TUESDAY. MAY 30. 1989
ISLAND POLICE COMMANDER SPEAKS ON CROWD CONTROL
*
HAVE CONTROLLED OVER 90 RALLIES. SLOW DRIVES. PUBLIC
SINCE MAY 19. POLICE TERRITORY-WIDE PROTEST ACTIVITIES INCLUDING MASS MEETINGS AND PROCESSIONS.
PEOPLE TAKING
PART
IN
OF DESPITE THE HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS THESE EVENTS ASSOCIATED WITH STUDENT PROTESTS THERE HAVE BEEN. INCREDIBLY. NO REPORTED INCIDENTS. NO CROWD DISORDER, NO CRUSHING AND ONLY A COUPLE OF MINOR INJURIES AND A FEW CASES OF FAINTING. THE POLICE REGIONAL COMMANDER FOR BONG KONG ISLAND. MR JOHN CLEMENCE. SAID TODAY TUESDAY 1.
HONG + IT IS A GREAT COMPLIMENT TO THE COMMUNITY OF
KONG THEY CAN BE RESPONSIBLE ENOUGH TO MAKE THEIR FEELINGS KNOWN IN DEPTH YET WITH SUCH DEFERENCE TO THE POLICE, HE ADDED.
THAT
SUCH
MR
PAYING TRIBUTE TO THE ORGANISERS OF THE VARIOUS EVENTS.
POLICE OF CLEMENCE SAID THAT FOR THE MOST PART THEY HAD NOTIFIED THE THEIR INTENTIONS. ALBEIT AT VERY SHORT NOTICE. AND HAD NEGOTIATED
REQUEST ROUTES WHICH HAD BEEN AMENDED AT THE
OF THE FORCE IN THE
INTERESTS OF PUBLIC SAFETY.
EXPLAINING THE POLICE TOLERANCE IN ALLOWING PROCESSIONS MEETINGS TO GO AHEAD, HE SAID THERE WAS A GENERAL MISUNDERSTANDING THE TERMS OF THE PUBLIC ORDER ORDINANCE PARTICULARLY AMONG COMMUNITY AT LARGE,
AND
OF
THE
THAT +THERE IS A GENERAL PERCEPTION
NOTHING CAN TAKE PLACE POLICE WITHOUT PRIOR NOTICE OF AT LEAST SEVEN DAYS BEING GIVEN TO THE IN EACH AND EVERY INSTANCE,
ORDINANCE +THIS IS NOT NECESSARILY THE CASE. THE PUBLIC ORDER
SPONTANEOUS PROHIBIT
AND DOES NOT SEEK TO
DEMONSTRATIONS.
IN THE EVENTS OF THE LAST TWO WEEKS OR SO IT WOULD HAVE BEEN LUDICROUS TO SUGGEST THAT ANYBODY HAD TO GIVE SEVEN DAYS NOTICE OF THEIR INTENTION THEY WISHED TO PROTEST AND SEEK MAXIMUM PUBLICITY FOR THE GRIEVANCES TO EXPRESS.
EMOTIONALLY CHARGED ATMOSPHERE
+HERE WE WERE DEALING WITH AN BUT NOT ONE THAT THREATENED THE PEACE OF HONG KONG.
LIKELY
+RATHER MORE IT WAS A QUESTION OF THE POTENTIAL DANGER TO BE CAUSED BY THE SHEER NUMBER OF PEOPLE ON THE STREETS AT ONE TIME.
THE UK A MATTER OF THIS REQUIRED POLICING BEARING IN MIND THAT IN ONLY WEEKS AGO OVER 90 PEOPLE WERE KILLED DUE TO CROWD CRUSHING.+
GET DUTIES
SPEED AT WHICH IT THE FIRST OCCASION ON THE SUNDAY LEAVING THE ORGANISERS
DEPLOYED AND
THE
COMPLIMENTING THE FORCE AS A WHOLE ON THE HAD BEEN ABLE TO REACT. MR CLEMENCE SAID THAT ON WHEN IT WAS SUSPECTED THAT SOMETHING BIG WOULD HAPPEN (MAY 21) PLANS HAD BEEN FINALISED AT MID-DAY AND THE POLICE LESS THAN TWO HOURS TO ROUTE FINALISED.
THROUGHOUT