EMERGENCY (REQUISITION) REGULATIONS

EMERGENCY (REQUISITION) REGULATIONS

EMERGENCY (REQUISITION) REGULATIONS.

ARRANGEMENT OF REGULATIONS.
Regulation. Page.

1..........Citation ......................... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... Q 2
2..........Interpretation ................ ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... Q 2

3...................Taking possession of land ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... Q 3

4. Requisition of property other than land ... ... ... ... ... ... Q4

5...................Power to do work on land ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... Q 5

6. Use of land by Her Majesty's forces and police ... ... ... ... ... Q 6

7...................Entry and inspection of land ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... Q 6

8. Power to permit nuisances where necessary ... ... ... ... ... ... Q 6

9. Application of Compensation (Defence) Regulations ... ... ... ... Q 8

10..................Offiences against corporations ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... Q 8

11.........Penalty ....................... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... Q 8

Schedule. Appointnient of Competent Authorities made pursuant to the provisions

of Regulation 2......................... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... Q9





EMERGENCY (REQUISITION) REGULATIONS.

(Cap. 241, section 2).

[15th August, 1949.1

1. These regulations may be cited as the Emergency (Requisition)
Regulations.

2. (1) In these regulations, unless the context otherwise requires

44essential service' means any undertaking, requirement of or service to
the community which in the opinion of the Governor, signified by
notification in the Gazette, is of public utility or essential to the life
of the community;

'land' includes land of any category or tenure whether covered
by water or not and any erection, tree or other thing fixed
thereto and any shed, barn or other structure which although
affixed to land (which has been or is being requisitioned) in
such a manner as to be removable therefrom a compe tent
authority specifies is required for use in connexion with s uch
land;

'public interest' includes the interests of defence or of the preservation
of public order, safety or health or of the provision or maintenance
of supplies and services essential to the life of the community;

,trequisition' means, in relation to any property, to take possession of
the property. or to require the property to be placed at the disposal
of the requisitioning authority;

'supplies and services' includes any tangible or intangible requirement
of the community.

(2) Any reference in these regulations to the doing of any act shall
include a reference to an act of commission or an omission and, unless
the context otherwise requires, shall include also a reference to the
making of or failure to make any statement.

(3)(a) No special form shall be required for the exercise by the
Governor or by a competent authority of any power conferred
by these regulations:

Provided that the Governor may authorize the use of any
form for the exercise of any such power and in such event such
form with such adaptations and modifications as the
circumstances of any particular case may require shall be valid
and sufficient.

(b)Nothing in sub-paragraph (a) shall be deemed to imply that
any power conferred by these regulations is required to be
exercised or communicated in writing.





(4)(a) A *competent authority shall be the person appointed
by name or by office by the Governor in writing for the
purposes of all or any of these regulations or for any of
the purposes of any particular regulation in which such
expression occurs, and any person so appointed is in
these regulations referred to as the competent authority.
Any such appointment may be made in respect of the
whole or any part of the Colony. Any appointment shall
be deemed to extend to the whole Colony unless otherwise
expressed.

(b)Where the holder of a designated office has been appoint-
ed to be the competent authority, then, unless express
provision is made to the contrary, the appointment shall
be deemed to extend to the person for the time being
performing the duties of the office designated.

3. (1) A competent authority if it appears to that authority
to be necessary or expedient so to do in the public interest may
take or authorize in writing the taking of possession of any land
and may give such directions as appear to be necessary for the
taking and maintaining possession of such land and for the evic-
tion therefrom of any person who is, enters or remains thereon
without the consent of the competent authority.

(2) Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing such
directions may authorize any police officer to break open, enter
forcibly and remain on any land the taking possession of which
has been authorized by the competent authority and to evict for-
cibly from such land any persons whom the competent authority
may specify or any persons other than such persons as the com-
petent authority may specify.

(3) Whether or not any specific direction has been given
under the preceding paragraph, a police officer may take such
steps and use such force as appears to him to be reasonably
necessary for securing compliance with any direction given under
paragraph (1).

(4) While any land is in the possession of a competent
authority by virtue of this regulation, the land may, notwith-
standing any restriction imposed on the use thereof (whether by
any Ordinance or other instrument or otherwise), be used by, or
under the authority of, the competent authority in the public
interest and the competent authority, so far as appears to such
authority to be necessary or expedient in connexion with the
taking of possession or use of the land in pursuance of this
paragraph-

(a)may do, or authorize persons using the land as aforesaid
to do, in relation to the land, anything which any person

Note.For competent authorities appointed under this section see
Schedule.





having an interest in the land would be entitled to do by virtue
of that interest; and

(b)may by order provide for prohibiting or restricting the exercise
of rights of way over the land, and of other rights relating
thereto which are enjoyed by any person, whether by virtue of
an interest in land or otherwise.

(5) The owner or occupier of any land shall, if requested by or on
behalf of a competent authority so to do, furnish to such authority or
person as may be specified in the request, such information in his
possession relating to the land (being information which may reasonably
be demanded of him in connexion with the execution of this regulation)
as may be so specified.

(6) A competent authority may, to such extent and subject to such
restriction as such authority thinks proper, delegate all or any of the
functions of such authority under this regulation to any specified person
or class of persons.

4. (1) In this regulation the term 'chattel' includes any substance,
vehicle or animal and any launch, lighter, boat or' other small craft, and
any ship, vessel or aircraft but does not include currency, gold securities
or negotiable instruments.

(2) A competent authority may, if it appears to that authority to be
necessary or expedient so to do in the public interest, requisition any
chattel, and may give such directions as appear to such authority to be
necessary or expedient in connexion with the requisition. Any person
contravening any such direction shall be guilty of an offence.

(3) Where any chattel is requisitioned, under this regulation,
a competent authority may use or deal with or authorize the use
or dealing with the chattelfor such purposes and in such manner
as such authority thinks expedient in the public interest and may
hold, or sell or otherwise dispose of, the chattel as if such authority
were the owner thereof and as if the chattel were free from any
mortgage, pledge, lien or other similar obligation, and, in a case
where the chattel requisitioned is a vehicle, vessel, excavator,
crane or agricultural machinery, may acquire it by serving on the
owner thereof a notice stating that such authority has acquired it
in pursuance of this regulation. When a notice of acquisition
has been served, then, at the beginning of the day on whi ~h the
notice is served-

(a)the vehicle, vessel, excavator, crane or agricultural machinery
shall vest in the Government free from any mortgage, pledge,
lien or other similar obligation; and

(b) the period of the requisition thereof shall end.

(4) In any case in which the chattel requisitioned is a chattel other
than a vehicle, vessel, excavator, crane or agricultural





machinery such chattel shall, as soon as possession thereof is taken
in pursuance of this regulation, vest in the Government free from
any mortgage, pledge, lien or other similar obligation.

(5) Where the competent authority has issued such authority's
requisition in respect of any chattel, such chattel shall be furnished
by the owner and the person having the possession, custody or
control thereof to the competent authority or to such persons as
such authority shall appoint for the purpose forthwith or (if such
is the case) within such period as may be mentioned in the requisi-
tion. On any refusal or neglect to furnish such property in
manner aforesaid, then the competent authority or others authoriz-
ed by such authority in that behalf may seize (and if need be
may enter premises by force for the purpose) the property
requisitioned and may use the same in like manner as if it had
been furnished in pursuance of the requisition. Payment for the
same shall nevertheless be made in like manner as if the property
had been duly furnished according to the requisition provided
that the property specified in the requisition shall not be deemed
to have been furnished except in so far as possession is taken by
or by the direction of the competent authority.

(6) Where the Accountant General is satisfied that any vehicle
in respect of which a licence to keep has been granted has, in
exercise of the powers conferred by this regulation, been acquired
before the expiration of the period of the validity of such licence,
the Accountant General may authorize the refund to the person
who at the date of such acquisition was the owner of the vehicle
of a proportionate part of the fee paid for such licence in respect
of such part of the period of its validity as remained unexpired
at the date aforesaid, if a claim for such refund is made to him
in writing by such person not later than three months after the
date when such vehicle was acquired as aforesaid.

5. (1) Any authorized officer and any person acting under
the special authority of a competent authority may, in the public
interest, do any work on any land or place anything in or over
any land.

(2) A competent authority, if it appears to such authority to
be necessary or expedient so to do in the public interest, may by
order provide for prohibiting or restricting the doing on any
particular land of any such work as may be specified in the order.

(3) No person, other than an authorized officer, or any person
acting under the special authority of a competent authority, shall,
except with permission granted by or on behalf of a competent
authority remove, alter or tamper with any work done or retained,
or anything placed or retained in, on or over, any land in pur-
suance of this regulation.

(4) Any person who contravenes any provision of this regula-
tion, or any order or direction thereunder, shall be guilty of an
ofrence.





(5) For the purposes of this regulation, the doing or re taining of
work shall, in relation to any land, be deemed to include the demolition,
pulling down, destruction or rendering useless of anything placed in, on
or over the land and the removal from the land of anything so placed,
demolished or pulled down.

6. (1) Without prejudice to any other of these regulations, the
Governor may by order authorize, subject to any restrictions or
conditions imposed by the order, the use of any land specified therein
for naval, military, air force or police force purposes, as the case may be,
during such period as may be specified in the order; and any such order
may, so far as appears to the Governor to be necessary or expedient for
the purposes thereof, provide

(a)for entitling persons using any land in pursuance of the order
to do such acts in relation to that land as may be specified in
the order; and

(b) for prohibiting or restricting the exercise of rights of
way over that land, and of other rights relating thereto
which are enjoyed by any person, whether by virtue of
an interest in land or otherwise.

(2) Any person who contravenes any order made under this
regulation shall be guilty of an offence.

7. Any member of Her Majesty's regular forces or local naval,
military or air force, corps or reserve, or a police, officer acting in the
course of his duty as such, or any person authorized by a competent
authority to act under this regulation on producing, if so required, some
duly authenticated document showing his authority may

(a)enter on any land for the purpose of exercising any of the
powers conferred in relation to that land by any of these
regulations;

(b)enter and inspect any land for the purpose of determining
whether, and, if so, in what manner, any of thesePowers are to
be exercised in relation to the land; and

(c)for any purpose in the public interest pass (with or without
animals or vehicles) over any land.

8. (1) If the competent authority is satisfied-

(a)that it is necessary in the public interest that any particular
work should be carried on in any particular premises or place;
and

(b)that the carrying on of that work therein under the conditions
necessitated by the requirements of the public interest is
causing or may cause a nuisance,





the competent authority may by order provide for authorizing the
carrying on of that work in those premises or that place notwith-
standing that a nuisance may be caused thereby:

Provided that-

(i)before making any such order the competent authority
shall take steps to ascertain whether arrangements cannot
be made for the work to be carried on under such con-
ditions as aforesaid, either in the premises or place in
which it is being carried on or in some other premises or
place, without causing a nuisance, and, if satisfied that
such arrangements cannot be made, shall ascertain what
means can be taken for minimizing the nuisance; and

(ii)any such order shall specify the work and the premises
or place to which it relates and shall be made subject to
such conditions as the competent authority thinks best
calculated to minimize the nuisance as far as is practi-
cable without prejudicing the public interest.

(2) Where an order has been made under this regulation
authorizing the carrying on of any work in any premises or place,
no legal proceedings for the abatement or prohibition of any
nuisance caused by the carrying on, while the order is in force,
of that work in those premises or that place or for the recovery
of damages in respect of such a nuisance (including proceedings
for the enforcement of any undertaking given, or of any injunction
or other order of a court granted or made, before the coming into
operation of the order) shall be entertained by any court, but if
upon representations made to any person appearing to the com-
petent authority by which the order was made to be interested,
such authority is satisfied that any condition imposed by the order
is not being complied with, such authority shall send to the
persons engaged in the work authorized by the order a notice
requiring them to comply with that condition within such time
as may be specified in the notice, and, if the requirements of the
notice are not complied with to the satisfaction of the competent
authority such authority shall revoke the order:

Provided that the provisions of this paragraph as to the duty
of the competent authority in the event of any such condition not
being complied with shall be without prejudice to the power of
the competent authority to vary any such condition if the com-
petent authority is satisfied that it is necessary so to do.

(3) If while any order made by a competent authority under
this regulation is in force, an application is made to such authority
by persons appearing to such authority to be interested requesting
that an inquiry into the extent of the nuisance, or the steps that
might be taken to minimize it, should be held, the competent
authority shall, unless the application appears to such authority





to be frivolous, direct the holding of such an inquiry, and shall
after receiving the report of the person appointed to hold the
inquiry, consider whether or not the order should be varied or
revoked.

(4) For the purposes of this regulation, proceedings for the
enforcement of an express covenant not to commit nuisance or
for the recovery of damages in respect of a breach of such a
covenant shall be deemed to be proceedings for the abatement
or prohibition of a nuisance or for the recovery of damages in
respect of a nuisance, as the case may be.

(5) Nothing in this regulation shall affect any proceedings
for the enforcement of an Ordinance.

9. The Compensation (Defence) Regulations and all orders,
notices and appointments thereunder, shall have effect, in relation
to things done under the powers conferred by these regulations,
as though the said regulations had been amended on the coming
into force of these regulations by deleting in paragraph (1) of
regulation 3 the words 'during the period beginning with the
24th day of August, 1939, and ending with such day as the
Governor may by order declare to be the day on which the
emergency comes to an end' and substituting therefor the words
,,at any time after the enactment of the Emergency (Requisition)
Regulations'.

10. Where a person convicted of an offence against any of
these regulations is a body corporate, every person who, at the
time of the ofrence, was a director or officer of the body corporate
shall be deemed to be guilty of that offence unless he proves
that the offence was committed without his knowledge, or that he
exercised all due diligence to prevent the commission of the
offence.

11. (1) Any person who contravenes or fails to comply with
any of these regulations, or any order or rule made under any
of these regulations or any direction given or requirement imposed
under any of these regulations, shall be guilty of an offence
against these regulations and shall-

(a)on summary conviction, be liable to a fine of five
thousand dollars and to imprisonment for two years; or

(b)on conviction on indictment, be liable to a fine of ten
thousand dollars and to imprisonment for five years.,

(2) Where any offence against these regulations has been
committed, whether any person has been convicted in respect
thereof or not, it shall be lawful for the court or a magistrate to
order to be forfeited to the Crown any article in respect of which
such offence was committed and upon the making of any such
order of forfeiture the said article shall become the property of





the Crown free, from all rights of any person. Before making any such
order the court or magistrate shall give to any person claiming or
appearing to the court or magistrate to be the owner of or otherwise
interested in such article an opportunity of being heard:

Provided that it shall be lawful for the Governor in his absolute
discretion to give effect to any claim for relief from such forfeiture where
such claim is established to his satisfaction on equitable, moral or other
grounds.

SCHEDULE.

APPOINTMENT OF COMPETENT AUTHORITIES MADE
PURSUANT TO THE
PROVISIONS OF REGULATION 2.

Competent For the purpose Instrument of
Authority. of Regulation- Appointment.
of Coinfnefe 4. G.N. 89/51.
and ittd=try.
Distrit Commissioner, 3,5,7,8. G.N.A. 47162
New Territories.

Secretary for Lands-and Works';,

Director of Marine 4 (in so far as that regulation provides for the L.N.
30175.
requisition of any launch, lighter, boat or
other small craft, and any ship or vessel).
Secretary for Lands and Works 4, 5 and 7 L.N. 99/76.
I. N 76/82
G.N.A. 167/49. Citation. Interpretation. Taking possession of land. Requisition of property other than land. Power to do work on land. Use of land by Her Majesty's forces and police. Entry and inspection of land. Power to permit nuisances where necessary. Application of Compensation (Defence) Regulations. (Cap. 251, First Schedule.) Offences against corporations. Penalty.

G.N.A. 167/49. Citation. Interpretation. Taking possession of land. Requisition of property other than land. Power to do work on land. Use of land by Her Majesty's forces and police. Entry and inspection of land. Power to permit nuisances where necessary. Application of Compensation (Defence) Regulations. (Cap. 251, First Schedule.) Offences against corporations. Penalty.

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