2015-09-08 Asylum seekers: time for judicial inquiry
A judicial inquiry has been proposed to investigate Hong Kong's lead-in-water problem. Judicial inquiries are usually effective: they establish all the facts involved in an issue, and they make practical recommendations.
A similar inquiry needs to be established to deal with the growing problem of asylum seekers. In recent weeks many media articles have highlighted a range of issues associated with the existence of some 10,000 asylum seekers in HK.
The present policy of allowing people to seek refuge in HK, but then treating them harshly (to deter further arrivals) is a lose-lose situation for both the asylum seekers (living in terrible conditions) and HK society (affected by an increase of criminal activities by asylum seekers).
One recommendation a judicial inquiry might make is to shut the door to asylum seekers, then do something for those stranded here: help them obtain refugee status so other countries will take them, or allow some to stay in HK to support the work force, or (maybe for most) give them a cash incentive to return to their own countries.
c.f.
2014-12-02 Time to shut door to asylum seekers
2014-03-18 Hong Kong's "dirty secret"
2014-02-18 Why Simon steals from PARKnSHOP
2013-10-29 Hong Kong's labour shortage