TUEN Mun residents are to ask the Commissioner of Police, Mr Li Kwan-ha, for better protection following the murder of two women in three months, apparently by a serial rapist. The killing of Ms Mak Siu-han on Wednesday has led to a call from Tuen Mun District Board members and residents for more police patrols. They will petition Mr Li tomorrow. District board member Mrs Choi Cheung Yuet-lan said fear of rape was reaching critical levels. Residents are also urging legislators and Housing Department officials to review what they described as a new town ''gone wrong''. Several residents who spoke to the South China Morning Post yesterday said the housing estates suffered from a woeful lack of protection and inadequate facilities. Mrs Ng - a Hing Shing House resident living near the staircase where Ms Mak's body was found - trembled as she spoke of the murder. With six daughters aged between six and 18, she is scared. ''We are so worried that I've decided to accompany my eldest daughter home after she finishes work every night. How can you put your mind at rest in such a situation?'' Mrs Ng said. ''The lights are not bright enough and you don't feel safe turning the corner. We have complained about it but no improvements have been made.'' For three years, her family has been applying to leave Tai Hing Estate. Board member Mrs Choi said the situation must change. Police were under-manned and were unable to allay the fears of rape and violence. ''We are all concerned because the criminal who began by raping is now committing murder,'' Mrs Choi said. ''We are all hoping police will step up their patrols, but it is up to the residents to act immediately and call 999 if they hear even a scream. If we don't report it to the police immediately, then we won't be able to catch this criminal.'' She called for better co-operation between residents and police, and urged residents to join mutual aid committees in the housing estates. Residents would be asked to consider paying for improved security in their buildings through the installation of security gates, closed circuit televisions and hiring security guards for the blocks, Mrs Choi said. Legislative Council security panel convenor Mrs Elsie Tu said last night she had been calling for better security for years. ''It has been 10 years since I went out there and complained about security. There was never any good security in housing blocks there. At least we managed to get proper locks on the gates. ''I really don't know what the answer is. It won't cost very much for security guards to be employed, at least for the time being.'' She dismissed the suggestion that surveillance cameras be installed to protect residents: ''What's to stop them from dismantling the things, if they know they're there? After all the ceilings are not that high and the walls are too bare to hide cameras and the like.'' Security panel member Mrs Miriam Lau Kin-yee called on police to strengthen efforts to capture the culprit. Immediate measures to be taken should include better lighting in public areas, and the installation of emergency telephones, she said. Mrs Lau said security in Tuen Mun had long been a concern of the security panel, which only last week received a deputation from the area's district board. ''Ultimately, security in the estate depends on cooperation between police and residents,'' she said. In the meantime, residents have taken it upon themselves to protect each other. Mr Simon Chan Sin-wah, who is in charge of a Christian children and youth centre on the ground floor of Hing Shing House, said female staff and students should move in groups for safety. ''We have instructed our female staff and students to go around the estate in groups of at least three, for example, when they finish work and class at night,'' Mr Chan said. ''Some students have reported sightings of streakers in the arcade after dark and we encourage them to avoid those places. Boys are encouraged to escort female classmates on their way home whenever possible.'' One of Mr Chan's staff, Miss Cheng Siu-ngan, said the last time she saw police in the area was shortly after the February murder of a 50-year-old woman in Yau Oi Estate. Miss Cheng also criticised the poor lighting on the estate and pointed to a street lamp above the centre's entrance which she said was switched off for most of the year. Mr Chan said the centre would run self-defence courses for women aged between 20 and 30, in addition to its academic and recreational classes for teenagers.
