HONG KONG 2005

The Hong Kong Police Force is committed to protecting the public, preventing and detecting crime, maintaining law and order, ensuring smooth traffic operations, reducing the number of traffic accidents and stamping out illegal immigration.

At year-end, the Police Force had an establishment of about 27 400 police officers supported by more than 5 000 civilian staff and reinforced by some 4 500 volunteers serving in the Hong Kong Auxiliary Police Force.

During the year, Hong Kong remained one of the safest cities in the world, with the Force sparing no effort in combating violent crime, triad activities and drug offences. The Police Force was also tasked with providing a safe and secure environment while maintaining law, order and public safety during the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Hong Kong Ministerial Conference held in December.

The Force continued to implement its revised 'Three-Year Strategic Action Plan' which sets out the focus of police work from 2003 to 2006 in order to provide the most efficient and effective service to the public.

Reported crimes in 2005 totalled 77 437, a decrease of 4.8 per cent compared with 81 315 crimes recorded in 2004. The crime rate stood at 1 115 cases per 100 000 population, a drop of 5.5 per cent compared with 1 182 cases in 2004. The decrease in crimes was mainly due to the fall in robberies, burglaries and theft.

There were 13 890 violent crimes during the year, the same as 2004. Robbery, wounding and serious assault accounted for 66.1 per cent of the total number of violent crimes. There were notable decreases in the relatively more serious violent crimes such as homicide, robbery, blackmail and arson.

There were 1 675 robberies in 2005, compared to 2 237 in 2004, a drop of 25.1 per cent. Of those, three involved genuine firearms, the same as in 2004. There were 15 bank robberies compared to 16 the previous year.

Of the non-violent crimes during the year, the number of burglaries dropped to 5 492 from 7 002 in 2004, a decrease of 21.6 per cent. Serious narcotics offences dropped to 1 780 from 2 167 in 2004, a fall of 17.9 per cent. Thefts fell to 35 213 from 37 500 in 2004, down by 6.1 per cent.

Of the reported crimes in 2005, 44.3 per cent or 34 282 crimes were detected and 40 804 people arrested for various criminal offences. Of those arrested, 4 531 were juveniles (aged 10 to 15) and 4 780 were young people (aged 16 to 20). Most of the juveniles and young people were arrested for shop theft, miscellaneous thefts, wounding and serious assault, and robbery. Drug-related offences were also prevalent among the crimes committed by young offenders.

Incidents involving the use of firearms remained at a very low level. In 2005, there were four reported cases, compared to three the previous year, and only three firearms were seized during the year. Stringent gun control laws, successful intelligence-led operations and the strategic exchange of intelligence with the Mainland authorities were effective in controlling the illegal import of firearms into Hong Kong.

In 2005, 1 592 vehicles were reported missing compared with 1 740 in 2004, a decrease of 8.5 per cent. Police enforcement activities, boundary control, intelligence sharing with the Mainland and overseas jurisdictions and prevention campaigns contributed to a downward trend in respect of most types of vehicle theft.

Organised crime activities in Hong Kong were contained as in previous years. There were 2 304 triad-related cases in 2005, which accounted for only 3 per cent of the 77 437 total reported crimes. With persistent and vigorous enforcement action, this figure has steadily declined over the past few years.

There were numerous proactive, intelligence-led operations throughout the year aimed at combating activities involving triads, such as extortion, loan sharking, vehicle crime, gambling, prostitution and debt collection. A number of these operations were conducted in cooperation with neighbouring jurisdictions such as the Mainland and Macao. During the year, over 45 operations were carried out successfully, resulting in the arrest of over 500 people for various offences such as being a member of a triad society, armed robbery, use of firearms, blackmail, bookmaking (betting slips to the amount of $18.6 million were seized in one operation against illegal gambling) and handling stolen goods (40 people were arrested and over $7 million worth of luxury vehicles were recovered in another single operation). Several high-ranking triad office-bearers were also arrested and sentenced by the courts, and over $91 million was restrained during the year.

The Police Witness Protection Programme is administered by the Police Witness Protection Unit. The unit provides a wide range of protective measures, authorised by the law, to take care of the needs of individual witnesses who are assessed as being exposed to a genuine threat of serious physical injury or death. The unit also assists and advises other units and divisions in the Police Force on protection of witnesses who are under a lesser degree of threat.

The Child Protection Policy Unit is responsible for mapping out policy, procedures and training on handling domestic violence, child abuse and abuse of the elderly. The unit organises and participates in publicity programmes on the prevention and handling of child abuse and domestic violence for the public and concerned professionals from the Government and non-governmental organisations.

In 2005, the Police investigated 112 child abuse cases at the regional level (108 involving sexual abuse and four involving serious physical abuse) compared to 115 the previous year, a drop of 2.6 per cent. Joint action was taken with the Social Welfare Department (SWD) in cases that required immediate social work intervention.

There were also various training programmes provided during the year to enhance the professional knowledge of police officers and SWD officers investigating child abuse cases. A seminar was organised for government counsel on how to handle vulnerable witnesses in court. The SWD commissioned the University of Hong Kong Training Institute to organise a training package to promote sensitivity and basic understanding of family violence with special focus on child abuse, spouse battering and abuse of the elderly for around 2 400 frontline professionals. The Police contributed to the training programme on police handling procedures and the role the Police play in the multi-disciplinary approach.

In 2005, there were 1 274 domestic violence cases, representing an increase of 41.1 per cent compared to 2004. The increase is believed to be the result of enhauced awaveness of domestic violence due to the Government's publicity and education campaigns and an increase in the confidence of victims to seek assistance. In order to provide a high quality response in the intervention process and to facilitate further collaboration across different departments and non-governmental organisations (NGOs), a centralised and informative domestic violence database was set up in 2005. It equips frontline officers with timely background information to allow them to make a more evidence-based risk assessment and a better-informed decision on the appropriate mode of intervention. There was also a strong emphasis on training during the year which focused not only on operational procedures but also on the need for sensitivity, victim psychology and dilemmas, empathy and conflict management.

The Commercial Crime Bureau adopted a more proactive approach to intelligence-led investigations of syndicated and serious fraud, counterfeit and forgery cases as well as technology crime.

In 2005, the prevalence of serious fraud cases, counterfeit currencies and credit card usage diminished. Notwithstanding expanded renminbi business in Hong Kong and the increase in visitors from the Mainland under the Individual Visit Scheme, counterfeit renminbi reports remained steady throughout the year.

There were 654 technology crimes reported in 2005, an increase of 16.7 per cent over the previous year. Most of these technology crimes were minor in nature and, with 398 related to online-games, the theme of the Force's technology crime prevention strategy of 2005-06 was information technology (IT) security awareness and cyber ethics among youths. Among many other initiatives, the Technology Crime Division worked on the project, 'JPC IT Security Ambassadors' together with the Police Public Relations Branch. During the first phase, 120 selected Junior Police Call (JPC) members were given IT security training which they, acting as 'security ambassadors', could pass on to their homes and schools.

The Technology Crime Division also worked closely with many strategic partners including the Office of Government Chief Information Office, Hong Kong Computer Emergency Response Team Coordination Centre, Hong Kong Internet Exchange, Hong Kong Domain Name Registry, and major internet services providers, to ensure cyber security was maintained at a high level.

The number of arrests for drug-related offences fell during the year. However, the total amount of ketamine, herbal cannabis and methamphetamine confiscated increased substantially on account of several large seizures. A total of 409.48 kilograms of ketamine, 239.94 kilograms of methamphetamine, 485.65 kilograms of cannabis, 65 125 ecstasy-type tablets, 42.08 kilograms of heroin and 17.05 kilograms of cocaine were seized in Hong Kong.

In operations targeting narcotics, the Police Force dismantled three heroin manufacturing centres where the drug was mixed with other substances to increase its bulk and then re-packaged. Enforcement actions also focused on neutralising premises used as divans where heroin was sold and consumed.

In 2005, the number of people arrested for drug offences of all kinds totalled 6 008. Of those, 586 were aged 16 to 20 years and 70 were under 16. A total of 2 020 people were arrested for heroin offences and 3 072 were arrested for psychotropic substance offences.

Although there were less arrests, preventing young people from abusing psychotropic substances, such as ketamine, cannabis, methamphetamine and ecstasy, remained a major operational target throughout the year. An increase in 'crack' cocaine cases was noted and three crack production operations were dismantled by the Police. There was one methamphetamine manufacturing case and a trend towards the stimulant drug being sold in divans was noted in 2005.

The Narcotics Bureau of the Police Force joined forces with Mainland and overseas counterparts to prevent the cross-boundary and transnational flow of illicit drugs. Illicit drugs seizures on the Mainland and overseas arising from these efforts amounted to 250 000 ecstasy-type tablets, 1 766.5 kilograms of ketamine, 294 kilograms of methamphetamine, 152 kilograms of heroin, three kilograms of cannabis buds and a substantial amount of precursor chemicals.

The financial investigations of the Police are led by the Financial Investigations Division of the Narcotics Bureau.

During the year a substantial number of complex financial investigations were conducted and 53 money launderers were prosecuted. Since the introduction of legislation on money laundering, a total of $391 million in crime proceeds have been confiscated. Another $109 million in crime proceeds were ordered to be confiscated pending recovery from the convicted criminals and a further $1,292 million of crime proceeds were placed under restraint.

The Financial Investigations Division of the Narcotics Bureau is devising an IT system that will automate the receipt and processing of suspicious transaction reports and thus enhance intelligence gathering. The system, called STREAMS (Suspicious Transaction Report and Management System), is expected to go live in the last quarter of 2006.

The Police Force has been actively participating in both local and international initiatives against money laundering and terrorist financing. In February and May 2005, in partnership with the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation, anti-money laundering and counter financing of terrorism seminars were held in Hong Kong. In September, a series of seminars was held for compliance officers of the banking, securities, insurance and remittance/money changing industries. Over 700 compliance officers from the industries attended. The Force also provided an expert to help evaluate the financial investigation framework in India in early 2005 and took part in working groups of the Financial Action Task Force, which studied emerging money laundering and terrorist threats and devised counter strategies.

The Crime Prevention Bureau continued to provide a public advisory service, and 22 283 security surveys were conducted for both the public and private sectors during the year.

The bureau continued its educational role through campaigns and seminars, its call-fax and webpage services, and the deployment of the Robotcop and the crime prevention bus. In 2005, 2.1 million advisory leaflets on crime prevention were distributed to the public and 120 interviews were given on crime trends and preventative measures.

The bureau opened a new security equipment display on the ninth floor at Arsenal House, Wan Chai, in August. Made with the support of the Hong Kong security industry, the display offers information to the general public on the products that are available to fulfil their security needs.

The bureau also dealt with 46 new applications for security company licences and made its annual inspection of 870 licensed security companies.

The Forensic Firearms Examination Bureau is responsible for the investigation of firearms-related crimes. The bureau is an American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors accredited laboratory. The accreditation serves as a professionally recognised standard of service quality and integrity.

The Identification Bureau plays a significant role in supporting crime investigations and prosecutions through the provision of professional fingerprint and photographic service and collection of DNA evidence from crime scenes.

During the year, the Scenes of Crime Officers responded to 11 129 crime cases for the recovery of fingerprint and DNA evidence, 88 per cent of which were attended to within 45 minutes. The examination work was supplemented by the Advanced Technology Section, which employed the latest laboratory techniques and instruments to gather fingerprint evidence on various exhibits, with notable success.

The fingerprints collected from exhibits and crime scenes were searched against the Computer Assisted Fingerprint Identification System (CAFIS) which automatically compared them with those on record. Coupled with other manual methods, 1 539 suspects in 1 301 cases were identified during the year. Funding was secured to procure a new system with both fingerprint and palmprint search capability which could not otherwise be achieved by the existing CAFIS. The bureau also maintained a cadre of fingerprint experts who provided expert testimony in court for 381 cases.

During the year, photographic officers attended 3 414 crime cases. The Photographic Section also provided other services such as video crime scene enactment, the printing of photographs from bank surveillance films and video tapes.

The Liaison Bureau continued to function as a conduit between Hong Kong Police and other police agencies including the Mainland Public Security Bureaux, Macao Unitary Police Service, overseas police organisations and their local consulate officials. During the WTO Hong Kong Ministerial Conference held in December, the bureau organised an observer scheme for visiting law enforcement agencies to share knowledge and experience on policing such large international events.

In 2005, the bureau joined forces with the Mainland and Macao to combat cross-boundary crimes and further cemented ties through the 10th and 11th bi-annual HK-Guangdong-Macao Tripartite CID Heads Meetings held in March and September. In December, a bilateral meeting was held in Hong Kong with the Ministry of Public Security to further enhance cooperation

The bureau also represented the Hong Kong Police Force in International Criminal Police Organisation (ICPO), or Interpol. Hong Kong is a sub-bureau of the China National Central Bureau, and the Police Force seconded an officer to the Interpol General Secretariat in Lyon, France. Another officer was seconded to the Regional Office in Bangkok, Thailand during the year to promote better police cooperation in Asia.

Nine people were extradited to Hong Kong from overseas and eight were extradited from Hong Kong to other countries in 2005.

Hong Kong has always played host on a grand scale, whether it is for big public entertainments and exhibitions or large-scale public demonstrations and it is the Police Tactical Unit which ensures that all goes smoothly and safely. The year 2005 saw the efficient policing of over 2 000 public demonstrations and many other major activities including the WTO Hong Kong Ministerial Conference in December. About 6 000 delegates, 3 000 reporters, 2 000 NGO representatives and thousands of demonstrators arrived in Hong Kong for the six-day conference. The Police helped the conference run smoothly amid demonstrations and quickly restored order following a major disorder on the street and the Force's efficiency has earned applause from both local and overseas communities.

During the year, the unit's headquarters trained four unit companies (a total of 680 officers) and continued to provide advanced training to regional and district personnel to cope with anti-crime, illegal immigration and internal security commitments.

To enhance the preparedness of the Police and concerned departments in internal security, public order and anti-terrorism issues, several territory-wide exercises were conducted. These were also held in tandem with the preparation and planning for the WTO Hong Kong Ministerial Conference.

The Special Duties Unit, based at the Police Tactical Unit headquarters, will provide a tactical response in the event of a terrorist incident. It continued to prepare to counter terrorism, through exercises and regular exchanges with overseas partners.

The Explosive Ordnance Disposal Bureau performs a significant function in assuring the Force's counter-terrorism capability. The ongoing counter-terrorism exchange programme aligns the Force's tactical capability with similar units in the United Kingdom, US and Australia. Regular contact is also maintained with the network of bomb data centres around the world. The bureau's capability is greatly enhanced by its cadre, a group of part-time volunteers, who have been trained in improvised explosive device disposal. The cadre volunteers receive ongoing training and are called back to assist the unit regularly.

In 2005, bureau officers were also responsible for responding to post-blast incidents in Hong Kong. These incidents ranged from a large explosion of fireworks aboard a ship to a small victim-operated device sent to the editor of a local newspaper. They disposed of old World War II ordnance and a large number of commercial pyrotechnics. Over the year, the bureau responded to over 100 call-outs.

There has been a downward trend in illegal immigration from the Mainland since 1994. During the year, 2 191 illegal immigrants were arrested by Police, an average of six per day, representing a decrease of 24 per cent compared to 2004 when there were 2 889 arrests. Fifty-one per cent of those arrested in 2005 claimed to have entered Hong Kong by sea and the remaining 49 per cent crossed the land boundary.

The continuous downward trend in illegal immigration from the Mainland has been maintained through close cooperation and intelligence exchange with the Guangdong Border Defence Bureau and the fortification of the boundary fence along the entire land boundary using advanced technical equipment.

There are about 170 general patrol dogs and sniffer dogs in the Police Dog Unit. The unit is responsible for ensuring that all dogs and handlers are professionally trained and that their skills are maintained at a high level of proficiency. In this connection, a new training centre featuring up-to-date breeding, medical and training facilities came into operation in 2005.

Special sniffer dogs are stationed at Hong Kong International Airport and the Kai Tak Operational Base to provide round-the-clock service in search operations. The unit's explosives detection dogs also play a vital role in security operations undertaken by the Police Force.

In 2005, there were 15 062 traffic accidents involving casualties, representing an increase of 0.2 per cent compared with 2004 and 139 fatal traffic accidents, representing a decrease of 13.1 per cent compared to the previous year. During the year, 445 444 fixed-penalty tickets for moving offences were issued, an increase of 2.4 per cent compared with 2004. Police officers and traffic wardens issued a total of 572 214 tickets for parking offences, which represented an increase of 3.6 per cent. There were 68 143 summonses issued to traffic offenders, an increase of 0.7 per cent compared to 2004.

The Police Licensing Office is responsible for issuing various types of licences and permits, as well as managing the Societies Registry. It monitors the enforcement of conditions under which such licences or permits are issued and compliance with related laws. It also has an advisory responsibility as well as a monitoring role for a number of licences issued by other government departments. The re-examination of 42 previously approved modified firearms was satisfactorily completed during the year to better ensure the safety of both members of the public and film industry workers.

In October, police officers stopped accompanying civilian hunting teams during wild pig hunts. Since the arrangement ended, the Force has issued arms licences for wild pig hunting to civilian hunters who are holders of valid special permits issued by Director of Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation. The control and safe use of firearms is maintained through the imposition of additional conditions on such licences, 18 of which had been issued by year-end.

At the end of the year, there were 192 licensed massage establishments, 184 licensed pawnbrokers, and 5 500 liquor-licensed premises and 266 863 valid security personnel permits holders in Hong Kong.

In order to meet the challenges posed by faster coastal craft and comply with the International Ship and Port Facility Security Code, Marine Region embarked on a new operating scheme, the Versatile Maritime Policing Response (VMPR), to police the waters of Hong Kong for the next 10 to 15 years. This new strategy will integrate technologically advanced coastal surveillance systems with an enhanced radar system to detect and identify targets, and a new fleet of high-performance vessels to respond to suspicious activities and other policing commitments. Funding for the project was approved in June and the aim is to introduce the new system between 2008 and 2010. The full implementation of VMPR will significantly improve maritime police services at a substantially reduced cost.

In December, Marine Region worked closely with other land formations to successfully police Victoria Harbour and the adjacent waterfronts of the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre where World Trade Organisation Hong Kong Ministerial Conference was held.

The Police Public Relations Branch plays a vital role in informing the public about the work of the Police in order to project a positive image of the Force and enlisting public support in the maintenance of law and order via a proactive community relations programme.

Police Community Relations Officers attached to different districts work closely with representatives from other government departments and organisations to keep the public well informed of police policies and operational priorities.

During the year, the Junior Police Call (JPC) Scheme and the Secondary School Liaison Officers Programme continued to serve as bridges between the Police and youngsters. The year also marked a milestone for the JPC Scheme which was overhauled to make it a more effective youth initiative and community policing vehicle.

At the end 2005, there were 24 JPC clubhouses, 851 school clubs, 375 honorary presidents, 133 925 members and leaders, and 160 advanced leaders.

The Police Force has co-produced two weekly television programmes with Radio Television Hong Kong for the last 30 years. The 30-minute Police Magazine in Cantonese and the five-minute Police Report in English, keep the public abreast of crime trends and issue appeals for information that will help crime investigations. Police Magazine continues to enjoy high ratings and was selected as one of the Best Television Programmes in the Appreciation Index Survey 2005. In addition, the Force also co-produces a five-minute Police Bulletin with Cable TV.

The second series of the programme, Missing Persons Unit, jointly produced by the branch and Television Broadcasts Limited, was broadcast immediately after the drama, Without a Trace, from November 2004 to March 2005 to appeal for information on missing persons. The Force also assisted various film companies in the production of police-related dramas and documentaries during the year.

Information relating to police activities is disseminated to local and overseas media organisations round the clock. In 2005, the branch handled 338 370 media enquiries, issued 4 021 press releases, organised 154 press conferences and briefings and assisted media coverage at 98 serious crime scenes and other incidents.

It also worked closely with the Information Services Department and other government departments, as well as the Fight Crime Committee, in planning and implementing the Fight Crime Publicity Campaign 2005-06 with the theme 'Take Care of Your Own Belongings'.

To commend the initiative of citizens in helping the police fight crime, the Police Force selected a total of 80 members of the public to receive the Good Citizen Award in 2005 and held two presentation ceremonies, one in June and another in January 2006, with sponsorship from the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce.

Police telephone hotlines and Crime Information Forms provide convenient channels for reporting crime. A total of 19 222 hotline phone calls (not including those made to the emergency hotline 999) as well as 1 143 returned Crime Information Forms were registered by year-end, resulting in 938 arrests.

To further publicise police-related information effectively, the branch continued to update the contents and improve the presentation of Force publications, including the biweekly newspaper OffBeat, the JPC monthly newsletter and the Police in Figures leaflet. The Police Review 2004 won an Honourable Mention in the 2005 Best Annual Report Awards organised by the Hong Kong Management Association.

The new purpose-built New Territories South Regional Headquarters and Operational Base complex in Tsuen Wan was completed in May and was in full operation by October. The complex has a tower block which accommodates various police operational and support units from New Territories South Region and a podium block with facilities for crime prevention exhibitions, weapon training and vehicle parking. Additionally the building includes catering facilities, a continuous training facility and a firing range; all of which have enhanced police operational efficiency.

Construction of the Marine Outer Waters District Headquarters and Marine North Division Operational Base at Ma Liu Shui progressed smoothly throughout the year. The main building was scheduled to be completed by March/April 2006.

During the year, the Force's participation in the development and implementation of various boundary-crossing facilities continued with the Sheung Shui to Lok Ma Chau Spur Line East Rail Extension at Lok Ma Chau and Dongjiaotou, Shekou. These projects are scheduled for completion in late 2006.

Other major capital works projects at an advanced stage of planning include a purpose-built complex adjacent to the Waterfront Divisional Police Station to accommodate the Central Police District Headquarters and Central Divisional Police Station by 2009.

A number of established police driver posts were cut to provide savings, part of which were reinvested in the outsourcing of transport services for non-operational police duty journeys. The cost-cutting exercise proved successful and will be expanded in future, and should lead to an increased partnership between the Police Force and private sector service providers.

Organisational restructuring in 2004 resulted in improved management and enhanced efficiency in the business-oriented and daily functional activities of the Information Systems Wing in 2005.

A new Information Systems Strategy Plan for 2005-10 was developed during the year to optimise the use of information technology to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the Force. A corresponding plan for Communication Systems is being developed.

In line with overall government policy, the Force is committed to expanding e-services to the public and staff. Funds for the implementation of the Departmental Portal Programme for the Force were secured in December. The Information Systems Wing will make use of this platform to enable authorised members of the Force to access portal applications of other government departments and also develop the Force's own e-service applications.

Expert use of communications technology contributed substantially to the success of police operations during the WTO Hong Kong Ministerial Conference in December. Innovative design and solutions on video image applications enhanced the capability of the Force to monitor crucial events from helicopters, mobile vehicles, fixed locations and other sites.

The Force issued the third 'Three-Year Strategic Action Plan' during the year, covering 2005-08. The new plan outlines the Commissioner's priorities for the next three years and contains 38 new operational and management projects, addressing four key areas, namely, operational capability, Mainland interface, human resource management and force values.

The Force commissioned the Hong Kong University Public Opinion Programme to conduct a further staff opinion survey in December 2004. Around 4 000 disciplined, civilian, and auxiliary staff were surveyed. The findings of the survey released in February 2005 revealed that all key areas had improved when compared with the 2001 survey results. Ninety-two per cent of the respondents agreed with the Force's aspirations and 81 per cent thought that the overall performance of the Force was good. The opinion programme also conducted a customer satisfaction survey for the Force in August and September and the results reflected a very high customer satisfaction level with the police service. Seventy-eight per cent of those surveyed were satisfied with the overall experience of dealing with the Police. In addition, it conducted a mini public opinion survey on the police service in September 2005. Eighty-five per cent of the respondents had confidence in the Force, an improvement from 73 per cent in the 2001 survey. Ninety-one per cent considered it was safe in Hong Kong at daytime whilst 72 per cent said it was safe at nighttime.

The Living-the-Values Wave V Workshops with the theme of 'Building a Caring Workforce' started in March. They were well received by junior police officers and inspectorate officers. The design, development and preparation of the workshops earned the ISO 9001:2000 accreditation from the Hong Kong Quality Assurance Agency. The training video also won the 16th Annual International Galaxy Bronze Award under the category of internal training. These workshops will be completed by May 2006.

Inspections remained an important component of the work of Service Quality Wing in 2005. The two Inspection Bureaux continued to assist force management in identifying and realising opportunities for improved service quality and performance, including better resource management. In the course of the present cycle of inspections, the Bureaux identified a number of areas for improvement, initiated a process of reduction in bureaucracy and spearheaded a campaign to spread identified 'good practices' force-wide.

The Complaints and Internal Investigations Branch investigates public complaints against members of the Police Force. The investigations are monitored by the Independent Police Complaints Council (IPCC), an independent body whose members are appointed by the Chief Executive.

In 2005, the Complaints Against Police Office received 2 719 complaints, a decrease of 496 cases, or 15.4 per cent, compared to 2004. Decreases were noted in all types of complaints, an indication of the success of the office's complaint prevention efforts. Complaint prevention awareness through education and other activities organised by the Complaints Prevention Committee will continue to be a priority.

During the year, the IPCC endorsed the investigation results of 2 828 complaint cases, which involved 4 695 allegations. The substantiation rate of allegations investigated was 10.1 per cent. Complaints of a minor or trivial nature were dealt with by informal resolution, a method adopted in 19.2 per cent of the complaints. Nineteen police officers were subjected to disciplinary action as a result of public complaints received.

A civilian establishment of more than 5 000 in 56 different grades is deployed throughout the Police Force, representing about 15 per cent of its total manpower. Civilian staff members play a vital role by performing a wide variety of functional duties to support police operations.

During the year, the Training Wing consolidated existing resources and reorganised its command structure in preparation for the establishment of the Hong Kong Police College in January 2006. The new police college aspires to become a centre of excellence in police training and development.

In addition, through the Training Wing, the Force collaborated with local universities to develop psychological competency training for officers with the integrating professional psychological knowledge and practical policing experience, which provides officers with enhanced interpersonal skills in coping with their daily duties. It also enables officers to manage stress arising from police work. This new training material will be incorporated into various training courses on an incremental basis.

In March, in partnership with Interpol, the Force co-hosted the 15th Interpol Symposium for Heads of Police Training, the first time such an event was held outside Lyon, France.

The symposium's aim was two-fold: sharing knowledge and expertise and strengthening international training cooperation.

A total of 150 delegates from 47 jurisdictions attended the symposium, which was a forum for exchanging the latest training information, knowledge, and technologies among police training leaders from around the world. It was also an excellent opportunity for the Force to network, strengthen or establish new ties with overseas police training establishments.

The Force continued to strive towards enhancing its collaboration with the Mainland and overseas law enforcement agencies through their police training institutes. In September, the Training Wing signed a Memorandum of Agreement on 'Faculty Exchange and Training Partnership' with the Australian Institute of Police Management.

It also launched a Mobile Training Scheme, an initiative for training staff to work alongside various Mainland law enforcement agencies to organise firearms tactics training programmes for their officers.

After the recruitment freeze ended in 2004, there was an upsurge in applications for inspectorate and constable posts. There were 5 770 inspector applications and 9 224 constable applications in 2005, compared to 3 251 and 5 961 in 2004. Thirty-nine inspectors and 573 constables were appointed during the year. The proactive recruitment measures, including the Police Mentorship Programme and Auxiliary Undergraduate Scheme, continued to be well received by undergraduates.

The establishment of the Hong Kong Auxiliary Police Force (HKAPF) stands at about 4 500. In an internal security situation, the auxiliary force will guard strategic and sensitive installations and to man command centres. It also assists in natural disasters and civil emergencies. On a day-to-day basis, the force supports its regular counterparts at large-scale crowd management events and pre-planned operations.