HK police force nears 'localisation' goal with exit of expat officer

When Senior Assistant Police Commissioner Mike Dowie retired recently it left the force with no expatriates in its senior management ranks, which were once dominated by overseas officers.

It is part of a pattern across the civil service, where the number of non-local officers has fallen 70 per cent - from 877 to 282 - since 1997, a continuation of the localisation process that began long before the handover.

At the most senior level, the proportion of overseas officers in directorate ranks has shrunk from 55 per cent in the 1980s to little more than 3 per cent last year. Natural attrition and language obstacles for new recruits are set to trim the number further, with the last overseas officer in the police force - the largest department - set to retire in 2027.

Political analysts differ in their view of how it will effect the government, with some saying diversity is desirable in an international city.

'A certain amount of expatriate directorate-rank officers in government can make public administration more diverse and pluralistic,' James Sung Lap-kung, a political analyst at City University, said. But Chinese University analyst Professor Ma Ngok saw no big difference.

'Society wants more direct responses from officials, and obviously local officers are more suitable for this development,' Ma said.

In the police, the core decision-making posts at headquarters - the seven senior assistant commissioners of police - are now all filled by local officers.