Independent Commission Against Corruption (Hong Kong) - Development

Development

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. 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. Urban Council member Elsie Elliot criticised the government for being lenient to senior corrupt officials, punishing only "small flies."

Hong Kong has been transformed from a graft-ridden city into one of the cleanest places in the world, as recognised by international institutions such as the World Bank, the Heritage Foundation and the Transparency International. Some countries have looked up to the ICAC as an effective model of combating graft holistically through detection, prevention and education.

In the 1970s, eight out of 10 graft complaints were against public officers. This trend has reversed over the years. Complaints against police officers reduced by 70% - from 1,443 in 1974 to 446 in 2007. Nowadays, only three out of 10 complaints relate to public servants. Private sector cases meanwhile have been on the rise in recent years. The ICAC has stepped up efforts to help enterprises minimise corruption risks through system controls and staff training.

In 2008, corruption reports received by the ICAC dropped six per cent to 3,377, of which 65 per cent were related to the private sector, 28 per cent concerned government departments, and the remaining seven per cent were against public bodies.

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.