HONG KONG SAR - MIGRATION  IN 1999

The discussion on migration in Hong Kong in 1999 was largely dominated by the issue of the right of abode. The issue originated with Article 24 of the Basic Law, which entered into force on 1 July 1997, which grants right of abode to children who have at least one parent who was a permanent resident of Hong Kong before they were born. Changes in immigration law, introduced immediately after, provided for the deportation of children who were considered irregularly present in Hong Kong and the acquisition of a Certificate of Entitlement for those in the mainland who had the right of abode in Hong Kong. These dispositions were immediately challenged and gave origin to a long discussion. On January 29 1999 the SAR’s Court of Final Appeal ruled that children of Hong Kong permanent residents had the right of abode in Hong Kong even if born before the parents acquired such right and even if born out of wedlock. It also ruled that children did not need to obtain the Certificate of Entitlement to enter Hong Kong. 

The decision was met by opposing reactions. While human rights groups applauded the court, others speculated on the potential number of migrants who would settle in Hong Kong in a few years.  Initial speculations ranged from 320,000 who would enter Hong Kong in two years, to 1.1 million with the right of abode. Later Security Secretary Regina Ip reported to the Legislative Council that up to 1.6 million mainlanders could claim right of abode in the next 10-13 years, if the decision of the court was not challenged. She arrived at that figure by estimating 510,000 children of married couples who are Hong Kong residents and 1.16 million children born out of wedlock. Experts immediately predicted unsustainable consequences for Hong Kong, from housing to unemployment.

The debate on the way out revolved around basically two options: amending the Basic Law (favored by 47 percent of people surveyed on the issues) or seeking an interpretation by the National People’s Congress (NPC) in Beijing. Finally the Hong Kong government decided to seek an interpretation by the NPC, generating the protest of those who thought that the move would limit the autonomy of Hong Kong. NPC provided the reinterpretation in June, limiting the right of abode to only children born of at least one Hong Kong permanent resident parent. According to the reinterpretation, which practically reversed the January 29 decision of the Court of Final Appeal, it was estimated that children with the right of abode could be perhaps 200,000. However, the reinterpretation did not end the issue, as various groups organized action to seek new immigration laws.

The discussion on whether to import or not to import labor from other countries was framed around the typical arguments of employers, particularly from garment and construction industries, complaining of shortage of labor, and unions and legislators arguing that employers want foreign labor to because it is cheap. The textile industries put forward a plan of 1:1 ratio (one foreign worker for every local worker) for small factories and 2:1 ratio (one foreign worker every two local workers) for large factories. The discussion received a new perspective because of the high unemployment rate (6.2 percent in the first quarter of 1999). The Immigration Department issued 51,951 work permits in 1998, down from 56,092 in 1997.

In the meantime, while foreign maids complained they were being underpaid, the government took the controversial measure to cut their minimum wage by 5 percent, from HK$3,860 to HK$3,670. The cut, motivated as a consequence of wage decrease for many people because of the consequences of the financial crisis, was imposed on new contracts. However, it was already reported that actual wages for Indonesians and Thai maids were between HK$2,000 and HK2,500, while Filipino maids were earning between HK$2,500 and HK$3,000. Filipinas constitute the largest group (140,000), followed by Indonesians (28,000), Thais (5,000), Sri Lankans (1,800) and Nepalese (588). Some lawmakers put forward the proposal to tax domestic workers 20 percent of their salary to contribute for the use of public parks and public services. The proposal was met with immediate protest and did not materialize. Likewise, the ban on domestic workers from driving was lifted soon after been imposed in November.

Various solutions were considered for the remaining 1,470 Vietnamese at the Pillar Point refugee camp, particularly after riots erupted in June between Vietnamese and Chinese groups. It appeared that the only solution to the long lasting issue was to provide the Vietnamese with residence rights, but the move was unpopular, in view of the limitation of the right of abode to children of Chinese residents.