CODE 18-77
HKK 380/2
OPA/10
3A!
Reference
Mr NA Ling, HK & GD
(K 242)
R+!
tome
FAR EASTERN ECONOMIC REVIEW - MARCH 1979
-
Then
us not take
further action ouchin. Pp51-2
J
1. The writer of the article is right in his criticism of the inadequacy of institutional housing for rank and file (Chinese) officers in the Police Force. This has been brought to my notice on inspection visits to Hong Kong and was identified as one of the causes of incipient discontent in the Force by Jim Crane and his team. However, the point has alre dy been taken and an ambitious housing programme is in train.
2. With the Edmund-Davies award to the Police in the United Kingdom, there is justifiable cause for the Police in Hong Kong to believe they have been left behind in the "salary stakes". At one time, Hong Kong Police salaries were such that they acted as an inducement for UK officers to join the Service - this is no longer so and recruitment of expatriate inspectors could well suffer as a result. I understand that the new Commissioner is preparing proposals to submit to Government drawing attention to this problem. There has been some criticism from the Police Staff Associations on the subject in recent editions of the Police journal "Off Beat". Mr Crane is aware of the situation and it will surely be brought to his notice on his forthcoming visit.
3. The criticism on the inadequacy of training facilities is well founded. No formal detective training was given to the Force until 1959 and it was not until 1970 that the Detective Training School became fully functional. Until recently, the Force Training School at Aberdeen was more like a Regimental Depot than a Police Training School. The para-military image of the Force, nurtured by successive Police Commissioners has only reluctantly been changed. As far as I am aware, it is the only Dependent Territory Police Force in which all on-duty personnel (including Traffic Control officers) go armed (vide illustration on p 51).
4.
Localisation has been a bone of contention for many years. At one time, I was told that it was unrealistic to promote Chinese officers to the higher echelons as "the Chinese do not like responsibility". Chinese officers on training courses in the UK generally do as well if not better than their British counterparts. There are also numbers of British officers in the Hong Kong Police who are intellectually inferior to their Chinese subordinates.
5. The criticism of interrogation through an interpreter is equally valid. In the immediate post-war years all expatriate officers had to undergo language training before being permitted to exercise their duties and responsibilities. Now, all expatriate inspectors attend a language laboratory at the PTS Aberdeen during their initial course, but in practice, for lack of proficiency, have to rely on interpreters when posted to Divisions. There are some
/senior