Hong Kong: Officer implicated in shooting protester 'did not have bad intentions' - police

W/S Chief Superintendent of Police Public Relations Branch (PPRB) John Tse Chun-Chung entering press conference room and sitting down alongside his colleagues, Hong Kong Police Headquarters (HKPHQ), Wan Chai
SOT, John Tse Chun-Chung, Chief Superintendent of Police Public Relations Branch (PPRB): "We understand public concern about [an] open fire incident. So first, [I will] give you an update. At around 7am this morning in Sai Wan Ho, radical protesters built barricades and blocked roads outside Tai On Building [in] Sai Wan Ho. Our officers arrived to disperse the mob and to clear the roads. One traffic officer who was not in riot gear arrested a person, then several others surrounded him. The officer pulled out his service revolver as a warning; however, the protester did not stop attempting to snatch the revolver. At the time, the officer believed it was very likely that [the] revolver would be snatched, and the consequences would be disastrous. Death and casualties would have resulted. In the whole incident, the officer fired three shots, including one that hit that man. After the gunshot, the man attempted to flee but was subdued by our officer instantly. We certainly believe our officer did not have bad intentions to hurt anyone."
W/S Press *CUTAWAY*
SOT, John Tse Chun-Chung, Chief Superintendent of Police Public Relations Branch (PPRB): "Another incident that has got public concern is that one police officer was driving his motorbike through a crowd of protesters. The incident took place at around 8am in Kwai Fong, as a large number of radical protesters took to the streets. A rioter spread [an] unknown liquid at the police officer's face, causing [a] temporary loss of vision. Later, one officer drove his motorbike to approach the site to render assistance in an attempt to separate rioters and the police officers. During the process, the officer was attacked with [a] hammer. We understand that this is a serious matter. We accord high priority to this case. The officer has been suspended from all frontline duties instantly and has taken leave instantly. The case is under investigation by New Territories South Region. If any misconduct arises, the police will certainly follow up."
M/S Camera operators *CUTAWAY*
SOT, John Tse Chun-Chung, Chief Superintendent of Police Public Relations Branch (PPRB): "[The] police are aware of the comment made by an overseas expert of the international... expert panel of the IPCC, but I will not comment on that, about what he said in his comment. And [the] police have stressed that we have a well-established two-tier mechanism for the public to channel complaints. And basically, that mechanism is governed by the IPCC ordinance laws of Hong Kong. Under that ordinance, [the] IPCC has multiple measures and power to monitor and review investigations and work by the capital. And what police can do at the moment is to provide all necessary support to [the] IPCC and maintain close communication with them. The police basically have provided our police information on the incidents they would like to cover and arrange meetings with certain operation and commanders and invited frontline officers to complete questionnaires, interviews and focus groups interviews with all these members. And I think it is unfair to comment on the contents and the authority of these findings report even before it is published, because basically [the] IPCC has agreed that they are going [inaudible] to put out the interim or first investigation report within six months, and we should all be patient to give [the IPCC] the time and space to put this report together. Thank you."
M/S Exterior of HKPHQ
W/S Exterior of HKPHQ
SCRIPT
The traffic police officer who fired a live round, critically injuring a 21-year-old protester in Sai Wan Ho earlier in the day, "did not have bad intentions to hurt anyone," Hong Kong police said at a press conference at their headquarters in Wan Chai on Monday.
Chief Superintendent of the Hong Kong Police Public Relations Branch (PPRB), John Tse Chun-Chung, claimed that the officer believed it was "very likely" that the protester would snatch the officer's service revolver, which he said the officer pulled out "as a warning."
Tse stressed that "the consequences would be disastrous," noting that "death and casualties would have resulted."
The chief superintendent also commented on the Kwai Fong incident that saw a police officer driving his motorbike through "a crowd of protesters," injuring at least two people.
"We understand that this is a serious matter," said Tse, adding that the officer "has been suspended from all frontline duties instantly" and that the investigation has been launched into the incident.
Hong Kong has been rocked since March by demonstrations sparked by a planned, but now-withdrawn extradition bill. The rallies have since evolved into a movement with wider grievances against the Hong Kong administration.