CE visits Immigration Department and Water Supplies Department (with photos/video)

     The Chief Executive, Mrs Carrie Lam, visited the office of the Assistance to Hong Kong Residents Unit (AHU) of the Immigration Department in Wan Chai this afternoon (March 2), to express her gratitude for the assistance offered by the officers to Hong Kong residents who are affected by the epidemic or are facing other difficulties outside Hong Kong, in particular for the large volume of extra work they have done for Hong Kong residents still in Hubei Province and those on board the Diamond Princess cruise ship. She later visited the Water Supplies Department (WSD) to learn more about the progress of the gradual resumption of more public services.

     Accompanied by the Secretary for Security, Mr John Lee; the Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs, Mr Patrick Nip; and the Director of Immigration, Mr Tsang Kwok-wai, Mrs Lam visited the AHU to learn about the assistance provided by the unit to Hong Kong residents in distress outside Hong Kong, in particular their experience in supporting Hong Kong residents in Hubei Province and on the Diamond Princess cruise ship earlier. She then joined the briefing for officers who will go to Hubei Province soon to help Hong Kong residents remaining there take chartered flights back to Hong Kong.

     The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government attached great importance to the operation of the Diamond Princess cruise ship. Apart from about 50 immigration officers led by Mr Tsang, eight healthcare officers from the Department of Health and the Hospital Authority also took part in the operation. Under the assistance of the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in Japan and the Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China in the HKSAR, a total of 193 Hong Kong residents stranded on the Diamond Princess cruise ship were successfully brought back to Hong Kong by chartered flights. Indeed, the Immigration Department has since sent over 70 Immigration Officers to Japan, of which 23 of them remain there, providing support to more than 80 Hong Kong residents who are hospitalised or under quarantine in 11 prefectures or cities across Japan. The remaining officers are learning more about their situation from hospitals and are arranging for them to return to Hong Kong.

     Praising personnel of the Immigration Department for their bravery and commitment to their duties and Hong Kong people, Mrs Lam said they deserve deep respect. She said personnel of the Immigration Department will continue to help Hong Kong residents still in Hubei Province to return to the city in an orderly manner. With more than 3 000 Hong Kong people in 37 large and small cities in the province where the public transport network has yet to return to normal, coupled with special circumstances involving pregnant women and seriously ill patients, the operation is more challenging. Noting that some colleagues on their way to join the operation had helped with the return of Hong Kong people from the Princess Diamond cruise ship, she expressed the hope that they would make use of their earlier valuable experience to complete the important mission before them.

      Next, Mrs Lam, accompanied by the Secretary for Development, Mr Michael Wong, and the Director of Water Supplies, Mr Wong Chung-leung, visited the Head Office of the WSD in Wan Chai to learn more about the gradual resumption of colleagues' work with preventive measures in place, while providing services for the public. Mr Lee visited the Hong Kong Registration of Persons Office of the Immigration Department to learn more about the work of the staff there after the gradual resumption of public services.