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However one must face the fact that the rise in urban crime is one of
the most intractable problems of the age in which we live, and in Hong Kong it is made more difficult by the evil influence of triads and gangs. It would be very wrong to conclude more from what I have said than that we are working along the right lines and beginning to make progress. The dominant fact still is that the level of crime is far too high. So what next? Firstly, we are reviewing the establishment of the Police in the light of its recent experience and expanding new commitments. If this concludes the Force needs more men I am sure they must be found. Secondly, we must press on with improving the quality of the Force, and it is heartening news
that 90% of the applicants now have some secondary education. The Police Cadet School has proved itself, and its size will be doubled early next year to 600. I hope that construction of a permanent school for about 1,000 will be completed by 1980 at the latest, as I am convinced that in this cadre of pre-trained and educated entrants lies an important factor in the further improvement in the calibre of the Force. Thirdly,
we must continue to enlist and encourage the support of the public. I am sure that
one effective way of doing this is to expand the Mutual Aid Committees; but their quality must be maintained and the numbers must not out-run expansion of the Home Affairs Department to support them. By the end of this financial year there
will be about 2,200 committees, and the rate of increase we have in mind is about
600 a year in the urban areas plus 120 a year in the New Territories.
Overall the picture is of some hard-won and encouraging progress, but
not yet of victory.
COMMUNITY BUILDING
I have spoken of some of the things we are doing to protect our society against its bad elements. But our aim must be to build a society which does not produce such elements, a society in which there is mutual care and responsibility. Our social programmes are of course relevant because people will not care for a society
which does not care for them.
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