Hong Kong police plan to recruit up to 1,700 physically strong officers, subject to the government's approval, for handling large-scale events similar to the December 13-18 Sixth WTO Ministerial Conference.

About 1,000 anti-WTO protesters were rounded up on December 17, the day violence erupted in Wan Chai.

Fourteen of them were charged with unlawful assembly, but later their hearing was adjourned to January 11 because more time was needed for further investigation and completion of the identification process.

Twelve of them, 11 South Koreans and one Japanese released on bail, went on an indefinite hunger strike yesterday, demanding that they be released immediately. They will stay inside a booth set up near the Star Ferry at Tsim Sha Tsui from about 9 AM and be removed to their accommodation in a Shek Kip Mei church at night.

The recruitment of 1,600 to 1,700 police officers during the next fiscal year has been necessitated because of vacancies created by retirements and resignations, Commissioner of Police Dick Lee said yesterday, fearing that more officers might quit the force for private organizations because of the improving economy.

The police force's ability to provide security and maintain social order would suffer if they could not recruit enough officers, he said. "Handling the WTO conference last month was very demanding physically and mentally for our officers. The security of Hong Kong may be affected if we cannot recruit enough staff."

Lack of interpreters

Admitting that policemen had committed some minor mistakes during the WTO meeting, Lee said that security arrangements for it would be reviewed in two months.

"(During the operation) we did not provide enough translators," he said. "There were a lot of people arrested and all of them needed translators. We spent too much time getting things translated. We had not foreseen such a situation and we certainly could have done better."

The Hong Kong People's Alliance on WTO will hold a candle-light vigil from today until next Tuesday near the Tsim Sha Tsui ferry pier, demanding the release of the protesters.

The alliance has urged the people of Hong Kong to join the hunger strike from 3?PM next Tuesday until the court proceedings began on Wednesday.

Elizabeth Tang, the alliance's chairperson, said more foreign activists might join the demonstration if the court didn't release anti-WTO protesters on Wednesday. "The protesters only targeted WTO, not police," she said.

Vice chairperson of South Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, Yang Kyung-kyu, said they did not have any other effective method to express their views. "The only way for us to deliver our message is with our body and soul. Our demonstrations are legitimate."

He said the protesters wanted to go home and reunite with their families. "The Lunar New Year is just round the corner. We want to be ... with our loved ones. We want to be with our family and friends on that day."

Japanese protester Ksuke Nakagiri said he hoped the voice of the protesters would spread to different economies.

(China Daily HK edition January 6, 2006)