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The Government announced today (July 31) that the Chief Executive, on the recommendation of the Chief Justice, has appointed two Panel Judges and the Commissioner on Interception of Communications and Surveillance under the Interception of Communications and Surveillance Ordinance (Chapter 589).
Under the Ordinance, there should be three to six Panel Judges to consider applications for authorisations of interception and Type 1 surveillance and for device retrieval warrants.
The Chief Executive has re-appointed Mr Justice Andrew Chung On-tak and Mr Justice Anthony To Kwai-fung as Panel Judges under the Ordinance, each for another term of three years commencing August 9, 2015, and August 1, 2015, respectively.
The Chief Executive, Mr C Y Leung, said, "Mr Justice Andrew Chung On-tak and Mr Justice Anthony To Kwai-fung have been serving as Panel Judges under the Ordinance since 2006 and 2012 respectively. I am grateful for their ongoing dedicated services and am confident that they, together with Mr Justice Mohan Tarachand Bharwaney who was appointed as a Panel Judge last year, will continue to make use of their expertise and experience to ensure the effective operation of the regulatory regime under the Ordinance."
The Chief Executive has also appointed Mr Azizul Rahman Suffiad, a former Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court, as the Commissioner for a term of three years with effect from August 17, 2015. Under the Ordinance, the Commissioner performs the role of an independent oversight authority to ensure the law enforcement agencies' compliance with the requirements of the Ordinance.
Mr Suffiad was called to the Hong Kong Bar in 1975 and was in private practice from 1975 to 1997. He sat as a Deputy Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court from 1997 to 1998 and served as a Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court from 1998 to 2014.
Commenting on the appointment, the Chief Executive said, "Mr Suffiad is a retired judge with a wealth of experience. He served as a Panel Judge under the Ordinance since the enactment of the Ordinance in 2006 until his retirement from the post in 2014. I am confident that he will be capable of taking up the important position as the Commissioner, and performing the role of an independent oversight authority under the Ordinance to ensure the law enforcement agencies' compliance and the effective operation of the regulatory regime."
Mr Darryl Gordon Saw, a former Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court, is the current Commissioner since 2012 and will retire after August 16, 2015. The Chief Executive said, "I am grateful for the dedicated services provided by Mr Saw, who has effectively overseen the regulatory regime of the law enforcement agencies to conduct interception and covert surveillance. I express my gratitude for the valuable contributions by Mr Saw and wish him a happy retirement."
The Ordinance provides a comprehensive statutory framework for regulating the carrying out of interception and covert surveillance by designated law enforcement agencies and aims to strike a balance between protecting the rights of the community to law and order and the privacy rights of the individual.
Ends/Friday, July 31, 2015
Issued at HKT 13:00
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