專員隨筆
Commissioner Online

HKSAR 25th Anniversary: Embarking on a new journey with unwavering belief

As we celebrate the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), we are confident that the city will continue to prosper, and rightly so as order has been restored and stability has returned. Looking back, in spite of the many ups and downs, the ICAC has remained steadfast in upholding its mission to combat corruption and promote integrity. We have also successfully taken our work to new heights.

It is true that our city faced a waves of challenges over the past few years. Under an increasingly politicised environment, the work of the ICAC has also been challenged from time to time. As a law enforcement agency dedicated to fighting corruption, the ICAC has always been professional and impartial. Despite all kinds of unreasonable criticism coming locally and overseas, my colleagues and I remain steadfast and fearless. We have demonstrated to Hong Kong citizens and the international community our utmost determination to safeguard integrity. The fact that Hong Kong's anti-corruption effort has been consistently recognised by the international community proved that those criticisms did not hold water. I earnestly hope the community will cherish the core values which have made us proud - integrity and the rule of law, so that Hong Kong will continue to thrive.

I recall that prior to 1997, there were concerns that the corruption situation in Hong Kong might deteriorate in time. Quite the contrary. Corruption remained effectively controlled since the handover and the city has been continuous regarded as one of the cleanest places in the world. Hong Kong has consistently been ranked among the top 20 in the Corruption Perceptions Index by the international anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International and was ranked 12th in the latest survey. In the Rule of Law Index 2021 of World Justice Project, Hong Kong was placed 9th out of 139 regions and the 3rd in East Asia and the Pacific under the "Absence of Corruption" indicator, demonstrating the concerted effort made by the ICAC and the public in safeguarding probity.

For Hong Kong to remain a clean city, public support is crucial. To raise public awareness to anti-corruption work, the ICAC has been working closely with different strata to effectively disseminate the probity message to every corner of the community through territory-wide integrity promotion and district activities, corruption prevention talks and the social media. In light of the latest societal and technology development, the ICAC has incorporated more online components in its activities, such as this year's signature event "Journey for Integrity". Through the exhibition at Tai Kwun, Central, members of the public could learn first-hand about the history of Hong Kong's graft-fighting journey and the rule of law. They could also explore historic landmarks across the territory related to past ICAC cases through an online platform. It has always been our aim to entrench a probity culture in the daily lives of the public. And I am glad to say that after decades of hard work, we have succeeded. The ICAC's annual survey consistently showed that the society has adopted a zero- tolerance attitude towards corruption, while 98.3% of the respondents indicated they had not encountered corruption personally in the past year.

As an anti-corruption fore-runner, the ICAC also looks beyond Hong Kong. The Commission strives to strengthen international cooperation in order to take our anti-corruption mission to new horizons. In recent years, the ICAC has made earnest efforts to share our graft fighting experience with overseas anti-corruption agencies (ACAs). Since 2017, the Commission has connected with over 60 ACAs of the Belt and Road countries for capacity building collaboration, and conducted over 30 training programmes for over 1,000 graft fighters from fellow ACAs. In tailoring training programmes and consultation services, we took into consideration our counterparts' cultural, political and legal differences. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the ICAC has continued its capacity building initiatives by switching to the digital platform. Since September 2020, 21 online training programmes were delivered for more than 650 graft fighters of overseas jurisdictions.

Earlier this year, Hong Kong's anti-corruption work reached a new milestone. With the endorsement and full support of the Central People's Government of the People's Republic of China and the Government of the HKSAR, I was elected President of the International Association of Anti-Corruption Authorities (IAACA), and the ICAC has taken over the IAACA Secretariat. Not only does this reflect the international recognition of Hong Kong's anti-corruption effort, but it also marks the ICAC's increasingly important role in the international anti-graft arena. Since the assumption of IAACA President, I have made lots of efforts to promote the work of IAACA, reaching out to the ACAs with a view to strengthening communication and cooperation. Since the new term of IAACA has come into effect, 24 ACAs have joined the Association as organisational members, bringing the total number of members to about 150.

Since the reunification, cooperation between the ICAC and the Mainland in anti-corruption work has become closer than ever. From mutual case assistance and intelligence exchanges in the early days to regular liaisons and meetings in recent years, it is our aim to enhance cooperation in promoting an integrity culture in the region. In 2019, the ICAC, the Guangdong Provincial Commission of Supervision and the Commission Against Corruption of Macao agreed to enhance collaboration under the "Outline Development Plan for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area" in the following areas: combatting cross-boundary corruption, promoting probity culture, organising capacity building programmes for the staff of the ACAs, and establishing a regular meeting system to review the progress of collaboration. In addition, as a pilot project to strengthen synergy in the Greater Bay Area's anti-corruption collaboration, the ICAC is in active dialogue with the Qianhai Anti-Corruption Bureau about fostering anti-graft cooperation by providing corruption prevention service for Hong Kong enterprises in Qianhai.

I am deeply honored to have the opportunity to serve as ICAC Commissioner in the past 10 years and work with a group of professional and highly motivated colleagues. I am grateful for their assistance and support. We should be proud of Hong Kong's rising integrity level and internationally acclaimed anti-graft work. I hope members of the public will value these hard-earned achievements and continue to support the work of the ICAC.

"Hong Kong our advantage is always You and the ICAC" – It has been 48 years since the ICAC was set up. History has showed that armed with our steadfast belief, we could sail through the storms. This belief will continue to steer us forward. Under the leadership of the new ICAC Commissioner, I have every confidence that the ICAC and the community will continue to safeguard the integrity culture of Hong Kong.