****************************************************
Following is a question by the Hon Starry Lee Wai-king and a written reply by the Secretary for Transport and Housing, Ms Eva Cheng, in the Legislative Council today (November 25):
Question:
Recently, incidents of objects being thrown from a height have occurred one after another in Hong Kong, endangering the safety of pedestrians. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) of the respective numbers of reports, received in each of the past three years by the authorities, on objects being thrown from a height in the 18 District Council districts in Hong Kong; what the objects being thrown were; the respective numbers of persons who were injured, killed, arrested and convicted as a result; the penalties imposed on the convicted persons and the heaviest penalty imposed;
(b) of the number of reports, received in each of the past three years by the authorities concerned, on objects being thrown from a height in public rental housing ("PRH") estates as well as the number of tenants who were thus allotted penalty points/convicted and the details, broken down by housing estate;
(c) whether the authorities will conduct another review of the effectiveness of the Falling Object Monitoring System in PRH estates; if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(d) whether the authorities will review and amend the existing Marking Scheme for Estate Management Enforcement in Public Housing Estates so as to enhance the deterrent effect on misdeeds of throwing objects from a height; if they will, of the details; and
(e) what measures were adopted in the past three years by the authorities to enhance deterrence against throwing objects from a height in areas outside public housing estates?
Reply:
President,
The Police and the Housing Department ("HD") are deeply concerned about recent incidents of objects being dropped from height in built-up areas and public rental housing ("PRH") estates. My reply, which incorporates the information provided by this bureau, Security Bureau and the Home Affairs Department, is as follows:
(a) Dropping objects from height is a serious offence. Under Section 4B of the Summary Offences Ordinance (Chapter 228), if anything is dropped from any building to the danger or injury of any person in or near a public place, the person who drops that thing commits an offence and is liable to a fine of $10,000 and imprisonment for six months. If the incident involves more serious offences, such as the throwing of corrosive fluid or manslaughter, the Police may initiate prosecution according to other ordinances.
Between 2007 and September 2009, the Police received 3 001 reports on objects being dropped from height. A breakdown of the cases by police district is at Annex 1. The cases resulted in 212, 241 and 208 persons being injured in 2007, 2008 and 2009 (from January to September) respectively. No one was killed in these cases. The Police have not kept statistics on the types of objects being dropped from height. In general, the objects include rubbish, leftovers, household articles, aluminium windows, etc.
Between 2007 and September 2009, 885 persons were arrested for dropping objects from height. Among them, 289 were convicted, with immediate imprisonment for two months as the heaviest penalty, and 580 were handled by binding over to keep the peace or cautioned under the Police Superintendent's Discretion Scheme. A breakdown of the figures is at Annex 2.
(b) Over the past three years, the HD received 335 reports of objects being dropped from height in PRH estates under its management. The number of tenants who were allotted penalty points under the Marking Scheme for Estate Management Enforcement in Public Housing Estates ("Marking Scheme") and/or convicted under the relevant legislation are 207 and 75 respectively. A breakdown is at Annex 3.
(c) To deter and prevent incidents of objects being dropped from height, the HD has since 1998 installed Falling Object Monitoring Systems, commonly called the "eyes in the sky", at various locations in PRH estates in the territory. The HD also reviews regularly the effectiveness of the monitoring systems in order to step up efforts in combating the irresponsible behaviour of dropping objects from height. For example, the HD acquired in 2004 ten sets of mobile Digital Falling Object Monitoring Systems so as to enhance monitoring, and has recently procured ten more sets of such monitoring systems. In complementing the work of the "eyes in the sky", a special team of former police officers employed by the HD on contract terms has been deployed since early 2004 to detect cases of dropping objects from height in PRH estates. The HD also maintains close contact with other law enforcement departments to crack down on such offences.
(d) Since the introduction of the Marking Scheme in 2003, the incidents of objects being dropped from height have significantly reduced. To enhance the deterrent effect on the unscrupulous and dangerous act of dropping objects from height in PRH estates, different levels of penalty based on the direct risk of the act to personal safety has been adopted under the Marking Scheme. Those who commit the misdeed of "throwing objects from height that jeopardise environmental hygiene" and "throwing objects from height that may cause danger or personal injury" will be allotted 7 and 15 penalty points respectively. If a tenant accrues 16 penalty points within two years, the HD will issue a Notice-to-Quit to terminate his tenancy. If the tenant contravenes legislation related to the dropping of objects from height at the same time, the HD will institute prosecution against him under the Public Cleansing and Prevention of Nuisances Regulation once the misdeed is substantiated. For cases that may cause serious danger or personal injury, the HD will refer them to the Police irrespective of whether any casualties have been caused.
Upon the implementation of the Marking Scheme, there were tenants served with Notices-to-Quit and had to surrender their flats to the HD after accruing 16 penalty points for throwing objects from height. The existing penalty has already had a deterrent effect on such misdeeds and there is no immediate need to revise the Marking Scheme.
From time to time, the HD advises and educates tenants on the importance of civic-mindedness and law-abiding behaviour through its notices, estate newsletters, Estate Management Advisory Committees, the Housing Channel and various publicity and educational activities. The HD also draws their attention to the grave consequences of throwing objects from height, which include termination of PRH tenancies and prosecution.
(e) On the law enforcement front, the Police will assign their criminal investigation teams to follow-up on cases of objects being dropped from height that cause greater hazards to the public. To collect information related to the case during the investigation, the Police will take the initiative to contact caretakers of buildings near the crime scenes and, depending on the circumstances of the case, conduct door-to-door visits to residents and shop operators in the buildings concerned as well as to view the video images captured by the CCTV systems installed nearby. Depending on the post-event situation, the Police would also step up patrols in the district concerned and remind the patrolling officers to watch out for any suspicious persons to safeguard public safety.
The Police also implement on-going publicity and public education campaigns, including joining hands with the District Councils, owners' corporations and property management agents to distribute leaflets educating the tenants against dropping objects from height. They also arrange for Police School Liaison Officers to alert students to the harmful and serious consequences of dropping objects from height, and call on the public and students not to commit such an offence.
Moreover, to prevent offenders from entering buildings to commit the crime, the District Offices ("DOs"), in collaboration with the District Councils and the District Fight Crime Committees, have been organising publicity and public education activities to remind residents and business operators in their respective districts to remain vigilant and step up building security. The DOs also actively cooperate with the District Councils and relevant organisations to conduct various building management courses and seminars to promote good and effective building management among owners. The DOs will continue their efforts in encouraging and assisting owners in their districts to adopt good and effective building management practices and to enhance building management (including building security). Apart from assisting owners to set up owners' corporations, the DOs encourage owners to form residents' organisations (such as owners' committees and mutual aid committees) or to engage management companies or personnel. The Police also encourage owners to install metal gates for their buildings so as to improve the security and promote effective management of the buildings.
Ends/Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Issued at HKT 11:55
NNNN
