I was surprised and disappointed to see Dr John Tse Wing-ling's letter (South China Morning Post, June 20) criticising the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) and repeating points he made in the media a few weeks ago. Earlier, Dr Tse may not have then been informed about the status of the EOC and its mandate. However, he was certainly in full possession of the facts before he wrote his latest letter. On June 12, I met with members of the Legco Home Affairs Panel of which Dr Tse is a member and where he was present. In addition, he has read the EOC's Position Paper which was sent to all members of the Legislative Council in early June. Dr Tse should know full well that the EOC just came into being on May 20 - one month ago - and the main provisions of the two discrimination ordinances are not yet in operation. At this point, I am the only full-time officer and my first task is to set up the commission office. The EOC currently has no staff to carry out either investigations or conciliations. The EOC will not be fully operational until September, when we expect to have 66 new staff. We are also now in the process of drafting operational procedures which are the prerequisities for implementing the powers and functions of the commission. Just as important, the commission is now drafting a Code of Practice to prevent sex and disability discrimination in employment, which must then be approved and adopted by the Legislative Council. Dr Tse is very aware of these steps and he is misleading the public to expect that the commission should be fully operational from day one, without staff and without the rules set down. The EOC has a very important role: to help eliminate discrimination in Hong Kong on the grounds of gender or disability. We will promote equal opportunities through investigation, conciliation and education. At all times, we will operate within the rule of law. That's exactly how a statutory body should act. Dr Tse, being a lawmaker, should know and support that. As conciliator and investigator, the EOC will always have to remain impartial. In an earlier paragraph of the position paper from which Dr Tse quoted, I stated: 'It is important for the EOC to maintain its independent role and handle complaints in a fair and efficient manner. To protect the confidentiality of information in connection with investigations and to avoid prejudicial judgment of cases prior to a full investigation of complaints, disclosure of information and opinions on individual cases have to be restricted. It is only through a responsible and sound system of complaint handing that the credibility and effectiveness of the EOC could be established.' The principle of fairness must guide us, even with those who are alleged to be the discriminators and may be acting out of fear, ignorance or age-old customs. That is where our roles as educator and conciliator will come into play. Being fair or impartial does not mean condoning discrimination. Quite the contrary, we know there are more effective ways to change people's attitudes and behaviour for the long term. Over the past two decades, I have been actively working to eliminate discrimination. I know from experience and from results - mine as well as others around the world - that legal advocacy, conciliation and education have more sustainable effects. There are different roles in advocacy. The 'Rambos', who are often attention-seeking and singly focused have their place and their value at times. They help to focus the public's attention on a particular issue or perceived wrong, often via the media. Other advocates use tactics that are more broad-based, assertive rather than aggressive and based on facts and laws. This role is usually not so interesting to the media. There are no placards, no stunts to get attention. These advocates instead use investigation, conciliation and education with all segments of the community: those who may feel they are being discriminated against as well as those who are doing the discriminating. This is the spirit behind the enactment of the Sex Discrimination Ordinance and the Disability Discrimination Ordinance. The commission exists to apply the laws to cases of injustice, when the laws are brought into operation. We are as keen as many other advocates to push forward the work of the EOC. I do not understand why Dr Tse has decided to undermine the EOC in its infancy. We must all work together to eliminate discrimination in Hong Kong. That is my intention and the purpose of the EOC. You can be sure that we intend to be very effective. To do that, we must first get the foundation laid and the laws brought into operation. Dr FANNY CHEUNG MUI-CHING Chairperson Equal Opportunities Commission
