A recent poll found that about 70 percent of respondents confirmed that violence has subsided in Hong Kong since the National Security Law came into force on June 30.
The organizer, the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong, the city’s largest political party, published the results on Monday after inter viewing 1,045 residents on the phone from Nov 27 to Dec 8 to collect their opinions on public order over the past year.
About 72 percent of interviewees said that it is necessary to strengthen education of the National Security Law, as well as the public’s understanding of national security.
As of Dec 7, the police had arrested 40 people on suspicion of breaching the law, which was introduced in response to last year’s violent protests. Several local separatist groups disbanded around the time of the law’s promulgation.
But nearly 64 percent of those interviewed still worry about suffering from violence when publicly expressing views opposing the protesters, which was a common sight during last year’s social unrest.
About 72 percent of interviewees said that it is necessary to strength en education of the National Security Law, as well as the public’s understanding of national security
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The DAB said that such fears may be linked to controversial sentences in some protest-related cases. For example, a magistrate sentenced a 15-year-old who had thrown gasoline bombs on the streets in January to 18 months’ probation. In another case, a couple were found not guilty of provoking an attack on a man in November 2019, in which the victim was set on fire after he expressed political views different from those of his attackers.
To alleviate the public’s concern, the party urged judicial authorities to take a leaf from the systems in the United Kingdom and Ireland, and set up independent commit tees to handle complaints about judicial officers.
To 65 percent of interviewees, this year’s crime situation is “serious”.
From January to August, the city recorded 42,526 criminal cases, a 24.7 percent increase from the same period last year, the Security Bureau said in October. The bureau explained that the increase was mainly caused by the strain on manpower.
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Since the social unrest, triggered by a since-withdrawn extradition law amendment bill, erupted in June last year, about 6,000 anti-riot police officers formed a designated force to handle protestrelated inci dents. About 4,000 officers started to return to their original posts in July.
To improve the situation, the party suggested that the police force better utilize its auxiliary officers and the Special Constables team, which was formed in November 2019 with officials from a range of disciplined services to curb the unrest.
With ample manpower, the two units can shoulder a greater daily workload to release more officers to crack down on crime, the DAB said.
