Co-location system will benefit all: Horace Cheung

ExCo member confident govt will come up with plan complying with Basic Law

With the Hong Kong section of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link due to come into operation in the third quarter of next year, it's high time the Hong Kong SAR Government unveiled a co-location system of immigration, customs and quarantine facilities at the city's West Kowloon Terminus, said newly appointed non-official Executive Council member Horace Cheung Kwok-kwan.

In his view, the SAR government will surely come up with a feasible plan in compliance with "one country, two systems" and the Basic Law.

Hong Kong residents should not fear malicious talk of "mainland officers arresting Hong Kong people in Hong Kong", he said, blasting the opposition camp for distorting the facts and creating panic.

However, before the Express Rail Link begins service, the government needs to fully explain to residents the cost benefits and convenience the project brings, as well as the importance of the co-location system, in order to allay their worries, Cheung urged, because with so much money already spent on the rail link, it would be of little use if it does not have a co-location system that provides clearance by Hong Kong and mainland officers at the same place.

The Express Rail Link, he said, is a very speedy and efficient mode of modern transportation between Hong Kong and the mainland. Due to air traffic controls, people who frequently fly between Hong Kong and Shanghai, Guangzhou or Beijing on business will benefit greatly from the project because it's less likely to suffer from delays.

Referring to Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor's remarks that government officials need to explain their policies very clearly in the Legislative Council, Cheung said: "Some officials responsible for construction or engineering are not good in using words. So, very often they're unable to rebut the absurdity of opposition lawmakers. They may thus choose to remain silent either because they feel being intimidated, or fear that if they respond, opposition legislators will make life more difficult for them in future."

"In my opinion, the Shenzhen Bay model, under which Hong Kong officers are empowered to carry out Hong Kong laws on mainland soil, can be replicated at the West Kowloon Terminus.

"The opposition camp claims it's against 'one country, two systems' and the Basic Law for mainland officers to enforce mainland laws in Hong Kong. But, I think it's not a matter of law, but a matter of politics and mutual trust. If Shenzhen can allow Hong Kong officers to execute laws in Shenzhen, why can't Hong Kong do the same?

"Hong Kong residents have no reason to fear at all. Only people going to the mainland on the Express Rail Link will have to go through clearance by Hong Kong officers first before proceeding to the checkpoint on the mainland side. If they don't use the West Kowloon Terminus to board XRL trains or use the mainland counters, nothing will happen to them. Only those who're guilty need to fear, not innocent people," says Cheung.

joseph@chinadailyhk.com

(HK Edition 07/07/2017 page5)