Prevention is the best way to tackle crime, a police officer said on Sept 24 as he briefed some 60 Filipinos, mostly domestic helpers, who signed up for the Hong Kong Police Force’s crime prevention program.
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| Chief Inspector Kevin Leung lectures OFWs on the crime situation in Hong Kong. |
Chief Inspector Kevin Leung gave the volunteers a bird’s-eye view of the crime situation in the city and familiarized them with the various types of crimes that they may encounter in Hong Kong everyday.
The first two topics in a four-seminar series also provided the volunteers with pointerson how to prevent crime and acquaint them with the police force and various aspects of its work.
Aided by tables, charts and photographs, Leung showed how Hong Kong fared vis-à-vis other major cities in the world last year.
On a measure of crime per 100,000 population, Hong Kong ranked No.2 with 911, behind Singapore which had 611, but better than Tokyo’s 1,192 and far below London’s 8,710 and Paris’ 11,844.
“So, that shows you that Hong Kong is one of the safest cities in the world,” Leung said.
He said theft was the most common crime last year with 25,628 cases recorded, down from 27,512 the previous year. Homicide rose to 28 from 22, rape crept up to 71 from 70, while other crimes like indecent assault slipped to 5,024 from 5,360.
He warned them against telephone deception, of which there were 7,260 reported cases last year, and offenses involving dangerous drugs, with 1,712 cases.
Leung said by learning about these crimes, the volunteers would know how to prevent them before they happen.
The chief inspector said the volunteers need to attend the four seminars that would be held every Sunday morning at the Central Police Station in Sheung Wan and pass a background check before they can be appointed as “fight crime ambassadors”.
“We want to be sure that you have no criminal records and no adverse records before you are appointed as fight crime ambassadors,” Leung said.
After being cleared, they will have to go through another series of Sunday seminars lasting about half an hour each, over 12 months.
The program will include roadshows in which the volunteers will go with officers to the community and distribute crime prevention literature as well as speak to their compatriots about crime issues.
The training will also include tours of other police stations and units as well as sport activities with members of the force.
Some 200 Filipino workers have signed up for the program, and Leung said the police force will continue to recruit more volunteers.
