Hong Kong’s Secretary for Security has asked the Indian Consulate General to look into a trend of agencies helping Indians enter and work in the territory on false papers.
Replying to a question in LegCo on Wednesday, Lai Tung-kwok said they may also send law enforcement officials to India to investigate whether local authorities are helping people relocate to Hong Kong without due cause.
“These agencies provide a range of ‘services’, including transportation and legal service which ensures they enter successfully,” Lai said, according to the SCMP.
“They also lodge a non-refoulement claim for them afterwards, and, while they are pending screening, arrange unlawful employment for them.”
If you were stumped by the whole “non-refoulement” thing too, let us explain:
Non-refoulement is a law that has been implemented in Hong Kong since 1992. It protects refugees from having to return to a place where their rights may be threatened, with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees resettling them in a third country if the claims are substantiated.
Essentially, it means anyone waiting can stay in Hong Kong.
Lai said Hong Kong Immigration is currently dealing with 10,450 such claims, adding that those that turn out to be false could amount to human trafficking.
He said the consulates of Pakistan and Vietnam will also be contacted about the issue.
Photo: Foreign and Commonwealth Office
