for those EMs who do not speak such dialects or languages to use such services, whether the authorities will require various government departments and recommend various statutory bodies to improve their telephone enquiry services by providing recorded messages in ethnic languages or an option for connecting the callers to interpreters proficient in ethnic languages, so as to ensure that EMs can obtain timely information on public services?

Reply:

President,

     Various government bureaux/departments and public organisations have been providing public services to meet the needs of ethnic minorities (EMs) and to facilitate their early integration into the community according to their respective policy purview and service area.  The Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau (CMAB) is responsible for the overall policy on the promotion of racial equality and the Race Discrimination Ordinance.  CMAB also promulgates the Administrative Guidelines on Promotion of Racial Equality (the Guidelines) to provide policy guidance to government bureaux/departments and public organisations to promote racial equality and ensure equal access by EMs to public services.

     The Guidelines cover the key public services which are particularly relevant to meeting the special needs of EMs and facilitating their integration into the community, including medical, education, vocational training, employment and major community services.  The Guidelines cover 22 government bureaux/departments and public organisations, such as the Education Bureau, Social Welfare Department, Labour Department (LD), Home Affairs Department (HAD), Employees Retraining Board (ERB), Department of Health (DH), Hospital Authority (HA), Office of the Government Chief Information Officer, Housing Department (HD), Legal Aid Department, Hong Kong Police Force, Correctional Services Department and Fire Services Department, etc.  The Administration will keep the scope of the Guidelines under review and update where necessary.

(1) According to information collected, a list of service leaflets/brochures published by government bureaux/departments and public organisations in EM languages is at Annex I;

(2) According to information collected, a list of government bureaux/ departments and public organisations which set out their services in EM languages in their websites is at Annex II;

(3) In line with the guiding principles of the Guidelines, government bureaux/departments and public organisations should take steps to eliminate racial discrimination arising from the policies and measures of the relevant public authorities, and take into account equal access to public services for EMs during the formulation, implementation and review of relevant policies and measures.  Hence, the relevant government bureaux/departments and public organisations, from time to time, review the respective policies and measures, and provide interpretation services or other assistance for EMs to meet their needs.  For example, the HA has engaged a contractor to provide interpretation services in hospitals to EM patients, and the HD has employed EM staff to assist EM applicants at its customer service centre.

     Apart from interpretation services, government bureaux/departments and public organisations may also implement other appropriate measures to facilitate access of EMs to public services having regard to their respective circumstances.  For example, LD's checklist sets out that its job centres operate special counters and organise tailor-made employment briefings for EM job seekers.  Checklists of the relevant government bureaux/departments and public organisations are available on CMAB's webpage.

(4) At present, recorded messages in Cantonese, Putonghua and English are available at the 1823 hotline.  When EMs call 1823 and are transferred to customer service officers, the latter will, having regard to the needs of the callers, activate a recorded message in seven EM languages (i.e. Indonesian, Hindi, Nepali, Punjabi, Tagalog, Thai or Urdu).  The callers may be advised to dial the interpretation hotline of the Centre for Harmony and Enhancement of Ethnic Minority Residents (CHEER Centre) funded by HAD.  Upon receipt of an EM call, the interpreter of the CHEER Centre will approach 1823 for a three-way conference call to help the caller obtain the necessary information.

     EMs may also dial the free interpretation and enquiry hotline of the CHEER Centre directly.  The interpreter of the CHEER Centre will arrange a three-way conference call with the EMs and the relevant department staff to handle the enquiries.
 
     Moreover, individual government departments and public organisations provide recorded messages in different EM languages according to needs.  For example, under the DH's Special Preventive Programme, recorded messages in seven languages (i.e. Tagalog, Vietnamese, Thai, Hindi, Indonesian, Nepali and Urdu) other than Cantonese, Putonghua and English are available at the hotline on disease information.

Ends/Wednesday, May 6, 2015
Issued at HKT 16:59

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