Policy Address | Security Wong: security situation affected by ‘unstable factors’

Wong Sio Chak (center)

The Legislative Assembly (AL) started discussing the government’s 2015 policy objectives for the security area yesterday. The Secretary for Security, Wong Sio Chak, responded to lawmakers’ inquiries at the plenary meeting, explaining plans and difficulties to be improved in the policing of technologies, discussing how law enforcement could be improved to cope with the security risks brought by the region’s large visitor and migrant flows, as well as increasingly diversified and subtle criminal methods.
“Macau’s public security, its citizens’ safety, and the country’s security situation are now affected by more unstable factors, due to the increasingly complex social contradictions in a more pluralistic society. Police are facing more difficulties and challenges as security incidents within or beyond expectations are continually emerging,” said the secretary.
Wong stressed that the police’s specific law enforcement and deployment needs to be “more comprehensive, more specific, and more proactive,” whereas the decision-making on the system must see beyond this and be backed up by science.
Drawing on the numerous visitor entries into Macau every day and especially during public holidays, Wong acknowledged that it is hard to balance the demands of both border-crossing convenience and the city’s public security. “However, [we] must have balance, [we] must take action,” he pledged.
“This is a very profound and high-level issue. (…) Macau’s convenient border clearance is [implemented] under the hope that it will welcome more visitors, and security is a sensitive, critical and urgent problem all over the world. We have been training personnel to identify risks, and we’ve developed the border clearance equipment, adding in facial recognition procedures. We’re to implement this plan this year, so that we can identify those who are reported as dangerous or raise a criminal risk in the first place,” he said.
Lawmaker Kwan Tsui Hang pointed out that a large portion of the population is made up of migrant workers, highlighting –
as she has been doing for a long time at the AL – that some foreign visitors enter the city with a tourist visa but intend to seek out jobs, and these people represent a large group that the authorities do not have information on. Regarding the issue, Wong noted that all migrants need to submit their criminal records before getting a work visa.
Lawmaker Lei Cheng I echoed thoughts on the issue, urging the administrative and legislative bodies “to take it seriously.” “The Secretariat for Security always takes the stance that it’s a problem in the economic area; I don’t think it’s simply that,” she said. “Many people think it’s easy to come to Macau seeking jobs and the government is unable to deal with that, which also leads to illegal employment and over-staying.”
Wong acknowledged that the police have “put in a lot of manpower and recourse but it doesn’t see much effect.” “There are many migrants, especially from Africa, who would tear up their travel documents so that they could stay in Macau for five months. But they don’t have a job or a means to survive, and if we let them wander the streets, it will put public security at risk; but if we put them into asylum, that will be a huge burden to the SAR government,” he said, suggesting that the government should pay to deport them as soon as possible.
Several lawmakers also questioned the issue of illegal immigration. Wong Sio Chak echoed their concerns and said the crime is a serious problem at the University of Macau’s campus in Hengqin, but is very difficult to tackle due to a lack of an efficient fence.
“It’s because of problems in the campus’s design. It didn’t include high walls and electric grids, as the students and faculties didn’t want to feel like they were in prison. The campus wall is relatively short; a person with good physical strength can climb over it in a dozen seconds,” he explained, adding that the authorities have been discussing the measure with the university.
Lawmaker SI Ka Lon further indicated that the city will have more and more black spots for illegal entry, following land reclamation constructions, and the realization of Macau’s own customary waters.
The secretary pledged in response that the authorities would then strengthen watershed management to better tackle the crime, but warned that there could also appear “a vacuum in law” if the authorities are not prepared.
“After the scope of Macau’s customary waters is defined, the mainland authorities may no longer engage in managing those waters, and a vacuum in law may also appear,” he said, adding that it is crucial to see whether Macau authorities will ensure that the law enforcement’s abilities are up to the task.

400 police officers to be recruited

The Secretariat for Security plans to recruit 400 police officers this year, but there are also 300 officers set to retire. Wong Sio Chak told lawmakers that “the police team lacks manpower, but the recruitment process is very difficult.” To help maintain order at the border checkpoints, the authorities have hired security guards during the holiday periods this year. Wong said that next year they will have the budget to fully implement the new recruitment plan.

Online scams cause concerns

Lawmakers have shown concern over the authorities’ policing of technologies, as the numbers of Internet crimes and telephone scams are increasing to higher levels year by year. Several lawmakers questioned the Secretary for Security on countermeasures, as well as the effectiveness of the Computer Crime Act, which has been enforced now for five years.
Chan Meng Chan stressed that the authorities have tried to elevate the issue of the policing of technologies, but the result so far has been “barely satisfactory.” He believes that this will remain a key task for the next several years, and inquired about how much advanced equipment the sector will need to purchase.
As for the city’s Computer Crime Act, lawmaker Chan Hong asked if the authorities would conduct a review of its law enforcement, and establish whether the Act needs to be amended. “The Judiciary Police (PJ) will assess if a review of the law is needed, and we don’t see the need to amend the law for the time being, but we will keep paying attention,” replied Wong.
Several lawmakers also urged the secretary to give a timetable for the long-planned construction of a surveillance network. Wong explained that although the legal issue concerning every citizen’s right to privacy had been solved before, answers the technical and supply problems haven’t been assured.
Wong said the authorities are even more concerned over the construction than any citizen or civil group, as “regardless of traffic accidents or criminal investigations, a lot of the time, our work is restricted due to the lack of surveillance monitors.” He adds, “For instance, whenever an arson case occurred, the PJ would send out 20 to 30 investigators to the site to search for where we had installed a monitor nearby. That resulted in a big reduction in our investigative efficiency,” he said.
The authorities plan to install a total of 1620 monitors throughout the city, and the first 219 monitors will be put into use within one year.