Calls grow to ban mainlanders’ discrimination

The Society for Community Organisation (Soco) has issued a fresh appeal to the government to amend the existing anti-discrimination ordinance to protect new arrivals to the city, especially mainland migrants.

Sze Lai-shan, Soco’s community organiser, said the government should consider outlawing discrimination based on an individual’s “place of origins”.

Sze said such cases have been on the rise in recent years.

She also suggested the setting up of a special centre to provide support for new arrivals.

“They suffer from discrimination and harassment because of their background,” said Ricky Chu, chairman of the Equal Opportunities Commission in a meeting with Soco on Friday.

“That’s why we have submitted a report to the government, providing some directional proposals like review the Race Discrimination Ordinance, to legislate specific provisions, to eliminate discrimination to this group of people because of their background,” he said.

Chu said earlier this week that the proposals include outlawing discrimination by people of the same ethnicity against each other and discrimination relating to where a person comes from, even if it’s within the same country.