CRUCIAL amendments to the controversial public order laws are set to go before legislators by the end of the year.
Security Branch officials are putting the finishing touches to a 40-page document outlining the new rules which will make it easier for the public to organise rallies and demonstrations.
Ken Woodhouse, Deputy Secretary for Security, said he wanted to submit the plans as soon as possible so the Legislative Council could consider the changes fully.
''I am hoping we will be able to put it forward by the end of this session and with a bit of luck by the end of this year,'' he said.
Mr Woodhouse claimed the new laws would make little change in reality. Although the police had wide-ranging powers to ban public gatherings, they rarely used them, he said.
''We are not saying to people that they should feel they should come out on the streets. But we want people to have that right.'' The Security Branch hope the right balance wi ll be struck between the rights of the individual and the state.
