Ombudsman probes govt regulation of FDH boarding houses

By Vir B. Lumicao 

The Ombudsman says there is no law that regulates FDH boarding houses such as this

The Office of the Ombudsman is seeking the views and suggestions of the public, including foreign domestic helpers, as it begins an investigation into FDH boarding houses and government measures to regulate these facilities
 
Ombudsman Winnie Chiu launched the probe today, Jan 14, citing extensive media reports last year on FDHs being infected with Covid-19 as they were forced to stay in boarding facilities while waiting for their new employment visas.

Problems relating to FDH boarding facilities, such as over-crowding, poor hygiene and suspected violations of building usage, were also uncovered due to the infections, said a statement issued by Ombudsman.

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Some media reports brought to light the issue of possible illegal operations, as licensees of employment agencies had allegedly failed to obtain a relevant license or waiver before leasing out their premises as FDH boarding facilities.

Chiu said as FDHs are permitted to remain in Hong Kong for two weeks upon completion or premature termination of their contract, they need to stay in boarding facilities during this period.  Other FDHs also end up staying in boarding houses while waiting for the resolution of labor claims or other cases they file against their employers.

But Chiu said there is no legislation that regulates FDH boarding houses, and no relevant government department has established any mechanism for inspecting such facilities to check on their compliance with fire and building safety measures. 

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“Since the government permitted the importation of FDHs into Hong Kong in the 1970s, (they) have enjoyed statutory rights and have been protected by the standard employment contract prescribed by the government, including their entitlement to proper accommodation,” Chiu said.

She said many of these facilities are said to be in overcrowded commercial or residential buildings.

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“Whether such facilities comply with public safety requirements has aroused much concern. The government has a duty to ensure a reasonable living environment for FDHs working in Hong Kong as well as public safety,” the Ombudsman said.

“Against this background, I have decided to initiate a direct investigation to examine the regulation of boarding facilities for FDHs by relevant government departments, including the Labour Department, the Home Affairs Department and the Immigration Department, and make recommendations for improvements where warranted,” she said.

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Chiu invited the public, FDHs, concern groups and organizations to provide information and views on this topic. She said written submissions should reach her office by Feb 14.

They can send their submissions to:

Office of The Ombudsman
30/F, China Merchants Tower, Shun Tak Centre
168-200 Connaught Road Central, Hong Kong
Fax: 2882 8149
Email: complaints@ombudsman.hk

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Bookshop manager fined $3k for taking cash left in ATM

By Vir B. Lumicao 

Another customer gave the $2k from the ATM dispenser to Bermillo, thinking it was hers

A Filipina bookshop manager was fined $3,000 in Eastern Court today, Jan 13, for taking $2,000 in banknotes its owner forgot at an automated teller machine booth (ATM) in Central two years ago.

R. Bermillo pleaded guilty to one count of theft by finding when she appeared before Magistrate Bina Chainrai before noon.

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The prosecution said that at 1:55 pm on Dec 11, 2018, Lau Sum-yi withdrew $2,000 from a Bank of China ATM in IFC Mall in Central. As she was in a hurry, she forgot to take the cash. When she returned a few minutes later, the money was gone.

She reported to the bank and a review of withdrawal records showed Lau withdrew $2,000 at the specified time but the ATM did not retain the money, the prosecution said.

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A review of the machine’s CCTV showed Bermillo first withdrew money at the ATM between 1:53pm and 1:54pm on Dec 11, 2018. Lau followed at 1:55pm. 

A man approached the ATM at 1:56pm and, seeing the money in the dispenser, turned around and called the attention of Bermillo. The defendant took the cash then withdrew money again between 1:57pm and 1:58pm on the same day.

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The case was reported and, after further investigation, police raided Bermillo’s flat in Ap Lei Chau on June 8, 2020 and found the ATM card she used at the time. She was arrested but kept silent. She was charged on Nov 24 and first appeared in court on Dec 17.

Bermillo pleaded guilty but said the version of events read out to her were not accurate.

Chainrai ignored her claim, after ascertaining from the defense lawyer that Bermillo had admitted the facts.

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But in mitigation, the defense lawyer reiterated Bermillo’s claim that she had seen the cash left behind in the ATM and put it aside, while she spoke to someone on the phone. When her attention was called to the money by the man who was about to use the machine, she took it and continued her phone conversation until she forgot all about it.

The lawyer said the defendant, 50, managed a branch of a popular bookstore chain. She had lived in Hong Kong for 26 years and has three grown-up daughters. He presented a letter to the court vouching for the defendant’s character.

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He asked for a fine, citing his client’s good character and this being her first offense.

Chainrai imposed the fine but warned the woman she could go to jail next time.

Govt rejects weekend lockdown for FDHs, says it could be discriminatory

By Daisy CL Mandap 

Law says there are far fewer FDHs who get infected compared to the general population

Hong Kong Labour Secretary Law Chi-kwong has slammed a proposal by a pro-Beijing Legislator for a weekend lockdown on foreign domestic helpers, saying this may amount to discrimination.

Law also said there was no basis for such a proposal as the infection rate among FDHs is far lower than that for the general public.

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Elizabeth Quat, who reiterated her proposal during today’s question and answer session at the Legislative Council, said there were 465 FDHs being infected with Covid-19, out of the city’s total cases of more than 8,000.

“That’s a high percentage,” Quat said.

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But Law disagreed: “We have to consider the law and the reason as well. If we just target FDHs it may be a question of discrimination. If we talk about reasons, the infection rate o FDHS is 0.055 percent, which is lower than the 0.01 percent for the general public. So there is no good reason for that.”

He also said that it did not make sense to impose a lockdown on FDHs as this would mean forcing them to also stay in their workplace.

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It's the second time that Quat has pushed for the weekend ban in Legco

Quat, a member of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong, has been pushing for the weekend lockdown since just after Christmas Day, when thousands of FDHs gathered in Tamar Park for their statutory holiday break.

At today’s LegCo session, she complained that FDHs have continued to gather on the weekends, despite appeals from the government for them to spend their rest day at home.

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"The government should have a lockdown order during the weekend for this particular group, because if you ask the employers to talk to FDH to stay at home, FDHs still go out," Quat said.

She said Hong Kong is “at a critical stage fighting the epidemic” so the government should adopt her proposed regulation.

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Quat also claimed that “actually, employers are willing to shift rest days or give them extra pay so that they will stay at home, but it still doesn’t work.”

A random look at FDH chat groups would, however, show that many employers simply forbid their helpers to go out, using the spread of the virus as an excuse. Complaints made with the non-government groups like the Mission for Migrant Workers show that not a few helpers have been prevented from taking a day-off for months.

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Statistics from the Department of Health should also show that most of the infected FDHs got the virus from their employers' houses, with only a handful having acquired it from boarding  houses where they were forced to stay while waiting for new employment visas.

FDHs gathered in Tamar Park, as many other locals did in other public places, on Christmas day

The Mission was among the first to hit out at Quat’s suggestion, calling it  “unsympathetic, discriminatory and exploitative.”

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In a statement issued on Dec 30, the Mission said: “It is very dangerous for Quat as a lawmaker  to put forward such a proposal to ban MDWs (migrant domestic workers) on their rest days.”

The Mission said such a call would not just fan the anxieties of people in Hong Kong, but would also result in a serious infringement of domestic workers’ human rights, and their rights under the standard employment contract.

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But Quat is not alone in putting pressure on the government to focus on FDHs as part of its anti-Covid measures.

Alice Mak from the Federation of Trade Unions has urged the government to test FDHs regularly, even as they already appear to be among the most tested groups in Hong Kong.

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Law replied that the administration needs to consider the availability of resources as well as the sustainability of such a move.

 

 

High Court rejects deported transgender’s appeal against sentence

By The SUN

The appeal court said the sentence on Arabejo was within the prescribed range

A Filipino transgender tourist who was jailed for two months last year for overstaying his visa for six months, has lost his appeal against his sentence in the High Court.

The appellant, Manuel Arabejo II, was unrepresented and absent, as he was repatriated to the Philippines on Oct 13 after his discharge from prison, the court said.

Arabejo, 28 and a college student, had appealed against the sentence meted by an Eastern Court magistrate after he pleaded guilty to the charge of breach of condition of stay. He served the sentence and was released on Oct 12.

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In her decision issued on Dec 29 but published on Jan 12, Justice Esther Toh concurred with prosecutor Dmitri Au-yeung that Arabejo’s “is a clear case that the sentence is not manifestly excessive.”

“The fact is very simple. A police officer posed as a sex customer and made a phone call at a number found in an online advertisement. He was instructed to go to a hotel in Causeway Bay. Upon arrival, the door was opened by the appellant, (who) then informed the police officer that $2,000 was required for full sex service,” said Justice Toh.

The officer revealed his police identity just when Arabejo wanted to undress. He arrested the Filipino and seized 10 unused condoms and a bottle of KY Gel from the room.

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The appellant arrived in Hong Kong in March last year as a visitor and was only permitted to stay until Sept 7, 2020.

“The appellant had actually contravened his condition of stay and under caution the appellant also admitted the offence,” the appeal judge said.

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 Toh said whatever financial need drove Arabejo to do what he did, he contravened a law in Hong Kong and the sentence imposed on him was well within the range of sentences for this type of offence.

 "So, I cannot see that the sentence was manifestly excessive or wrong in principle,” said Toh.

Police have right to ask for your ID, says Congen on viral video

By Daisy CL Mandap 

Screen grab from the video shows the police pinning the woman
to the ground after she tried to get away

A viral video of a woman, apparently a Filipina, tangling with three police officers in a still undetermined place and time, has prompted Consul General Raly Tejada to advise Filipinos to cooperate when asked for their Hong Kong ID cards during spot checks.

In a Facebook post on Jan 11, ConGen Tejada mentioned the video, noting that the woman resisted showing her HKID card so she was arrested.

“Ang payo ko po ay maging kalmado at mag cooperate lamang. Nasasaad po sa batas ng HK na maaaring mag-check ng identity ang mga police. Ibigay agad ang ID (huwag kalimutan) kung hinihingi at sagutin ang mga katanungan nila sa malumanay at maayos na pananalita,” he said.

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(My advice is for you to keep calm and just cooperate. Hong Kong laws provide that police could check people’s identities. Give your ID immediately (don’t forget to always bring it with you) when asked and answer all their questions calmly and properly).

He further reminded everyone to take note of the officer’s badge number so reporting could be made easily in case an untoward event happens.

But when asked if he was told of the full details of the incident, including what happened to the woman afterwards, ConGen said no, adding the video was just forwarded to him by a Filipina migrant worker.

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It would appear, though, that the woman was indeed, asked for her identity, and instead of showing the officers her ID card, tried to get away.

In the video, the woman could be heard telling the officers repeatedly, “Wait, I call my boss”, but each time the hold on her was loosened, she would try to escape.

While tightening their grip on her, the officers could be seen trying to take her mobile phone off her hand. In the end, they ended up pinning her to the ground, before putting handcuffs on her.

The woman, said to be a Filipina, kept saying she wanted to call her boss

Several comments in social media chat groups said the woman was a Filipino who had overstayed her visa, and could thus not show any HK ID to the officers. Others said she was caught shoplifting and wanted to flee.

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But there has been no independent confirmation of any of the claims, as several of those who posted said in reply to private messages that they merely shared the video, and did not know where it had come from originally.

Nobody seemed to know for sure, either, where the incident happened. Some said it was taken in one of the alleys in Sham Shui Po, others claimed it was in Wanchai or Central, while others gave Tai Po as the location.

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When contacted, the Police Public Relations Branch said today, Jan 12, that they had no record of any such incident taking place in Central or Sham Shui Po.

After being shown the video, a police spokeswoman said it was still difficult to check their records if no positive location and date and time were given.

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She suggested those who have this information should relay them to the police so they could check on the case status and advice the public, if called for, on what they should do under the same circumstances.

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