简体中文
The public consultation on Discrimination Law Review will be launched in mid-2014, to expand the scope of illegal discriminative acts, including those against mainland immigrants, said Hong Kong's anti-discrimination body on Thursday.
The Discrimination Law Review DLR of the existing Anti-Discrimination ordinances (DLR) concerns people’s equal opportunities in Hong Kong. Currently, members of the Equal Opportunity Commission (EOC), the city's statutory body working towards elimination of discrimination, has deliberated the controversial parts regarding Hong Kong new immigrants for amendment in the current laws.
Dr. York CHOW, the president of the Equal Opportunity Commission, said the existing Anti-discrimination Ordinance covers racial discrimination, but mainlanders are excluded.
"Hong Kong people and the Chinese mainland incomers are all Chinese, i.e we are obviously of the same race," Chow said, adding that it is difficult to define differences of "races".
A recent controversy about the legal requirement of Chinese mainlanders with one-way permits must reside here for seven years to be eligible for social security from the government, ended up with the top court ruling it unconstitutional.
Chow noted that although he finds the judgment reasonable, which will bring fairer treatments to mainland immigrants in the city, voices of dissatisfaction amongst local citizens ensued.
He said the EOC has committed to undertake the DLR since March this year as one of the chief issues. The latest EOC meeting in December discussed the structure and contents of a consultation document, which will open to public next year.
Part of the consultation will be the proposition to amend the existing laws, as to whether discriminative acts against those with "immigrant identities", including mainlanders, should be made illegal.
Moreover, the age discrimination legislation, sexual harassment policies and sexual minority protection are mapped out as focuses of the Commission’s businesses at the 104^th^EOC Meeting recently.
Besides, the EOC also endeavors to get rid of bullying in campus, especially the fiery "games" in university orientation camps.
In recent years, reports about incoming students of a faculty or a hall of a university reluctantly take part in violent and indecent games take the headlines from time to time.
Chow, an alumnus of the School of Medicine of the University of Hong Kong, said he had the experiences of being fooled as a fresher, and fooling others in "O Camps" with his seniority when he was at college.
"The activities in O Camp are designed to teach the new comers of universities to understand that they have grown up, which could be tough," Chow said, "But these can't be overdone."
He said the EOC will work with the persons in charge of the universities, to assure the participants of O Camps' rights to withdraw themselves from any activities they find uncomfortable with.
