Hong Kong’s police chief has defended the decision to give law enforcers up to two years to investigate abuse of China’s national anthem under a proposed law. Commissioner of Police Stephen Lo Wai-chung was responding to concerns surrounding the prosecution time limit in the controversial bill the government unveiled last month, which seeks to criminalise any public abuse of March of the Volunteers . Under the bill, the authorities would have up to two years from the time of the incident to decide whether to lay charges against offenders. If alleged wrongdoing came to light at a later date but the timing of it was unclear, police could also prosecute within one year of the discovery. In comparison, the time limit for prosecuting crimes under the Magistrates Ordinance, which deals with minor offences, is six months. Hong Kong’s new anthem law: what you can and cannot do Speaking on a radio programme on Saturday, Lo said the national anthem was mainly played at large events such as on sporting occasions, where there were more people. As such, it could be difficult to complete an investigation within half a year. “We do not consider which law it is, its background or aim.” Lo said the force would only look at the issue from a law enforcement angle. “If you legislate something, I must be able to enforce it,” he said. “If I can’t enforce it, then people will say we are not doing our job properly.” Lo also dismissed public concerns that police would use the law to “square old accounts”. “To manage public order, we have to abide by the law,” he said, adding there was a responsibility to investigate if something happened. Chinese national anthem abuse: ‘two years to investigate is too long’ Lo said the force used the same yardstick in investigating different offences, and would not relax enforcement for sensitive issues. In recent years, the authorities have been left red-faced as local football fans jeered the national anthem at international matches in the city. The bill will be scrutinised in the Legislative Council in the coming months. The commissioner also justified his support for a law to make insulting officers on duty a crime. He said there was a need to protect his officers in light of events in recent years, including the pro-democracy Occupy protests in 2014 and 2016’s Mong Kok riot , which resulted in his colleagues working in a difficult and stressful environment. Lo said if the general atmosphere in society was of a lack of respect for law enforcers, not just police, there would be a lot of conflict in law enforcement. Hong Kong soccer fans risk paying penalty on Chinese national anthem law “In having this law, we are only hoping residents will respect law enforcers,” he said. “We are not hoping to arrest every time, but rather, for mutual respect.” He also said the force was “very humble now” and dedicated to serving residents. In response to a 55 per cent rise in the number of police officers arrested last year, Lo stressed he would not condone these black sheep and would not let off any member of the force who had broken the law. The number of officers arrested for crimes climbed from 29 in 2017 to 45 last year.