[Explanation] Recently, the Hong Kong police said that from June 2019 to May 2020, the police arrested a total of about 9,000 people during the storm, and more than 40% of them were students. In response to the current increase in the crime rate among young people in Hong Kong, Huang Rurong, a retired Hong Kong magistrate and barrister, emphasized in an interview with reporters that the record of the case will not disappear, and young people should not try the law by themselves.
[Commentary] Huang Rurong said that some young people in Hong Kong are no longer afraid of the law or the police. Recently, the courts have begun to try illegal demonstrators arrested in the revision of the case. Those young people who are tried in the courts have acted with ease, some even frivolously. The emergence of these phenomena is also related to the judges lightly punishing young people when making decisions.
In terms of education, some young people are incited by some opposition parties and feel that "a life with a case is more exciting." Huang Rongyu explained with a serious heart that these people had wrong perceptions and believed that Hong Kong's Criminal Rehabilitation Ordinance can have the function of eliminating the case. He emphasized that the case will not disappear.
[Same period] Hong Kong Retired Magistrate Huang Rurong
Simply put, when a criminal is found guilty, his case is kept for life, such as affecting his immigration plan, because if you immigrate to a foreign country, you must apply to the Hong Kong Police Department for a "good citizen certificate". The Hong Kong Police Department will not issue this "good citizen certificate" if this person has a criminal record. So when it comes to "Will the case make people more exciting", of course I disagree.
[Explanation] Huang Rurong stated that when a judge decides a case, he mainly hopes to achieve four purposes. The first is to prevent crimes from happening; the second is to punish criminals, who need to be responsible for their crimes; the third is to give criminals a chance to start over; the fourth is to warn others. However, these judges who gave light sentences to young people are called opportunities for young people, but in essence they are heroic and beautifying the criminal behavior of young people, so the role of warning at the judicial level has not achieved results.
He said that in the future, Hong Kong society should strengthen the cultivation of young people’s legal consciousness. He believes that social and family education are equally important for children’s legal awareness. The law-abiding and patriotic consciousness of young people should start from an early age and be cultivated from kindergarten.
[Same period] Hong Kong Retired Magistrate Huang Rurong
We must start from the aspects of moral education (starting) and nurturing (young people)'s feelings towards the country, and we must do it as soon as possible, and we must do it drastically. Cultivating young people's law-abiding awareness must always start from the roots. We must sow seeds that cultivate young people's moral education, and cultivate seeds that love society and the country.
[Commentary] In May, the National People's Congress voted to adopt a decision on establishing and improving the legal system and enforcement mechanism for the maintenance of national security in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Huang Rurong said that the Hong Kong-related national security legislation is great news for Hong Kong, which will return the society to stability and provide legal basis for judicial trials.
[Same period] Hong Kong Retired Magistrate Huang Rurong
Hong Kong-related national security legislation can be implemented in Hong Kong as soon as possible. I believe that it can meet the expectations of most people. This is really a "long drought and good fortune". They (the citizens) are very supportive and look forward to the implementation of the National Security Law in Hong Kong. This matter is getting better and better, and I think the provisions in this National Security Law are rather strict and not loose.
Reporter Zheng Haoxi Zhu Aili reports from Hong Kong
Responsible editor: [Luo Pan]