The Security Bureau today said that a Hong Kong resident who had been detained for illegal work in Myanmar, but was recently rescued and safely arrived in Thailand, will return to Hong Kong on Monday with the bureau’s dedicated task force.

Members of the task force met the Hong Kong resident at a detention centre last night after his transferral to Bangkok. He was in good mental and physical condition.

The task force members expressed sympathy to the individual, who expressed gratitude for their visit to Thailand to follow up on his case. He was also pleased to learn that he will be able to return to Hong Kong on Monday.

Secretary for Security Tang Ping-keung said he was relieved that one more Hong Kong resident was rescued and able to return to Hong Kong to reunite with his family before the Chinese New Year.

Mr Tang thanked sincerely the Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, the Chinese Embassy in the Republic of the Union of Myanmar, the Chinese Embassy in the Kingdom of Thailand, the Consulate General of the People's Republic of China in Chiang Mai, the Consulate General of Myanmar in Hong Kong, the Royal Thai Consulate-General, Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Economic & Trade Office in Bangkok and the relevant Thai authorities for their support and assistance as well as importance attached to the case, enabling the return of the Hong Kong resident within a short period of time as far as practicable.

The security chief also commended the dedicated task force for the committed efforts in following up the case and assisting the Hong Kong resident's return to Hong Kong as soon as possible.

The task force, comprising members from the bureau, the Hong Kong Police Force and the Immigration Department, has been contacting and liaising with different parties since their arrival in Thailand on January 21 to discuss the arrangements for the rescued Hong Kong resident to return home as soon as possible and follow up on the 10 remaining request-for-assistance cases.