Hong Kong civil servants will need to declare arrests instead of only convictions under new proposal
- Secretary for the Civil Service Ingrid Yeung says workers accused of crime could be transferred to other positions or suspended
- Union chief asks why it is necessary to go through new procedures if civil servant is found innocent
Hong Kong civil servants who have been arrested must declare it inside a week under a new policy to maintain professional standards, but a union chief warned the move could create problems for staff later cleared of any wrongdoing.
The Civil Service Bureau confirmed the policy change on Monday and said only arrests resulting from “minor traffic incidents unrelated to public duties” would be exempt. It added that the new measure was introduced on July 28 and only covered arrests on or after the date of the policy change.
“Relevant personnel who fail to make a declaration as required could face disciplinary actions,” the bureau said.
The previous policy only required members of certain disciplined services to declare arrests, while other civil servants had to tell their departmental chiefs if they faced criminal prosecution.
Secretary for the Civil Service Ingrid Yeung Ho Poi-yan said the reforms would help maintain standards among staff, pointing to an instance where a government employee handling children-related issues was arrested on suspicion of child abuse.