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Following is a question by the Hon Chan Hak-kan and a written reply by the Secretary for Security, Mr Lai Tung-kwok, in the Legislative Council today (May 20):
Question:
Recently, some North District Council members and Sha Tau Kok residents have relayed to me that it has become increasingly difficult for members of the public to apply for a Frontier Closed Area Permit (FCAP) and the waiting time for such applications is unduly long, often taking more than two hours. Regarding the Sha Tau Kok Closed Area, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the policies and criteria currently adopted by the Police for vetting and approval of applications for FCAPs; whether the Police adjusted or tightened the relevant policies and criteria last year;
(2) of the number of FCAPs issued in each of the past five years, broken down by the type of applicants (including indigenous villagers/ indigenous fishermen, residents, persons visiting close relatives, persons visiting non-close relatives, persons owning/managing properties in the closed area, persons taking care of properties in the closed area as trustees, parents or guardians escorting their children to and from schools in the closed area, grave sweepers at Sha Ling Cemetery, persons entering the closed area for work, officers of government departments/members of the media);
(3) of the number of applications for FCAPs on other special grounds in each of the past five years, as well as the criteria for vetting and approval of such applications;
(4) of the types of persons who (i) are eligible to act as sponsors for outside persons/organisations applying for FCAPs to enter the area for taking part in community activities, and (ii) may assist local residents in seeking reviews from the Police against their decisions to reject applications for FCAPs; whether such types of persons include members of the District Council concerned and members of the Rural Committee; and
(5) of the details of the authorities' plan to implement the third-stage of Frontier Closed Area (FCA) reduction (covering the section between Ng Tung River and Lin Ma Hang) within this year; whether they will consider further relaxing the policy on the restriction for entering Sha Tau Kok Closed Area, including relaxing the requirement that any visitor who enters the Sha Tau Kok Pier in FCA must hold a valid FCAP, so as to facilitate visitors heading for Lai Chi Wo to take ferries at the Pier?
Reply:
President,
Our consolidated reply to various parts of the question is as follows:
The establishment of the Frontier Closed Area (FCA) helps combat illegal immigration and other cross-boundary criminal activities. According to the Public Order Ordinance (Cap.245), any person entering the FCA must hold a closed area permit (CAP) issued by the Police. CAPs will only be issued to residents in the FCA and other persons who have a genuine need to enter the FCA. In general, the following types of persons may be considered as having such a need:
(i) persons who live or work within the FCA;
(ii) persons who need to transit the FCA for travelling to and from their places of residence;
(iii) persons who need to maintain a traditional link with the local communities within the FCA because of family or historical ties;
(iv) persons who visit relatives or friends in the FCA;
(v) persons who need to liaise with local Rural Committees within the FCA;
(vi) persons who own property within the FCA¡F
(vii) persons who are appointed by property owners to take care of property within the FCA;
(viii) persons who need to enter the FCA for work or business; and
(ix) students who study at schools within the FCA and the parents and guardians who escort them.
Applications for CAP are considered by the Police on individual merits. Applicants are required to provide reasons for their applications and submit relevant supporting documents. In general, the Police would not consider an application from a visitor to the FCA unless his CAP application is endorsed by relevant FCA residents or organisations (commonly referred to as the "sponsoring" procedure).
If an application is rejected, the applicant may lodge a written request to the Assistant District Commander (Administration) of the Border District for a review. If he is not satisfied with the review result, the applicant may appeal in writing to the District Commander of the Border District.
The Police have not changed the above criteria for issuing CAP or reviewing CAP applications in the past year. No CAP was issued to any person other than of the abovementioned categories in the past five years.
The Police do not maintain any breakdown of CAPs by the types mentioned in the question. The numbers of CAPs issued in the past five years are as follows:
Year Total
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2010 119 948
2011 125 476
2012 133 703
2013 129 853
2014 125 208
The third stage of the FCA reduction covers the border area between Ng Tung River and Lin Ma Hang. The progress of the fence construction works of this stage of the FCA reduction is satisfactory. The Government will later introduce legislative amendments to the Legislative Council to specify the coverage of the reduced FCA. The third stage of the FCA reduction is expected to be implemented within this year. When this is done, the entire FCA reduction exercise will be completed.
The Sha Tau Kok Pier, located in Sha Tau Kok Town, falls within the FCA. The Government, having considered the border security needs, has decided to keep the Sha Tau Kok Town within the FCA. This is because there is no physical barrier separating the Sha Tau Kok Town from the Mainland along the border. Moreover, Chung Ying Street in the Sha Tau Kok Town is the only place in Hong Kong where there is no border control facility but cross-border movement of people and goods is allowed. Therefore, from a border security point of view, there is a need to maintain the FCA restriction for the Sha Tau Kok Town. As regards the proposal for relaxing the FCA restriction of Sha Tau Kok Town to allow public use of Sha Tau Kok Pier, we consider that a careful examination is required, especially on whether the implementation arrangements would meet the border security requirements.
Ends/Wednesday, May 20, 2015
Issued at HKT 16:25
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