Watchdog panel may need more clout to ensure thorough probe of how Hong Kong police handled protests, head of foreign expert team says
- Critics argue watchdog probing force’s role in anti-government protests cannot force police to produce any internal document it may ask for
- But former chief inspector of British constabulary Denis O’Connor says a team probing riots in the UK will get all information it demands
An international panel of experts is considering whether Hong Kong’s police watchdog needs additional powers to conduct a thorough probe of police handling of anti-government protests.
The five-man team is concerned about whether the Independent Police Complaints Council (IPCC) has the capability to obtain all the information it needs about police operations, said panel chairman Denis O’Connor, a Cambridge University criminologist and former British chief inspector of constabulary.
“It’s an important question for the watchdog, whether it wants or needs to be intrusive,” said O’Connor, who reviewed British police operations during the deadly London riots of 2011.
Although the Hong Kong police force has pledged to cooperate fully with the IPCC, critics have argued that the 27-member watchdog is toothless and cannot insist that police produce internal documents it may ask for.
O’Connor said no profession liked to reveal its “moments of errors”, but in the United Kingdom, police officers had to cooperate with a watchdog review and produce logbooks or records requested.