Collaboration with social services, schools and parents will be bolstered to ease juvenile delinquency, Hong Kong Secretary for Security Ambrose Lee said Wednesday.

 

He told lawmakers today there were 5,016 juvenile crime cases in the first nine months of this year in Hong Kong, with 6,821 for all of last year and 7,566 the year before. About 15 percent to 16 percent resulted in casualties.

 

Lee said a strategy of inter-disciplinary and inter-functional collaboration, focusing on early intervention and guiding juveniles back on track, has been adopted to cope with the problem. Resources have also been allocated to preventing juvenile crime.

 

"We consider the existing range of measures fairly effective in the prevention of juvenile crime. Of course, we will continue to review these on a regular basis through promoting inter-disciplinary and inter-functional discussion and collaboration amongst policy bureaux and departments," he said.

 

"Government departments will continue to strengthen collaboration with social service organizations, schools and parents to cope with the problem," Lee said.

 

(Xinhua News Agency November 23, 2006)