Carrie Lam stands firm on illegal structures

May 21, 2012

Secretary for Development Carrie Lam expressed grave concern over villagers' obstruction to the Lands Department operation to remove structures erected on Government land at Tai Tong Lychee Valley today.
 
She reiterated the Government is firmly committed to carrying out land administration work.
 
Mrs Lam said the Lands Department will handle occupation of Government land in rural and urban areas equally, and it will take effective action to deter such incidents and halt the land control problem.
 
She said if Lands Department staff or its contractors are threatened or injured when carrying out land administration works, the Government will call the Police for follow-up action.
 
The Lands Department said they had arranged a contractor to remove structures erected on unleased Government land outside the Tai Lam Country Park in Yuen Long today.
 
Department staff entered the site at around 6pm to survey the site straddling private and Government land, to prepare for the structures' forthcoming dismantling. They left around 8pm.
 
This morning, some villagers had attempted to stop the clearance work, and damaged a contractor's van. The case has been reported to the Police.
 
The department said the Tai Tong Lychee Valley Co. Ltd. had applied to the District Lands Office/Yuen Long for short-term tenancy for several structures. The Agriculture, Fisheries & Conservation Department and the office rejected the application. A notice had been posted requiring the occupant to remove the structures before May 19.
 
On that day, lands officers inspected the site and found the structures were still there, so the Government is proceeding with plans for their removal.