Police watchdog 'in a difficult situation' in wake of Occupy Central
Former member of complaints council says government cheerleading for force during Occupy protests will make oversight more difficult
Unequivocal support for the police from high-ranking officials has created a "very difficult situation" for the independent watchdog that monitors the force, a newly departed member says.
Eric Cheung Tat-ming, a legal scholar at the University of Hong Kong, called on the Independent Police Complaints Council to remain as fair as it had been in the past, especially with the Occupy protests adding to its workload.
The neutrality of the body was thrown into question after the government appointed mainland-friendly solicitor Larry Kwok Lam-kwong as its chairman last year.
Cheung, who stepped down last month, said: "The whole of Hong Kong is confrontational and politicised. Complaints following the 'umbrella movement' have posed a harsh challenge to the complaints mechanism of the council.
When tear gas was fired on September 30 at the Occupy protesters, Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying asked people to "thank the police force".
That, Cheung noted, set the current political climate apart from that of previous administrations, in which high-ranking police officials were prepared to denounce malpractice among their fellow officers, showing they were willing to cooperate with the police watchdog.