Dear Perfect,
Hong Kong has a different legal system than that of China. In general,
freedom of association is less endangered in Hong Kong as it is in
China.
"In a communication of 1 November 1997, the Hong Kong Confederation of
Trade Unions (HKCTU) submitted a complaint of violations of freedom of
association against the Government of China/Hong Kong Special
Administrative Region. The International Confederation of Free Trade
Unions (ICFTU) associated itself with this complaint in a
communication dated 9 December 1997" (Source: International Labour
Organisation, ILOLEX database on International Labour Standards,
Complaint against the Government of China/Hong Kong Special
Administrative Region presented by the Hong Kong Confederation of
Trade Unions (HKCTU) Report No. 311, Case(s) No(s). 1942
<http://www.ilo.org/ilolex/cgi-lex/pdconv.pl?host=status01&textbase=iloeng&document=901&chapter=3&query=China%40ref&highlight=&querytype=bool&context=0>)
<--- If the link does not work, try to copy it and paste it in your
browser.
Consequently, "In a communication dated 6 June 1997, the Government of
China stated that the Freedom of Association and Protection of the
Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87), would continue to apply
with modifications and the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining
Convention, 1949 (No. 98), would continue to apply without
modifications to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region with
effect from 1 July 1997" (ibid.).
Since this complaint, there have been no further complaints on freedom
of association issues in Hong Kong as a violation of International
Labour Standards.
Of course, the Hong Kong government beautifies the reality a little,
in their site "Freeconomy.org":
""Hong Kong people's freedoms of assembly and association have
continued undiminished since 1997. Marches, rallies and protest
meetings continue to be part of Hong Kong's political scene. While
these may present some very minor inconvenience to visiting business
people, they also offer re-assurance that the freedom to express
opinions remains in place.
These freedoms are firmly enshrined in Article 27 of the Basic Law.
The Public Order Ordinance requires that anyone wishing to organise a
public event involving more than 50 people (or, in the case of a
public procession, more than 30 people) should notify the police seven
days in advance.
Although this ordinance raised some concerns within the UN Commission
on Human Rights, in practice the ordinance has been applied with a
great deal of discretion, and demonstrations relating to issues which
involve China policy are still regularly held in Hong Kong.
Appeals against an objection to demonstrate may be made to a statutory
appeals board comprising members from different sectors of society. No
public official is on the board. Both the board's proceedings and the
police's exercise of power are subject to judicial review.
The Police have rejected a handful of public meetings and processions.
The objections were necessary in the interest of public safety and
public order. Six events were subsequently agreed to after the
organisers had revised the routing, venue or scale of the events.
Candle light vigils commemorating the June 4 incident in 1989 have
continued to be held every year and they bear witness to the freedom
of assembly enjoyed by Hong Kong people after reunification.
There is a universal freedom to form a society, as long as its
activities remain within the law. The police have so far not rejected
any application for registration or exemption from registration of any
society.
The freedom to establish organisations with views opposed to that of
China's government was pointed out by U.S. Consul General Michael
Klosson, when speaking to the Hong Kong Association of New York in
April 2002. "
(Source: Information Services Department, Hong Kong Special
Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government of the People's Republic of
China, "Hong Kong and the Pursuit of Economic Freedom"
<http://www.freeconomy.org/freeconomy/eng/text/page_b42.html>).
However, it should be mentioned that in fact, the unions in Hong Kong
enjoy relative freedom of association and there have been no formal
complaints except the one mentioned before. This can be also
demonstrated by this activity of HK-based unions to assist their
Chinese counterparts: "HKCTU Declaration on Blow to Freedom of
Association in China"
<http://www.owcinfo.org/campaign/hkctu%20declaration.htm>.
Further Reading
===============
http://www.ilo.org/ilolex/english/newcountryframeE.htm - ILOLEX
database on International Labour Standards
MK Poon, Christi, "Hong Kong Trade Unions Position Paper" , Bath
University (UK), <http://staff.bath.ac.uk/hssgjr/simul/papers/hong-kong-trade-unions.pdf>
(PDF document that requires Acrobat Reader. You can download
beforehand Acrobat Reader from this site -
http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html
soc.culture.china Newsgroup -
http://groups.google.com/groups?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&group=soc.culture.china
Search Strategy
===============
"hong kong" "international labour standard"
://www.google.com/search?q=%22hong+kong%22+%22international+labour+standard%22&btnG=Google+Search&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8
"hong kong" "freedom of association"
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=%22hong+kong%22+%22freedom+of+association%22
I hope that answered your question. Please contact me if you need any
clarifications on this answer. |
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