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Bosses spared in crackdown on illegal mainland workers

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No employers of mainland visitors working illegally on two-way permits on Hong Kong construction sites have been prosecuted because of the difficulty in gathering evidence, Secretary for Security Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee said yesterday.

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Mrs Ip told Legco seven site bosses were arrested last year for hiring visitors but none was prosecuted. By contrast, 259 mainland visitors or illegal immigrants were arrested on construction sites.

Only two site bosses were prosecuted for employing illegal immigrants with no papers.

'The problem is that we often lack sufficient evidence to press charges against bosses whom we suspect of employing mainland visitors on their sites,' Mrs Ip said.

She said the problem of illegal mainland workers had been brought under control through stepped-up raids by police and the Immigration Department.

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In 1999, 785 mainlanders were arrested at construction sites, compared with 356 in 2000. There were 275 arrested in the first nine months of this year.

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