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by the UK, 20 (as against 18 in 1971) have been declared
fully applied to Hong Kong and 10 (9 in 1971) have been declared
applied with some modification. This compares with 31 Conventions ratified by Japan, 21 by Singapore, 18 by the Philippines, 11 by Malaysia and 8 by Indonesia.
25. A decision has been reserved in respect of application to Hong Kong of 34 other Conventions (32 in 1971). Hong
Kong thus seek to ensure that any changes in law and practice
are consistent with the requirements of these Conventions;
and consideration is currently being given to removing
reservations on three of them.
26. The Secretary of State has recently asked that the
periodic reviews of progress in this regard carried out by
the Foreign and Commonwealth Office should be submitted to
a Minister so that we can keep an even closer watch on this
matter. This will be implemented next time round.
CRIME
27. Over the last year the Hong Kong Government has taken special measures aimed at containing and reducing the crime
rate.
28. A new Commissioner and Deputy Commissioner of Police
were appointed in 1974; and a major reorganisation of the
Police Force, particularly of the Criminal Investigation
Department, took place. Recruitment was stepped up with the aim of improving both the quality and the strength of the
force. Legislation has imposed tougher penalties on those
convicted of certain serious crimes.
CORRUPTION
29. The Independent Commission Against Corruption has made a successful start in its first year of operation, and has
received a fair measure of public support after a somewhat cynical reception at first. The Commission became operational in February 1974. As at 5 May 1975 it had received a total of 8,646 reports, of which 4,545 were concerned with corruption;
/it