ANTI-CORRUPTION

EFFORTS IN HONG
KONG
SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENTS

• Establishment of Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) in 1974 which

paved the way for Hong Kong to become one of the most corruption-free societies in
the world
MAJOR DRAWBACKS

• Corrupt offenders are taking greater precautionary measures

• They often take advantage of the high technology in communication and transfer of funds and
in exploiting the loopholes created by cross-jurisdictional problems, making investigation even
more difficult

• ICAC officers are misusing their official positions for personal gain
• Abuse of power
Effective Strategies in Addressing
Corruption
Top political will to eradicate corruption
Strong political support
Strong legislative support
High professionalism in conducting investigation
Adopting a comprehensive “three-pronged” strategy in
fighting corruption: Investigation, Prevention, and
Education
Reasons why the strategies are found
effective:
Free from any interference in conducting an
investigation was ensured
Strong political support was translated into financial
support
ICAC was given special investigative power such as
power to check bank accounts, requiring witnesses to
answer questions on oath, restraining properties
suspected to be derived from corruption
a. Integrity is always upheld because interview of all
suspects are under video;
b. Specialized trained agents;
c. First Class technical support
It is a holistic approach; the fight does not end in
penalizing corrupt officials. Prevention and Education
are given primary importance.
Ineffective Strategies in Addressing Reasons why the strategies are found
Corruption ineffective:
The usage of temporary remedy on old common law Outdated laws, “Misconduct in Public Office which
offence of “Misconduct in Public Office”. dated back to the 18th Century in England
RECOMMENDED STRATEGIES THAT MAY BE
APPLICABLE IN THE LOCALITY/COUNTRY:
• Strong political will
• Financial support
• Strong legislative support
• High professionalism in conducting investigation
• With audit system

• Adopting a comprehensive “three-pronged” strategy in fighting corruption: Investigation,

Prevention, and Education