### Control of Obscene and Indecent Articles Ordinance 《淫褻及不雅物品管制條例》

42. Obliteration of indecent matter
(1) Subject to subsection (2) and section 43, if, upon the application of any public officer, a magistrate is satisfied that any indecent matter is publicly displayed on any building or other structure he may order the owner of the building or structure to remove or efface that indecent matter.
(2) An order shall not be made under subsection (1) if the ground of defence under section 28 is proved in respect of the public display of any matter.
(3) If a person against whom an order is made under subsection (1) fails to comply with the order within the time specified in the order, or if no time is specified, within a reasonable time, the magistrate may by warrant empower any police officer, with such assistance as may be necessary, to enter and if necessary to break into or forcibly enter such premises or place and execute that order.
(4) A police officer in executing an order under subsection (3) shall have all the powers of a police officer acting in the execution of a warrant under section 34.
(5) The Commissioner of Police may apply to a magistrate for an order that a person who has failed to comply with an order made against him under subsection (1) shall pay any expenses reasonably incurred by a police officer in the execution of the order under subsection (3) and the magistrate may make an order for such payment under section 69 of the Magistrates Ordinance (Cap. 227) notwithstanding that it may exceed the amount mentioned in that section.

43. Procedure in relation to obliteration
(1) Before making an order to remove or efface any indecent matter under section 42 the magistrate shall, unless he is satisfied that the owner of the building or other structure mentioned in that section 42 cannot for any reason be found or ascertained, issue a summons to him to appear on a day specified in the summons to show cause why an order should not be made to remove or efface that indecent matter.
(2) In addition to the person mentioned in subsection (1) any other person being the owner or manufacturer of the indecent matter mentioned in section 42 may appear before the magistrate on the day specified in the summons to show cause why the order to remove or efface that indecent matter should not be made.
(3) Subsections (4) and (6) of section 41 shall apply in relation to an order to remove or efface indecent matter under section 42 as they apply in relation to an order for forfeiture under section 40.

### Control of Obscene and Indecent Articles Ordinance 《淫褻及不雅物品管制條例》

44. Chief Justice may make rules
The Chief Justice may make rules relating to the practice and procedure to apply to proceedings before a Tribunal, or magistrate, or in any court, under this Ordinance and to appeals under this Ordinance and, in particular, may make rules to provide for—
(a) the manner of making application under this Ordinance;
(b) the reference of questions from a court or magistrate to a Tribunal;
(c) the method of recording a classification or determination of a Tribunal;
(d) the service of documents;
(e) the form of any document for the purpose of any proceedings in a Tribunal or for any appeal;
(f) rights of audience before a Tribunal;
(g) the giving of notice relating to any proceedings before a Tribunal or any appeal under section 30; and
(h) the award, taxation and recovery of costs relating to any proceedings in a Tribunal.

45. Powers of Registrar
The Registrar may—
(a) give directions as to the distribution and disposal of the business of a Tribunal;
(b) determine any form of document to be made or issued by a Tribunal; and
(c) permit such person or class of person as he thinks appropriate on payment of any prescribed fee to search—
(i) the register of notices kept by him under section 19(4); and
(ii) the repository of articles kept by him under section 20.

46. Regulations
The Chief Executive in Council may make regulations to provide for— (Amended 55 of 1999 s. 3)
(a) fees;
(b) the manner of giving of notice under section 18;
(c) the empowering of a Tribunal or the Registrar to waive any prescribed fee; and
(d) the payment of fees and allowances to adjudicators.

### Control of Obscene and Indecent Articles Rules 《淫褻及不雅物品管制規則》

1. Citation
These rules may be cited as the Control of Obscene and Indecent Articles Rules.

2. Completion, signature and service of forms
(1) A form prescribed by these rules shall be—
(a) completed legibly—
(i) in accordance with any directions specified in the form; and
(ii) in the English language or in the Chinese language; and
(b) signed—
(i) where the person submitting the form is an individual (acting on his own behalf or as a partner), by that individual; or
(ii) where the person submitting the form is a body corporate, by an individual authorized in that behalf by that body corporate.
(2) A prescribed form which is completed or signed otherwise than in accordance with the requirements of paragraph (1) may be rejected by the Registrar, who shall thereupon give such notice as he thinks fit of that rejection and the reasons therefor to the person submitting the form.
(3) Without limiting the Registrar’s power under paragraph (2) to reject a prescribed form, the Registrar shall reject a form which contains no address for service by post.
(4) Nothing in this rule shall prevent a person re-submitting to the Registrar a prescribed form which has been rejected under paragraph (2) where the form has been revised to take account of the Registrar’s reasons for such rejection.
(5) Where any provision of these rules requires any document to be served by post, the service shall be deemed to be effected by properly addressing, pre-paying the postage thereon and dispatching it by registered post to the last known address for service by post or, if that is not known, last known postal address, of the person to be served, and, unless the contrary is proved, such service shall be deemed to have been effected at the time at which the document would be delivered in the ordinary course of post.

3. Articles which contain matter in language other than English or Chinese
(1) Without limiting the Registrar’s power under rule 2 to reject a prescribed form, where the article to which a form relates contains any written or oral matter which is in a language other than English or Chinese, the Registrar may reject the form until such time as the person submitting the form provides him with an English language or Chinese language translation, satisfactory to the Registrar, of that matter.
(2) Where the Registrar rejects a prescribed form under paragraph (1), he shall thereupon give such notice as he thinks fit of that rejection and the reasons therefor to the person submitting the form, for which purpose he may provide that person with a copy of this rule.
(L.N. 446 of 1994)