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Following is a written reply by the Secretary for Security, Mr Ambrose S K Lee, to a question by the Hon Chan Hak-kan in the Legislative Council today (October 26):
Question:
A total of four cases of passers-by being chopped by an attacker occurred in Tseung Kwan O (TKO) District between the evening of October 2 and the morning of October 3 this year, resulting in injuries to four men. Residents are concerned whether there are signs of deterioration in the law and order in the district, and they also question the approach taken by the Police of not immediately making public the details of the cases. In his reply in March this year to my question on issues of law and order in TKO District, the Secretary for Security said, "Tseung Kwan O meets the requirements for upgrading to a police district merely in terms of population". In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) of the number of crimes, together with a breakdown, which occurred in TKO District from January to September this year; which areas in the district are black spots of crime;
(b) according to the reply from the authorities in March this year, the establishment of front-line police officers in the TKO Division was 255, of the latest figure; whether they will consider increasing the establishment in the near future; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(c) given that the current population in TKO District exceeds 400 000 and the police-to-population ratio in that district is approximately 1:1 570, whether such ratio is relatively low when compared with those in other divisions in the Kowloon East Region of the Police, and list the figures in various divisions for comparison; whether the Police will consider adjusting upwards the police-to-population ratio in TKO District; if it will, of the level to which the ratio will be upwardly adjusted;
(d) of the latest progress of the arrangements for upgrading TKO District to an independent police district; when the TKO Police District can eventually be established;
(e) why the Police made public the relevant details only days after the occurrence of the aforesaid cases; whether an assessment has been made on the impact of such delay on the prevention of such cases and provision of clues by the residents; and
(f) given that the Police Public Relations Branch issued a press release on October 10 this year, stating that the Police would investigate "if there is any room for improvement in the process of disseminating information or any failure to follow procedures properly" in handling the aforesaid cases, of the criteria based on which the Police decide whether to disseminate information on crimes at present; the details of the aforesaid review; and the expected dates for completing the review and making the outcome public?
Reply:
President,
The law and order in Tseung Kwan O is currently maintained by the Tseung Kwan O Division (TKO Division) of the Kwun Tong District in the Kowloon East (KE) Region of the Police. The Police have been closely monitoring the crime situation and policing needs of the district. Adequate police strength has been deployed to Tseung Kwan O to maintain law and order with reference to its community development and population growth. My reply to the six parts of question is as follows:
(a) The number of reported crimes for the first nine months of this year in TKO Division is 2 255. A breakdown of the crime cases is at Annex 1.
Most of the crimes that occurred in Tseung Kwan O involved miscellaneous thefts, shop thefts, criminal damages and woundings, which happened more often in places with heavy pedestrian flow or within housing estates. The Police have stepped up patrols in the district according to the crime situation.
(b) and (c) The Police will provide adequate police strength to meet the policing needs of the TKO Division. In addition to the local resources of the TKO Division, the Police would redeploy resources internally where necessary to meet the operational needs within the area. Currently, the strength of front-line police officers in the TKO Division is 273. Among them, 255 are within the establishment while the remaining 18 are deployed from other police divisions. Therefore, the enforcement capability of the Police in Tseung Kwan O and other districts will not be restrained by the administrative boundaries of the police districts. The Police will continue to closely monitor the policing needs in Tseung Kwan O and take corresponding measures to maintain law and order.
Regarding the police-to-population ratio, although the ratio of TKO Division is lower than those of other divisions in the KE Region, the Police will, as mentioned above, redeploy resources internally where necessary. Besides, it is worth noting that regarding the law and order in the TKO Division, the crime rate (per 100 000 population) of the Division has been maintained at the lowest level among all divisions in the KE Region. It is also lower than the territory-wide average for the past eight years. The crime rates and police-to-population ratios of all divisions in the KE Region are at Annex 2.
(d) The Police would review their policing arrangements from time to time. To tie in with future development, the Police are currently conducting a study on the re-organisation of the KE Region and the required ancillary facilities in order to better meet the policing needs of local communities. In conducting the review, the Police would take into account such factors as projected population growth, land use and infrastructural developments, geographical characteristics and crime trends, etc. Upgrading the TKO Division to a police district is one of the major issues to be considered in the review. It is expected that the preliminary proposal of the re-organisation of the KE Region would be completed next year and local organisations will be consulted.
(e) and (f) The Police always respect the public right of knowledge and media's freedom of reporting. Public support is essential if the Police are to carry out their duties effectively and it is of paramount importance that public confidence in the Force is to be maintained and that a good image is to be established.
It is the established policy of the Police to endeavour to facilitate media reporting as far as practicable. As far as the mechanism of disseminating information of unforeseen incidents by the Police is concerned, if a case involves public interest, public safety or if it is a major incident, the information concerned will be disseminated to the media. When disseminating information, the Police will take into consideration the public right of knowledge, and comply strictly with the relevant ordinances and the requirements of the "Code on Access to Information". At the same time, the process should not affect covert operations, privacy of individuals and possible judicial procedures.
Regarding the arrangements for disseminating information on the four wounding cases in Tseung Kwan O, the Police have already provided a response on October 10, 2011, indicating that since those four cases involve public interest and public safety, the Police will investigate if there is any room for improvement in the process of disseminating information or any failure to follow procedures properly. We appreciate the public concern about the cases. The Police are conducting a review on the operation and will provide an account of this incident as soon as possible.
In fact, upon receipt of such case reports, the Police immediately consolidated them and then passed them to the District Crime Squad of Kwun Tong District for follow up. Apart from carrying out background investigation, uniform and plainclothes patrols were also stepped up in the district and special operations were conducted by plainclothes officers. On October 10, 2011, the Police arrested and subsequently charged a 31-year-old male suspect of those four cases.
Ends/Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Issued at HKT 15:28
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