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MONDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 1977
+THIS OF COURSE APPLIED TO THE MEMBERS OF ALL PUBLIC SERVICES, AND THE PUBLIC, AND NOT JUST TO THE POLICE FORCE,
+OUR OBJECT HAS ALWAYS BEEN TO CLEANSE THE PUBLIC SERVICE AND TO CONTINUE PROSECUTIONS FOR PAST OFFENCES UNTIL ACCEPTABLE STANDARDS HAD BEEN ACHIEVED.
+WE HAD NEVER ENVISAGED PROSECUTING EVERYBODY WHO HAD EVER COMMITTED ANY OFFENCE.
+ IN VIEW OF THE GREAT IMPROVEMENT IN THE STANDARDS OF HONESTY ACHIEVED, PARTICULARLY OVER THE LAST TWO YEARS, I HAD EXPECTED BEFORE LONG TO TAKE A STEP OF THE SORT ANNOUNCED LAST SATURDAY.
+THIS WOULD MAKE IT POSSIBLE TO CONCENTRATE ON MAINTAINING STANDARDS FOR THE FUTURE, RATHER THAN TO CONTINUE TO IMPRESS THE NEED FOR HONESTY BY PROSECUTING PEOPLE FOR OFFENCES COMMITTED IN THE PAST, AND THUS TURN OVER A NEW LEAF IN THE HISTORY OF THE PUBLIC SERVICE.
+HOWEVER IN THE CIRCUMSTANCES THAT HAD ARISEN I JUDGED THAT THIS RELIEF SHOULD BE GRANTED IMMEDIATELY, APART FROM THOSE EXCEPTIONS.
+ IT HAS REMOVED ALL CAUSE FOR FEAR FROM ALL WHO KEEP STRAIGHT IN THE FUTURE.
+ THE EXCEPTIONS WERE DELIBERATELY INTENDED TO BE VERY SMALL. ONE WAS 'PERSONS WHO HAD ALREADY BEEN INTERVIEWED'. THIS DOES NOT MEAN ANYBODY TO WHOM AN ICAC OFFICER HAS SPOKEN AT ANY TIME. IT MEANS ONLY PERSONS WHO HAVE BEEN INTERVIEWED BY THE ICAC OFFICER, WHETHER OR NOT FOLLOWING ARREST, AND TO WHOM DURING THAT INTERVIEW ALLEGATIONS HAD BEEN MADE THAT THEY HAD COMMITTED AN OFFENCE. THE NUMBER OF SUCH PEOPLE IS SMALL, PROBABLY NOT MORE THAN 200 WITHIN A FORCE OF 20,000.
+ANOTHER EXCEPTION WAS AN OFFENCE COMMITTED BEFORE THIS YEAR, WHICH CAME TO LIGHT AND WAS SO HEINOUS THAT IT WOULD BE UNTHINKABLE NOT TO ACT.
+TO ENSURE THAT IN NO CIRCUMSTANCES WOULD THIS EXCEPTION BE USED TO UNDERMINE MY GENERAL INTENTION, I STATED THAT IF THERE WAS SUCH A CASE IT WOULD HAVE TO BE REFERRED TO ME. THIS MADE CLEAR THAT I EXPECTED THE NUMBER OF CASES TO BE NEGLIGIBLE IN FACT NONE IS KNOWN AT THE MOMENT.
+OTHER EXCEPTIONS RELATED TO THE OBVIOUS CASES OF PERSONS FOR WHOM WARRANTS HAD BEEN ISSUED OR PERSONS NOW OUTSIDE HONG KONG.
+ALTHOUGH THERE WAS NOTHING IN THE STATEMENT THAT WOULD INHIBIT ICAC FROM ENSURING THAT THE IMPROVEMENT ACHIEVED WOULD BE MAINTAINED, OR THAT SUGGESTED THAT OUR DETERMINATION TO MAINTAIN A CLEAN PUBLIC SERVICE WAS ABANDONED OR DIMINISHED,
I THINK ITS TIMING AND CONTENT CAME AS A SHOCK TO THE PUBLIC. ALTHOUGH THE REASONS FOR IT HAVE BEEN SYMPATHETICALLY UNDERSTOOD, MANY WERE WORRIED THAT IT HAD BEEN MADE AT ALL, OR THAT IT WENT TOO FAR. BUT CERTAINLY NO ONE HAS SUGGESTED THAT IT SHOULD HAVE GONE FURTHER - QUITE THE CONTRARY.
/+MY STATEMENT