A High Court judge urged the government to consider a way to disclose the backgrounds of tutors as he jailed a private tutor for molesting five of his pupils.
Mr Justice Louis Tong Po-sun made the remarks in the Court of First Instance yesterday when he jailed Lam Tung-chun, alias Lam Cho-kin, 50, for four years and eight months. Lam had previously been jailed for 30 months on similar charges.
A psychological report to the court said Lam, who showed paedophile tendencies and was sexually attracted to teenage girls, had indicated he would probably set up his own tutorial school after serving his term. There was a chance he would offend again, the report concluded.
Mr Justice Tong did not elaborate on his call, but child-protection advocates have been calling for a register of sex offenders similar to those in Britain and the United States.
'It is obvious that the defendant did not manage his psychological condition well, and he even decided to open a tutorial school for the purpose of getting close to young girls,' the judge said. 'No touching of the girls can be justified. It is a very serious offence; the defendant's conduct was definitely in breach of the trust the parents of those children had placed in him.
'Such attacks will adversely affect the healthy growth and psychological development of the victims ... For the protection of children, a deterrent sentence is warranted.'
