Independent Commission Against Corruption

 

Independent Commission Against Corruption (Hong Kong) .........In the early days there were running punch-ups between ICAC officers and angry policemen who stormed their offices in Central District; this situation ended only with the announcement of a partial amnesty for minor corruptions committed before 1977. But gradually, the ICAC made itself felt and several high profile police officers were tried and convicted. Others were forced to retire. As a result of its investigations, a mass purge took place in early 1978, where it was announced that 119 officers including one customs official were asked to leave under the provisions of Colonial Regulation 55 (see footnote 1 below) to fast track the decisions in the public interest; a further 24 officers were held on conspiracy charges, 36 officers and a customs official were given amnesties.^[3] The move received a mixed response from the public whilst being broadly supported by legislative councillors as being in the best interests of Hong Kong not to let the affair fester and further demoralise the police Force.^[4] Urban Council member Elsie Elliot criticised the government for being lenient to senior corrupt officials, punishing only "small flies."

Research on corruption - carried out by the Anti Corruption Resource Centre - shows that police corruption in Hong Kong was frequently associated with 'illegal markets' or 'victimless crimes' such as gambling, prostitution and drugs. Thus, the decision to legalise off-course betting in Hong Kong - a previously rich source of police bribes - may plausibly have contributed to the fall in police corruption. The investigative, preventive and educational activities of the ICAC no doubt also had some impact but was not solely or even largely responsible for reducing police corruption.^[5]