PUBLIC ORDER
137
The department established the commission's ninth local office in Yau Ma Tei in March. These offices, all situated in densely populated areas are open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Monday to Saturday. They serve as centres for receiving corruption complaints and bases from which liaison officers can move out into the community to establish and maintain contact with the public.
During the year, liaison staff kept in touch with different sectors of the community through 9,901 liaison meetings. In mid-1980, the department devoted special efforts to explaining to people in the commercial and industrial sectors some amendments made in the ordinance relating to corruption in the private sector. Special target groups - including students and people engaged in occupations which are likely to be confronted with corrup- tion practices - continued to receive the department's attention.
Work with education institutes and the teaching profession was also stepped-up in 1980. A major project, entitled Know Your Government, was organised for secondary school students in Hong Kong. A seminar on the theme was also conducted for secondary school teachers.
A small unit in the commission continued to monitor public response to, and perception of, the commission's work. Its findings were mainly used as a basis for planning public education and information programmes.
Government Laboratory
The Forensic Division of the Government Laboratory provides a forensic science service to law enforcement authorities, including the Royal Hong Kong Police Force, the Customs and Excise Service and the Independent Commission Against Corruption.
The division is heavily engaged in the scientific investigation of crime and has a number of specialist units. The largest unit in the division is concerned with general forensic science where the laboratory examination of exhibits from many crime scenes is coupled with visits by scientists to the scenes. This unit also contains a forensic blood-grouping laboratory (which commenced operation in 1978 and has had considerable success), a questioned document laboratory, and an arson investigation group.
Other units of the division are involved in the examination of narcotics, scheduled poisons, and organs and body fluids in cases where the cause of death is unknown.
A scanning electron microscope with an energy dispersive X-ray attachment, which was acquired during the year, will have numerous applications in the scientific fight against crime.
Prisons Department
In February, 1980, the prison service hosted the first Asian and Pacific Conference of Correctional Administrators. Organised by the Prisons Department in conjunction with the Australian Institute of Criminology, the conference was attended by administrators of prisons and other correctional institutions from Australia, Canada, Indonesia, Japan, Macau, Malaysia, Papua-New Guinea, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Tonga, Western Samoa and Hong Kong. Common problems encountered by correctional admin- istrators in the region were considered and discussed.
With the opening of a centre at Tai Tam Gap for young female offenders in May, 1980, the Prisons Department became responsible for administering two centres for women. The opening of a separate institution for young offenders permitted the implementation of a new rehabilitation programme.