Anthony Neoh, chairman of Hong Kong's Independent Police Complaints Council (IPCC), receives an interview with Xinhua in Hong Kong, south China, May 20, 2020. (Xinhua/Wu Xiaochu)
HONG KONG, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Every word in the thematic report by Hong Kong's Independent Police Complaints Council (IPCC) on the social unrest arising from the now-withdrawn ordinance amendments concerning fugitive transfers is based on facts, Anthony Neoh, chairman of IPCC, told Xinhua in a recent interview.
The "Thematic Study Report on the Public Order Events arising from the Fugitive Offenders Bill since June 2019 and the Police Actions in Response" is a result of the IPCC's hard work by using the strictest methods, the chairman said.
The IPCC, Hong Kong's police watchdog, released on May 15 a report in regard to the social unrest began in June last year in Hong Kong.
Neoh said since last July, the IPCC has urged the public to inform the police watchdog of the sightings and other relevant facts about the unrest. In the end, the IPCC received over 12,000 emails, collected over 20,000 photos, over 20,000 videos and other information. Meanwhile, over 30 members from the IPCC collected real-time reports from the media 24 hours a day and a total of about 670 hours of news materials were collected.
The report is based on a wide range of sources, including the police, the fire department, the metro company, the hospital authority, and people from all walks of life and the media, the chairman said.
"We tried to collect as much materials as possible and put together the report."
During the course of writing the report, the IPCC not only analyzed all materials gathered, but also compared and referred to documents from all over the world, to understand relevant laws and regulations of other places, and how they dealt with the similar situations, Neoh said.
For instance, the IPCC compared the situation in other parts of the world on the issue of the use of force by the police. The report suggested that in a civilized society, no one should use force except in three situations, law enforcement, self-defense and protection of others, he said. "We looked at everything from this legal perspective."
Neoh said that during the 10 months of producing the report, colleagues from the IPCC gave up their holidays and worked overtime until late at night every day."The report consists of 16 chapters and over 1,000 pages. Every chapter is a result of strict examination and every word in the report is based on facts."
It is worth reading the report with patience, Neoh said, adding that IPCC may also make some parts of the report into video clips for the public. He urged the public to provide factual materials for the IPCC if they think the report has left out any details.
The report has received more than 90,000 hits on the IPCC website so far, with the Yuen Long incident on July 21, 2019 and Prince Edward station incident on Aug. 31, 2019 having the highest hit rate. Neoh said that the report's conclusions on these incidents of high public concern are also based on facts and evidence.
There has been no evidence of police officers colluding with triads in the Yuen Long incident and it was a rumor that police killed protesters at Prince Edward station, the report concluded.
Neoh said that apart from clear and visible incidents, the development of the whole incident was also outlined and revealed in the fourth chapter of the report.
The slogan of demonstrations, for instance, was initially "anti-bill" and then swiftly changed into the so-called "Hong Kong independence" and "liberate Hong Kong". Weapons like petrol bombs, metal balls and umbrellas with a sharpened top appeared in the demonstrations, with traffic paralyzed, universities occupied, and civilians being beaten. All these suggested that demonstrations had turned into street violence, the chairman said. Enditem
