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Following is a question by the Hon Lau Kong-wah and a written reply by the Secretary for Security, Mrs Regina Ip, in the Legislative Council today (March 7):
Question:
Regarding the problem of juvenile crimes, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) of the respective numbers of persons aged 21 or below who were arrested for alleged criminal offences and those who were sentenced to penal institutions in each of the past three years, together with a breakdown by age group (each covering three years) and the type of offences involved;
(b) based on the above figures, of the three crimes which registered the biggest increase over the past three years, and the reasons for such increase in these crimes;
(c) whether the Administration has devised ways of dissuasion targeted respectively at youngsters who are in different age groups and those who have committed different types of offences, so as to prevent them from committing or re-committing crimes, and
(d) whether it will study in detail the measures to combat and prevent juvenile crimes in this year; if so, of the details of the study?
Reply:
Madam President,
Having consulted the Police, the Social Welfare Department (SWD) and the Education Department (ED), my replies are provided below -
(a) The statistics on persons (aged 7 to 21) arrested by the Police for crime by type and age group from 1998 to 2000 are at Annex A.
The statistics on persons (aged 7 to 21) sentenced to institutions under the treatment programmes of the Correctional Services Department and the SWD by type of offences and age group from 1998 to June 2000 are at Annex B. Please note that the relevant statistics are available only up to June 2000.
(b) With reference to Annex A, the three crimes which registered the biggest increase in the number of persons aged 7 to 21 arrested over the past three years are as follows -
Offences 1998 1999 2000 -------- ---- ---- ---- Other Robberies 727 754 1090 (excluding with (+3.75) (+44.6%) genuine firearms and pistol-like object) Other 1962 2042 2364 Miscellaneous (+4.1%) (+15.8%) Theft Other Serious 114 91 270 Immigration (-20.2%) (+196.7%) Offences
The offences of "other robberies" and "other miscellaneous theft" are mostly opportunistic crimes. Youngsters and juveniles often commit these offences out of peer influence, greed for valuables and quick money and on impulse. Besides, the offence of "other robberies" committed by young and juvenile offenders are usually of bullying nature.
The increase in the number of young persons arrested for the offence of "other serious immigration offences" was mainly attributable to the increased use or possession of forged documents of identity or travel documents. The offenders were arrested when the Police conducted stop and search to suspicious people in the street, and operations at vice establishments and construction sites, etc. Most of them came from the Mainland and some other countries. This kind of offence does not have much significant bearing on the patterns of crime committed by local young persons and juveniles.
(c) The Police accord high priority to the prevention of juvenile crimes and rehabilitation of first time juvenile offenders through a multi-agency approach.
Different types of rehabilitation programmes are available for young offenders in preventing them from re-offending. These include -
* Correctional institutions (including probation homes, place of detention and reformatory school for those aged 7 to under 16 and probation hostel for those aged 15 to under 21) of the SWD employ social work approach in managing the institutions with a view to helping young offenders rectify their behaviour and social attitude and equipping them with necessary skills to cope with the daily life problems and helping them to reintegrate into the community;
* Convicted children/juveniles of age 7 or above might also be placed under probation for community-based treatment and rehabilitation. A probation officer provides supervision and personal guidance, exercises the professional skills and knowledge to meet the needs of probationers and their family members, and most important of all, to prevent them from re-offending;
* offenders aged 14 or above, put under Community Service Order, will perform unpaid work for not exceeding 240 hours within a period of 12 months. They will be arranged suitable work placement and guided for their rehabilitation in the community;
* the Police Superintendent's Discretion Scheme (PSDS) is available for cautioning young persons under the age of 18 who commit minor offences;
* the Police Juvenile Protection Section (JPS) will arrange for follow-up visits to young offenders cautioned under the PSDS if necessary. To prevent juveniles from relapsing into committing crimes, JPS will also refer the juveniles to appropriate departments and/or non-government organisations (NGOs) for assistance;
* the Community Support Service Scheme operated by the SWD and NGOs offers intensive social group work and counselling groups, programmes on job training, placement service, skill learning classes, adventure outdoor activities to young offenders who are put under probation orders, reformatory school orders or the PSDS.
All the above programmes aim at strengthening the problem solving skills of young people and inculcating in them a respect of the law. Efforts are also made to assist their parents to understand the needs of their children, enhance parent-child relationship and proper supervision and guidance to their children to keep them away from infringing the law again.
On the preventive front, the Junior Police Call has all along been a popular youth programme providing a wide range of healthy activities for young persons aged 9 to 25 with a view to enhancing their sense of civic responsibility in fighting crimes. There are a variety of youth projects and initiatives targeted at youths of different age groups being implemented in Police districts with concerted efforts from government departments, NGOs and parent-teacher associations. The Police also take the initiatives by mounting operations in selected areas, encouraging students coming forward to report crimes committed by juvenile delinquents and other bad elements.
The existing core youth welfare services, including integrated teams, children and youth centres, outreaching social work and school social work service, render targeted services to meet the multifarious needs of young people with a view to nurturing a healthy environment for them to grow up to be contributing and responsible members of the community. In 2001-02, the SWD will strengthen and implement a series of services to provide early identification and early intervention for potential youth-at-risk. The implementation of the Whole School Approach to Guidance advocated by the Education Department since 1992 also help create a caring and inviting environment where positive behaviour, values and attitude can be cultivated among students through systematic guidance programmes and award schemes.
(d) The Committee on Services for Youth at Risk under the SWD has set up a Task Group on Issue of Juvenile Gangs in February 1999 to study the juvenile gang dynamics with a view to coming up with measures to address the problem of juvenile gangs. The study was completed in July 2000. Recommendations include production of a Reference Kit for parents and implementation of the "Understanding the Adolescent Project" and "Enhancement of Careers Education in School Project" which aim at early identification and intervention of potential at-risk young people and school leavers. The study also recommends the organisation of training for youth workers and teachers to enhance their sensitivity and skills in handling juvenile gang problems with a view to preventing young people from committing crimes due to peer influence. In addition, the study recommends enhancing the function of Local Committees on Services for Young People in coordinating district efforts in tackling juvenile gang problems.
The Standing Committee on Young Offenders, established under the Fight Crime Committee, will continue to work closely with concerned parties to examine factors which impact on at-risk young people's involvement in crime and consider preventive and remedial measures that can be taken within and outside the current education, social and correctional programmes.
End/Wednesday, March 7, 2001
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