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Hong Kong Police Arrest #StandWithUkraine Citizens

A netizen uploaded a 11-second video on Twitter. The video showed a man and a woman, wrapped in Ukrainian flags, being taken away by police on March 24, 2022 in Central.

Hong Kong Police confirmed that they ticketed 5 people for violating the anti-gathering ban.

Video: https://mobile.twitter.com/virginiaylau/status/1506931402247671813

Source: Twitter; Ming Pao #Mar24

https://m.mingpao.com/ins/%e6%b8%af%e8%81%9e/article/20220325/s00001/1648136995410/%e4%b8%ad%e7%92%b0%e8%88%89%e6%94%af%e6%8c%81%e7%83%8f%e5%85%8b%e8%98%ad%e6%a8%99%e8%aa%9e-5%e7%94%b7%e5%a5%b3%e6%b6%89%e9%81%95%e9%99%90%e8%81%9a%e9%81%ad%e7%a5%a8%e6%8e%a7

#PoliceState #Suppression #GatheringBan #HongKongProtest
$90 Million HKD Collected in Anti-Pandemic Fines, Govt Data Shows

In response to the outbreak of #WuhanPneumonia in early 2020, the government enacted a series of social distancing measures, including a #GatheringBan, #MaskMandate, and mandatory use of the "#LeaveHomeSafe" contact tracing app. These regulations are part of the Prevention and Control of Disease Ordinance, also known as Cap. 599.

From April 1, 2021 to Feb 28, 2022, police had issued 21,613 tickets against more than 1,100 individuals for Cap. 599 violations, collecting $89,980,000HKD in fines for the government.

The number of tickets issued, by regulation, are:

Gathering ban (599G): 13,525 tickets
Mask mandate (599I): 6102 tickets
Business and premises regulation (599F): 1986 tickets

Since the 5th wave of outbreak earlier this year, the number tickets for violating the mask mandate more than doubled, rising from January's 550 to February's 1909.

Source: In-Media HK
https://bit.ly/37enUnZ

Related news: a few instances when 599G and 599I tickets were issued:

Hong Kong Police Ticket 14 Pro-democracy Elderly for violating gathering ban, each fined for HK$5,000
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/27235

Hong Kong Police Accuse Civilians Queueing Up to Enter Courtroom of Breaching the Gathering Ban
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/28952

Carrie Lam Defends Top Officials for Violating Gathering Ban in Extravagant Banquet with Property Developer: "You can't just turn away after seeing abalone"
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/30485

#SocialDistancing #COVID19 #PoliceState
Report: Gathering Penalty Ticket has no effect on the Controlling Coronavirus Outbreak


Mingpao, a Hong Kong newspaper, compared the monthly enforcement figures of the "Prohibition on group gatherings" (Cap. 599G*) and "Compulsory mask-wearing" rule (Cap. 599I**).

It was found that the Hong Kong police issued 2,460 fixed penalty tickets on 599G in April 2021, highest in a single month, but there was only 60 confirmed local cases of Covid-19 infection in that month.

On the other hand, the maximum number of fixed penalty tickets on 599I was issued in March last year, when the 5th wave of the pandemic peaked.

Dr. Ho Pak-leung, President of the Carol Yu's Centre for Infection at the University of Hong Kong, believes that the variation in fixed penalty tickets issued is not correlated with that of infection cases, and the fixed penalty is not an effective way to control the pandemic.

According to Dr. Ho Pak-leung, the government stepped up the enforcement of the compulsory mask-wearing rule during the 5th wave of the pandemic, which led to a significant increase in the number of fixed penalty tickets. However, the variation in the group gatherings prohibition ticket issued is not correlated to the pandemic but is probably more related to places and police verbal warnings rather than pandemic risk assessment.

Ramon Yuen Hoi-man, a member of the Sham Shui Po District Council and the spokesman of the Democratic Party on medical policy, questions if it is necessary to issue fixed penalty tickets so relentlessly when the pandemic subsides, "the government should not make an impression that there's a hidden agenda proceed in the name public health".

* Prevention and Control of Disease (Prohibition on Gathering) Regulation

** Prevention and Control of Disease (Wearing of Mask) Regulation

Source: Mingpao #May19

#599G #599I #GatheringBan #FailedState

https://life.mingpao.com/general/article?issue=20220519&nodeid=1652897733454