Western Division
This command covers about 52 per cent of the island with some 380,000 people living within the division's boun ies. They are accommodated under diverse condi- tions ging from luxury dwellings in areas such as Shek O, through low-cost housing on estates like Wah Fu, Shek Pai Wan and Wong Chuk Hang, to the meanest junks in Aberdeen. In addition to these residents, tens of thousands of swimmers, hikers and tourists visit the area during weekends to enjoy the beaches, and to visit the scenic areas and Ocean Park.
Many construction projects such as the Ap Lei Chau bridge, the Aberdeen tunnel, various road-widening schemes and the building of hawker bazaars in Smithfield and Hill roads have done much to change the face of the division. An inevitable consequence of all this work was even greater traffic congestion.
Drugs remained a major problem: The sharply in- creasing prices of drugs at street level forced many addicts to turn to the more economically viable substitute of methadone and the two methadone centres in Aberdeen and Western cater for nearly 3,500 addicts. The con- centrations of addicts at the two centres attract the drug traffickers and creates the need for increased police activity.
When the new Gambling Ordinance became law in 1977, increased police activity was targeted against gambling offences, and as a result, there was a marked reduction in syndicated gambling activities in Western.
During the year 2,674 crimes were reported and 1,451 of those were detected giving a detection rate of 54.3
per cent. The comparable figures for 1976 were 3,091 reported crimes with 1,854 detected, or 59.7 per cent. The crime statistics showed a gradual decrease particularly in the more serious categories. One trend which became apparent, and is giving rise for concern, is the increasing crime rate in the Aberdeen area as this town rapidly becomes more ur- banised.
There are four Neighbourhood Policing Units in the division, all in the Southern Area. In response to requests from the various Kaifongs and Mutual Aid Committees, a further NPU is being planned for Kennedy Town.
Throughout the year, liaison with Kaifongs and MACs was actively pursued and the Junior Police Call scheme was active in community projects and sporting activities.
Wan Chai Division
Over the past few years there has been a slight decrease in population in Wan Chai. This is partly due to the move of tenants of pre-war buildings to low-cost housing estates. Approximately half the present population of Wan Chai is under 25 years of age.
In the near future, development of commercial and residential sites on the Wan Chai reclamation is planned. The Wan Chai stadium, currently under construction, is expected to open towards the end of 1978. The Queen Elizabeth II Indoor Sports Centre at Morrison Hill Road is also scheduled for completion by the end of next year. With seating capacities of 3,500 and 3,900 respectively, further problems associated with large crowds can be expected in the division which is already responsible for policing the meetings held at the race course in Happy Valley and functions at the Government Stadium.
It was generally a busy, but successful, year with incidence of reported crime at 4,637 or 2,200 per 100,000 population, compared with 4,516 or 2,143 for 1976. The overall detection rate increased from 52.7 per cent in 1976 to 61.3 per cent.
The campaign against vice was aggressively pursued with considerable success; vice raids were conducted against 380 'sex for sale' establishments, 160 against premises used for illegal gambling and 260 in connection with dangerous drug offences. Altogether 705 people were sentenced to imprisonment, and fines amounting to $3,495,000 were imposed in respect of vice offences. Police operations in Wan Chai resulted in the closure of 16 apart- ment houses and five dubious ballrooms.
Two major events in connection with the Queen's Silver Jubilee took place in Wan Chai. On Her Majesty's birthday, April 21, the Queen's Silver Jubilee procession and float parade was held along the main thoroughfares. The parade lasted for approximately three hours and attracted a large number of spectators. For six consecutive nights in Novem- ber, the Jubilee Pageant was held at the Government Stadium, and was attended by nearly 150,000 people.
The racing at the race course in Happy Valley attracted a record number of punters. The football season at the Government Stadium gave rise to occasional outbreaks of violence by some of the spectators, and while the actual incidents which occurred were not particularly serious, and were easily contained by the police, they served as an indication of the potential for violence in such situations, and led to a review of police coverage at such events.
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She's petit and the machine is powerful, but this young lady has mastered the problems.
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