Claims of discrimination against ethnic minorities have been levelled against the Government over its recruitment criteria for a new unit aimed at improving race relations.
Anti-racism groups have expressed outrage and disappointment that advertisements for all four posts to staff the group require written Chinese skills, without placing emphasis on other languages or experience in working with ethnic minorities.
According to a survey commissioned by the Home Affairs Bureau last year, only 4.2 per cent of ethnic minorities said they could write Chinese. The study also found less-educated minorities were more likely to know how to write Chinese.
Two-year contracts are being advertised for a senior programme officer's post with a salary of $38,000 a month, two programme officer positions paying $28,500, and a programme assistant's post.
The four officers will be required to work closely with minority groups, maintain a hotline on race-related issues, co-ordinate induction programmes for non-Chinese new arrivals and conduct outreach work and education campaigns.
Ravi Gidumal of Hong Kong Against Race Discrimination said the bureau had led him to believe that only the senior position would require Chinese-language skills.
'It is scandalous and really quite ridiculous for them to nearly eliminate minorities from the candidates' pool for a unit intended to benefit them. This kind of flawed thinking is worrying and undermines the unit before it is even established,' he said.
