The Nature and Impact of Asian Organized Crime -
The Hong Kong Problem
Presentation by Mr Tony
Kwok Man wai,
Assistant Director of Operations,
Independent Commission Against Corruption,
Hong Kong
The Nature and Impact of
Asian Organized Crime
The Hong Kong Problem
Corruption
Very few of the organized crime groups can exist without some form of corruption, which can range from a relatively low level with a junior law enforcement officer being put on payroll for confidential information and advance warning of enforcement action, to the very serious form of bribery involving politicians and judges to pervert the judicial process. Corruption may be a very emotive word but if we want to tackle the organized crime problem effectively, we must also take a serious view on its associated corruption.
In Hong Kong, the investigation of corruption is the responsibility of the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC). The ICAC was formed in 1974 to combat the then very serious problem of corruption in Hong Kong. It is an independent organization answerable only to the Governor of Hong Kong. The ICAC has wide statutory power of investigation and detection to deal with all alleged corruption cases in Government departments, public institutions, as well as in the private sector. Apart from the power to investigate offences of corruption, the ICAC has authority to investigate any other offence where they suspect that it is connected with, or facilitated by, corruption. This provision is most essential as it has enabled the ICAC to investigate the organized crime activities in order to be able to unearth the underlined corruption.
Before going any further, it should be emphasized that whilst there was a problem in 1974 in syndicated and organized corruption with the law enforcement agencies in Hong Kong, that no longer is the case for many years. The Royal Hong Kong Police Force is now regarded as a very clean and one of the most efficient police forces in the region. There exists today between law enforcement agencies in Hong Kong a common trust which allows for the exchange of information and, in many instances, joint operations.
However, we would be deluding ourselves if we assume that corruption is no longer a problem in Hong Kong. Individual and fragmented corruption still exists and some of them are closely associated with organized crime.
For many years, ICAC has been investigating corruption associated with organized crime. The followings are some of the areas they have looked into:
a. law enforcement officers offering protection to drug, vice and gambling syndicates;
b.the bribing of diplomats and customs officers to assist in large scale trafficking
of drugs and other smuggling activities;
c.the bribing of consular staff and immigration officers in the smuggling of
illegal immigrants;
d. the bribing of employees of banks in the laundering of illegal proceeds or
in granting loans to finance criminal activities;
Since there is very often an international dimension to these investigations, ICAC have established a wide network of contacts with other law enforcement agencies in various parts of the world. For some years, liaison between ICAC and overseas law enforcement agencies and the resulting exchange of intelligence and mutual assistance have led to many successful joint operations in Hong Kong, the United States and Australia. The law enforcement agencies involved in these joint operations include the FBI, the DEA, the US Customs, the US Immigration and Naturalization Service (USINS) and the National Crime Authority of Australia.
There is clearly a need for international co-operation if we want to succeed in tackling the Asian organized crime problem. The Royal Hong Kong Police Force and the ICAC are fully prepared to such commitment.