The Pro-Beijing DAB party has launched a “one person one letter” campaign to tackle the alleged problem of “fake” refugees.
On Friday, Lawmaker Ann Chiang Lai-wan and Yau Tsim Mong District Council Chairperson Chris Ip were seen giving out flyers at a street station outside Kowloon Mosque in Tsim Sha Tsui.
They stood beside a banner, in English, reading: “Request the government to expedite the deportation of fake refugees, set up a refugee camp.” The district is known for its high population of ethnic minorities.
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The party proposed “closing the loophole” to punish “fake refugees” However, no details were provided as to where the camp would be set up or how “fake refugees” are defined.
“We have received reports that asylum seekers and refugees were themselves handed these leaflets on the street and are very scared and distressed by the proposals and the negative way they are being portrayed,” Victoria Wisniewski Otero of NGO Justice Centre told HKFP.
At around 4pm, a counter-protest had appeared at the site led by the Street Sleepers Action Committee.
Oladunni Ogunleye, a committee member originally from Nigeria, said that Hong Kong had “failed” to define the difference between genuine and “fake” refugees and urged the government to allow those seeking asylum to work.