PUBLIC ORDER
to the general public, and various facets of police work. The programmes score a consistently high audience rating.
The Radio Traffic Studio set up in the Police Public Relations Branch (PPRB) came into operation in May, delivering radio traffic bulletins to the public through RTHK during morning rush hours. The service has been extended to cover the evening peak hours in July. People are thus informed of the latest traffic conditions and other special traffic arrangements at peak times.
Visits to the Force are also encouraged. During the year, the PPRB handled a total of 73 local and overseas visits involving 969 visitors to the Force. The Police Museum, police stations and training establishments remained favourite spots for the visitors.
Information on crime, police action and activities are disseminated to all news organisations in the territory 24 hours a day through the PPRB. Staff seconded from the Information Services Department deal with press enquiries and assist media coverage at major scenes of crimes and incidents. During the year, they organised 222 press conferences and briefings, attended 135 incidents, and issued 3 449 press releases. The PPRB also produces a fortnightly newspaper, Off Beat; monitors media coverage of police and criminal activities; and promotes various campaigns.
Planning and Development
The target completion date of the new airport Police station at Chek Lap Kok is March 1997. The new Tung Chung Police Station will also be completed around mid- 1997 to serve some 150 000 residents of the new town.
Work on upgrading accommodation at Police Headquarters continued. The 32- storey Arsenal House, West Wing, was completed in October. Plans are being drawn up for a total refurbishment of the 20-storey May House.
Planning has been completed for a new in-service training complex at Aberdeen, which will house the Detective Training School and other in-service training facilities. The new Marine Police Regional Headquarters at Sai Wan Ho officially opened in November. A new Police post opened at Kat O (Crooked Island) at the end of the year, replacing the rented village house which had been used for more than 30 years. The new three-storey building is the highest on the island.
During the year, work began to link thermal imagers mounted at strategic locations along the Hong Kong-China land border to Police operations rooms by means of fibre-optic cables. This will enable movement along the border at night to be monitored from these operations rooms, thereby improving the effectiveness of the Field Patrol Detachment in detecting and preventing illegal immigration.
The year also saw the completion of a $55-million project to enhance the 35- kilometre border fence, which now presents a formidable obstacle to would-be illegal immigrants.
The need to upgrade Police facilities in the New Territories to match the pace of development over recent years has been recognised. Planning began during the year for a new district headquarters and divisional Police station at Tin Shui Wai, while major refurbishment works are being carried out at nine Police stations in the New Territories. A new regional headquarters for the New Territories South Region is also planned.
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