Prison chaplain says lack of job prospects in Hong Kong force many refugees into life of crime

Hong Kong should shut the door on asylum seekers or risk this vulnerable group sinking deeper into the mire of criminal justice, says a prison chaplain who has visited hundreds of would-be refugees behind bars.

Father John Wotherspoon, who visits inmates and detainees, said he has noticed a worrying trend of more asylum seekers serving time for serious drug or violence-related crimes, compared with previous years when their jail terms were imposed for illegal employment.

"There are more and more asylum seekers in prisons and the number has increased in the last couple of years," Wotherspoon said, adding that "their offences are also increasing in gravity".

"In the past, they were in prison for working illegally, but now more and more, they are in for stealing because they haven't got much income for accommodation, travel or food. So they tend to steal or work illegally."

The Catholic priest, a native of Australia now based in Hong Kong, has observed that the city's asylum seekers "are getting into more serious crime", which he described as "bad for them and bad for Hong Kong society".

Wotherspoon referred to a recent knife attack on the platform of Jordan MTR station that involved asylum seekers from India as an example of desperation.