2016 Policy Address Merging of juvenile detention center and Macau Prison raises questions

The Secretary for Security, Wong Sio Chak

The second day of debate regarding the policy address for the Security sector continued yesterday at the Legislative Assembly (AL) on the topic of the merger of the institute for the protection of minors (IM) and the Macau Prison (EPM), with several lawmakers voicing concerns and questions to the Secretary for Security, Wong Sio Chak, Currently the EPM works under Wong’s supervision while IM’s juvenile detention center is part of the Secretary for Administration and Justice portfolio.
Although the topic had already been raised on the first day of the debate and answered by Mr Wong, many legislators thought it was an important matter needing further clarification. Among those was Leonel Alves, who not only expressed concerns, but also reaffirmed hopes that “in practical terms the borders of these two services will be kept.”
Mr Alves pointed out that this is a serious matter for all society thus raising so many questions from lawmakers. He suggested not only that the institutions should remain separate in every possible way but also that the AL should find a way to guarantee that they will remain independent and separate for the future. “Today we have the guarantee that these two institutions will maintain their difference. I think that is not enough and we should introduce mechanisms that guarantee in the future these institutions will be kept with a wider border between them.”
The lawmaker further added that he hopes these two neighboring facilities could also be kept apart, creating a bigger physical separation. “I hope that what nowadays are neighbors could have also a physical separation in order to avoid risks of promiscuity,” he concluded, addressing the fact that currently the juvenile detention center and the prison work next to one another.
Another lawmaker, Vong Hin Fai, also referring to the same topic, mentioned that he understood the explanations of the secretary and acknowledged that IM will continue to work autonomously even after its integration. But he expressed his hopes that IM-related matters would be “treated with proper discretion so [as to] avoid a future stigmatization of the youngsters.”
On the first day of the debate Ng Kuok Cheong already expressed concerns that the merger would only contribute to “aggravate the stigmatization of the minors in the institution”, and Au Kam Sam even suggested that IM “should be under the auspices of the Social Welfare Bureau (IAS) instead.”

Hooded detainee lineups to continue

Leonel Alves again raised the issue of the display of hooded detainees at police press conferences. In his opinion the practice puts “human dignity” in cause and “inevitably, produces negative effects on the person.”
The lawmaker, who is also chairman of the Discipline Inspection Commission of the Macau Security Forces, claims that the practice does not favor human rights.
On the other hand, the Secretary for Security, Wong Sio Chak, justified that it has an important “deterrent effect” contributing to safety and public order.
Mr Alves also referred to the efforts of the police forces to relate to the community and especially to the media, stating that the quality of the press conferences has clearly improved but stressing that in some particular cases, like the ones of a sexual nature, the spokesperson should refrain from entering into too much detail and unnecessary description that is shocking to society.

proposal to move prison to the mainland

An unusual proposal regarding the management of prison facilities came from Kou Hoi In. The lawmaker suggested the government “rent one of the deserted outlying islands” off the coast of Macau (in mainland Chinese territory) to be used exclusively for that purpose.