ENG-2010 — Page 374

316 Public Order

the year, it established the criminal history of 29 355 individuals, linking 1 619 people to 1 403 criminal cases.

During the year, the bureau implemented new protocols for handling evidence from digital closed circuit television (CCTV) footage Police Force-wide. This initiative was introduced to keep the Police equipped with the latest crime investigation technology.

The Forensic Firearms Examination Bureau is responsible for providing quality. forensic services in relation to firearms evidence in Hong Kong. In February, the bureau was granted the renewal of accreditation by the American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors/Laboratory Accreditation Board for another five years. The accreditation is a professional recognition of service quality and integrity.

Liaison

The Liaison Bureau serves as a conduit for communication between the Police Force, and the Mainland Public Security Bureau, overseas law enforcement agencies and their liaison officers stationed in Hong Kong.

Part of the core business of the bureau is to assist the Department of Justice in handling overseas requests for mutual legal assistance in criminal matters and the surrender of fugitive offenders. By the end of the year, the Government had signed bilateral agreements with 27 jurisdictions on mutual legal assistance in criminal matters and 18 jurisdictions on surrender of fugitive offenders.

In 2010, Hong Kong Police Force hosted the 18th Bilateral Meeting with the Ministry of Public Security of China, discussing major security issues at strategic level. The Police Force also co-operated closely with the Guangdong Public Security Department and Macao Police in combating cross-boundary crimes at operational level. The ties with these counterparts were further strengthened at the 16th Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Tripartite Criminal Investigation Department Heads Meeting in July.

The Police Force continued to send officers on secondment to the INTERPOL General Secretariat in Lyon, France, and its Regional Liaison Office in Bangkok, Thailand. Attachment programmes with various overseas law enforcement agencies were also established.

The Police Force also continued to enhance co-operation with INTERPOL in multiple areas. In September, the Police Force co-hosted with INTERPOL the first INTERPOL Information Security Conference in Hong Kong with the attendance of close to 300 delegates from the industry and law enforcement agencies worldwide. The Police Force was also invited by INTERPOL to provide training to member countries and reciprocal training opportunities in INTERPOL were identified for officers from the Police Force.

Force Search Unit

As part of an ongoing effort to improve and professionalise its services, the Force Search Unit was the first government department accredited by the Hong