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Regarding the arrest of a person by the Police on May 8 for her participation in the demonstration and assembly on July 1, 2011, the Department of Justice (DoJ) issued the following statement today (May 10):
It has been the DoJ's general policy not to comment on individual cases. However, since the arrest has aroused wide public concern and that some of the reports are not factually correct, the DoJ considers that it is necessary to make some clarifications.
All prosecution decisions are made in accordance with "The Statement of Prosecution Policy and Practice". The DoJ has in place established mechanisms to ensure that prosecution decisions are made fairly and impartially, completely free from any political considerations.
Regarding the demonstration and assembly on July 1, 2011, the DoJ's legal advice was given to the Police pursuant to investigation information provided by the Police.
The DoJ's prosecution decision is absolutely not related to the "Occupy Central" issue as this subject had not yet surfaced when the prosecution decision was made. Furthermore, the prosecution decision or the legal proceedings thereafter will not be affected by the identity of arrested persons.
Ends/Friday, May 10, 2013
Issued at HKT 17:38
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