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being 9,908 cases. This increase was largely accounted for by a higher incidence of robbery, burglary and storebreaking. There were 522 reports of robbery and 20 cases of assault with intent to rob. There was also a serious increase in piracy of fishing and passenger craft. Illicit possession of firearms was common and the free use of arms by the criminal classes resulted in 73 encounters, two police officers being killed and eight wounded. During the latter half of the year a new form of criminal activity, typical of disturbed post-war conditions, made itself felt. The proprietors of a large number of pre- mises, including hotels, restaurants and theatres, received anonymous demands for money under the threat of bomb ex- plosions. Nearly 150 such letters were sent and twelve actual explosions took place; fortunately the only death which resulted was that of a gangster who blew himself up with a bomb he was carrying, and of the thirteen injuries caused the most serious was the loss of an arm sustained by another gangster whilst placing a bomb in position. The gang respon- sible operated both in Chinese and in British territory, which added to the difficulties of detection, but arrests were made and convictions secured. The strain on the Police Force was nevertheless considerable since at one period it was necessary to provide protection for 82 premises which had been threa- tened. The public was not seriously perturbed.
Material Shortages.
Material difficulties were by no means solved at the end of the year.
Of thirty-eight pre-war Police stations the ma- jority had suffered serious structural damage as a result of hostilities and looting, and only fourteen had been repaired and re-occupied; thirteen temporary stations had been established. Out of an estimated requirement of six sea-going launches it had been possible to commission only two; progress in rebuild- ing the Force was being made but much remained to be done before deficiencies in training, equipment, personnel, accom- modation and transport could be made up.
PRISONS.
The Prison Buildings.
Hong Kong formerly possessed three prisons, but from the re-occupation of the Colony until the middle of 1946 it was possible to bring into use only the main gaol, Stanley Prison. This prison is situated in rural surroundings on Stanley Penin- sula in the south-eastern area of Hong Kong Island. It was in the grounds of this prison and the adjacent area that Allied civilian internees were confined during the Japanese occupa- tion. Built in 1937, it is architecturally a fine prison and admirably suited for housing convicts, old offenders and hardened criminals. But the lack, during the early days of the re-occupation, of any facilities for segregation was
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serious disadvantage.
The former female prison, which was situated on the mainland in the outskirts of Kowloon, suffered very heavy damage as a result of the war and could not be repaired and brought into use during 1946. It was therefore necessary as a temporary measure to accommodate women prisoners in Stanley. They were segregated as far as possible and were housed at the end of the year in the old printing shop building round which a screening wall was built.
Victoria Remand Prison, which is situated in the urban area of Hong Kong, had suffered considerable damage during the war. Its situation is convenient for the Courts, and cell accommodation for 150 remand prisoners was repaired and brought into use during 1946. Young offenders on remand are also housed in this prison and are segregated as far as possible. The building is far from satisfactory, being the remains of the old Victoria Gaol, the Colony's first prison and a dungeon-like relic of Victorian prison design. The oldest part of this prison was destroyed by aerial bombardment during the war.
Temporary Reformatory.
In December, 1946, it was possible to open a temporary reformatory for boys up to 16 years of age. This is situated in concrete storage huts which were built before the war to store food reserves and which were converted to suit the pre- sent purpose.
This reformatory, which constitutes Hong Kong's first "open" institution for delinquents, is in the Stanley area and is administered from the main Stanley Prison, but is some distance from the Prison itself and segregation is now complete. There is much hard work for the boys to do in clearing and reclamation alone, and educational classes as well as technical instruction in rattan work, carpentry, cooking and photography have been started.
Need for Borstal Institution.
There is so far no Borstal institution in the Colony and lads of Borstal age are housed in Stanley Prison. They are kept as far as possible separate from hardened criminals but the arrangement is not satisfactory and plans for the setting up of a separate institution of the Borstal type are under consideration.
Prisoners.
The total number of persons committed to prisons during the year 1946 was 8,963 as compared with 16,146 in 1939. The daily average of persons serving sentences was 1,214, of whom 36 were female. Of these the great majority were Chinese offenders; for example, figures on 31st December, 1946, were as follows:-European 15, Indian 5, Chinese 1,415, Japanese war criminals 23, total 1,458. Prisoners in Stanley are employed in shoe-making, tinsmith's work, tailoring, car-