Clarification

I refer to Kevin Sinclair's article headlined, 'Prisoners to a necessary evil' (South China Morning Post, October 19).

It is not correct to say that the 'judiciary' has 'quietly abandoned' the 15 months' sentence in relation to illegal immigrant cases.

The usual sentence for this type of offence is 15 months' imprisonment unless there are strong humanitarian reasons. There may have been cases where shorter sentences are imposed on different grounds, but this approach remains the guideline set by the Court of Appeal.

BELINDA HUI Principal Information Officer Judiciary