HK rules out schooling for migrants

The school dispute is the latest event in a battle with about 5,000 abode seekers

By staff and wires

HONG KONG, China -- Hong Kong's government has said mainland Chinese children locked in a court battle for residency do not have the right to attend the territory's schools.

A government statement said current law prohibits overstayers from attending schools and warns that educating them could set a precedent that might encourage more people to come here illegally.

Some children have been living in Hong Kong for several years without any schooling.

The children, either adopted by Hong Kong residents or born in the mainland to Hong Kong parents, should go back to China and await permission to come, Secretary for Justice Elsie Leung said on Sunday.

Roman Catholic Church and rights activists here are outraged, saying that depriving these children of education violates several international covenants on children's rights.

COUNTRY PROFILE At a glance: China Provided by CountryWatch.com    CNN.com Asia More news from our Asia edition

The school dispute is the latest saga in a long-running battle with about 5,000 people from China, who claim they have the right of abode because at least one of their parents is from Hong Kong.

According to Security Bureau figures, 570 mainland children under 18 have been granted temporary stay in Hong Kong while the courts decide whether to give them permanent residency.

Among them, 170 children have been barred from schools, 110 received education, while the rest did not apply, a government spokeswoman told The Associated Press.

'Committing crime'

The government has barred the children from schools on a "sufficient and clear legal basis" as the ban is one of the conditions under which they have been granted temporary abode, a Security Bureau spokesman said.

"If they have overstayed their visas or entered Hong Kong illegally and demand the government to provide formal education for them, this is unrealistic," Leung said.

"It's like for a child who is traveling in Hong Kong -- is it necessary to provide a school for him?"

The government has rebuffed an offer by Roman Catholic Bishop Joseph Zen to let the children study in the church's 300 schools, local media reported.

Abode seekers have been campaigning for a long time

The government tried to block the church's move and warned that, without its approval, any school that accepted the children could be committing a crime, the reports said.

Zen told the South China Morning Post on Saturday he was "shocked and outraged" by the threats and vowed to protect the children's rights, even if he had to resort to civil disobedience.

Although Hong Kong reverted to Chinese sovereignty in 1997, border controls remain tight between the former British colony and communist China.

Hong Kong's government has sought to limit the flow of immigration and several court cases on the issue have stirred heated controversy.

If their case fails, the 5,000 people involved in the action could be deported to China.