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Malaysia Star - Malaysia
13 January 2008

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The Hong Kong Police

Hong Kong: Becoming Asia’s fin

It’s one of the world’s most crowded cities but Hong Kong boasts an extraordinarily low crime rate, thanks to a highly effective police force.

THE 25,000 strong Hong Kong Police enjoys the distinction of being Asia’s finest.

The bustling city’s crime rate is the envy of police forces around the world. The International Herald Tribune reported that the crime rate for such a large metropolitan area is “extremely low by world standards”.

In 2005, Hong Kong recorded 1,137 overall cases of crime per 100,000 people while the ratio for New York is 2,675 and a staggering 13,091 for London.

The United Nations’ International Crime Victim Survey across 30 countries also reveals a rare high degree of trust in the police. Over 90% of citizens interviewed saying they did a “very good job” or a “fairly good job”.

Hong Kong has long trumpeted its effective and impartial law enforcement and the justice system. The latest Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index ranks Hong Kong at 15th place among 163 countries surveyed. It’s ahead in all of Asia except Singapore which came at fifth place.

It wasn't always like this. The rapidly developing island used to be rife with crime from prostitution and piracy to triads while hundreds of thousands of desperate refugees swarmed the land.

Until the mid-1970s, the Hong Kong police force was notorious as one of Asia’s most corrupt with the rot extending all the way to the top. They weren’t alone. From hospital amahs asking for “tips” before giving patients a bedpan to firemen soliciting “water money” before turning on the hoses, corruption was accepted with resignation as a necessary evil.

The turnaround began in the mid-1970s when then Police Chief Superintendent Peter Fitzroy Godber’s massive HK4.3mil private fortune was discovered and to huge public protests.

And so began the formation of a new law enforcement body, the Independent Commission Against Corruption or the famous ICAC, much portrayed in Hong Kong’s film industry. Armed with enormous powers of investigation and arrest, a crackdown began on the corrupt police force.

A five-year period of upheaval saw many arrests within the force and many walked out in protest. A new police system emerged with key recommendations including better wages.

The police became a more socially responsive force. From a paramilitary organisation, it became one that promotes service and social justice.

“When I joined the force in 1977, corruption was declining. We started interacting with the people. That marked a significant change in the force,” recalls Mark E. Medwecki, Police Superintendent and head of the Hong Kong Police Crime Prevention Bureau.

“Instead of bossing the citizens around, the police changed their focus towards protecting and serving the people with politeness and humility.”

He explains at a seminar held in conjunction with World Habitat Day 2007 in Kuala Lumpur that Hong Kong’s current low crime rate is credited to a three-prong approach. The first is the high visibility of police.

“We are organised geographically with two beats comprising two officers each on patrol and stationed 24/7,” says Medwecki. “Their responsibility is two-fold – to respond to any incident and to remain visible, which is very important to the Hong Kong Police.”

There are back-up units such as the Police Tactical Units (PTU) and internal security. A Performer’s Pledge keeps teams on their toes. They must respond to a 999 call within nine minutes in the city and 15 minutes in rural areas. The beat system eliminates the problems of traffic jams, as the officers get to the scene on foot with backup if needed from patrol cars.

The average respond time to a call for help is four minutes.

“I am convinced that our crime rate is so low is because crime acts are responded to very quickly,” says Medwecki. “People are sensitive to crime. There is a high perception of safety on the streets. When there is overt snatching of handbags, people start screaming immediately for the police. It’s a big deterrent to crime because it’s hard to get away!”

The second prong is its crime prevention bureau. This was established in the late-1970s with less than 10 officers. It has 100 today. Every of Hong Kong’s 26 districts is assigned an officer.

“The bureau was part of a re-organisation that the police cannot do everything,” explains Medwecki. “We must get other people involved through liaisons with institutions like schools.”

A successful factor to deterring crime is the compulsory approval of its police architectural department for building plans to include preventive measures even before a building is erected.

A massive fire on Christmas day 1953 had left 58,000 refugees homeless when the flames devoured thousands of shacks. But from the ashes came forth a successful public housing programme that laid a foundation for crime prevention.

By 1965, some one million people were resettled into these new housing estates. In 2007, some 3.5 million residents, accounting for half of Hong Kong’s population, are living in these housing projects.

Yet, they did not turn into high rise slums. Crime is nipped in the bud even before it blooms. Even low cost housing projects set aside a large fund for building security provisions such as quality doors, locks, bright lighting and CCTV facilities. Currently, the Housing Department is embarking on a five-year project to upgrade all CCTVs into digital systems.

“So when a new block is built, it is a security enabled package,” says Medwecki. “Half of the population lives in such high rise estates. So if we get this aspect right, half of the crime issues would have been handled.”

The third prong deals with PR and the security industry.

Hong Kong’s security industry has been regulated since 1996. There are some 75,000 active security personnel permit holders, employed in duties ranging from reception duties in residential buildings to store detectives or armed guards.

Licences are administered by the Crime Prevention Bureau which involves vetting of new applicants and annual inspections of security companies.

“The police force is about 25,000 strong. So with the additional security personnel, we have three times the number who supplement the police in undertaking crime prevention duties. They act as our eyes and ears and are a big help in keeping crime down,” explains Medwecki.

And of course, public relations help tremendously. As early as the 1960s, an effective and responsive public relations information unit was already available to update citizens and the press on what the police are doing.

– Chin Mui Yoon

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Malaysia Star - Malaysia13 January 2008

Hong Kong: Becoming Asia’s fin

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Malaysia Star - Malaysia
13 January 2008