Hong Kong  - Dozens of undocumented migrants have been arrested in Hong Kong in a crackdown on asylum seekers in the wealthy former British colony, officials said Sunday.

Police arrested seven employers and 22 workers on Saturday alone during the latest push to stem the tide of people entering the city from south Asian countries seeking employment.

The crackdown followed the adoption of a new legal provision prohibiting people without valid visas from working.

Hundreds of undocumented migrants from countries such as Pakistan and Bangladesh have poured into Hong Kong since a High Court ruling in March allowing asylum seekers to work while their applications are considered.

The number of non-Chinese undocumented immigrants arrested in Hong Kong jumped from around 40 people a month at the beginning of the year to more than 150 a month in recent months.

An immigration department spokesman said the crackdown would continue and warned that migrants without proper working papers could expect "stringent enforcement measures and criminal sanctions." (dpa)