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Ombudsman Chiu presents results of two direct investigations
The Ombudsman, Winnie Chiu, held a press conference on 22 October 2019 to announce the results of two direct investigations, namely on “Mechanism for Identifying and Reporting Suspected Child Abuse Cases” and on “Government’s Planning and Arrangements for Ancillary Facilities for Electric Private Vehicles”.
According to statistics from the Social Welfare Department, the number of newly reported child abuse cases in Hong Kong has been on the rise over the past years, with an increase of around 20% from 882 cases in 2008 to 1,064 cases in 2018. The problem has caused wide public concern. There have been criticisms that the reporting mechanism for preventing child abuses has been inadequate, and no mandatory requirement is imposed on people who have become aware of the situation to report suspected child abuse cases.
The focus of the second direct investigation was on the use of electric vehicles (EVs) for reducing roadside air pollution and the fact that the number of EVs surged rapidly within a few years, but the growth in the number of public charging facilities has lagged far behind.
For more details, please consult the executive summaries further down below or visit the Website of the Ombudsman Hong Kong.
Source: Office of the Ombudsman Hong Kong, China
