‘Stop abusing torture claim system’
A judge in Sai Wan Ho scored a Filipino woman’s decision to file a torture claim after working for years as a domestic helper in Hong Kong.
Eastern Magistrates Courts Principal Magistrate Bina Chainrai commented on E. Liban’s decision to seek asylum in 2011 after working as a domestic helper in Hong Kong since 2003.
“She was working as a domestic helper but when her contract was not renewed, she filed a torture claim. If that is not abusing the system, I don’t know what is,” Chainrai said during a hearing on March 4.
The judge made the comment after Liban appeared before her and pleaded guilty to one charge of shop theft.
The Filipino asylum seeker was caught trying to steal three cans of coffee from a Wellcome supermarket store in Causeway Bay on February 25.
At around 4:25 p.m. that day, a store officer noticed Liban put the cans of coffee into her bag before leaving the store without paying for them.
The Filipino immediately admitted to the crime after the officer accosted her. Her lawyer claimed that she was forced to steal the coffee because she was in dire straits.
“She is living with her 60-year-old boyfriend who is a singer. They have a four-year- old son,” the lawyer said.
“However, her boyfriend has diabetes and it has worsened. It has affected his work and he had to go on medical leave,” he added.
Since Liban is an asylum seeker, she is not allowed to work.
“So, they are relying on her boyfriend’s savings, which is dwindling. They are running out of money,” the defense lawyer said.
He asked Judge Chainrai for leniency, noting that Liban immediately admitted to the crime and was remorseful.
After hearing this, the judge ordered Liban to pay a fine of $500 and sentenced her to two months in prison but suspended it for 18 months. This means that if the asylum seeker does not commit a crime in the next 18 months, she does not have to go to jail.
The Hong Kong government in February announced that it was conducting a comprehensive review of the asylum process due to many reports of asylum seekers abusing the system.
Secretary for Security Lai Tung-kwok said the government was conducting the review after the number of asylum seekers grew by “330 percent to 440 (asylum claims) per month” since March 2014.
“At end 2015, the number of claimants pending screening reached almost 11,000,” Lai said.
“The significant increase in claims and the display of behaviors abusing screening procedures have caused public concerns over the social and public order issues brought about by the prolonged presence of a large and growing number of claimants in Hong Kong,” he added.
A number of overstaying Filipinos in Hong Kong have also sought political asylum after they were arrested. They claimed that they would be tortured or subjected to cruel and inhuman punishment if they are brought back to the Philippines.
”Our top priority is to adopt appropriate measures, under the prevailing legal requirements, to intercept illegal immigrants at source and to expedite the screening process to remove unsubstantiated claimants to their country of origin as soon as possible,” Lai said.
He said the government was considering introducing “pre-arrival registration to deter the arrival of economic migrants.”
He said the penalties against human smuggling could be increased.