Surgically masked police officers keep hordes of photographers at bay allowing AFD staff to go about their grim task of total chicken annihilation

FOLLOWING the Government's decision to destroy all chickens in the HKSAR, Hong Kong Police (including Quick Response Force officers) assisted the Agriculture and Fisheries Department (AFD) in sealing off poultry wholesale markets and retail outlets, and escorting AFD staff during the head count of chickens in over 133 poultry farms during the operation to rid the source of influenza, a H5N1 virus, known as Bird Flu. In an atmosphere charged with anxiety, anger, confusion and at times surrealism as packs of reporters, press photographers and cameramen descended upon chicken farm operators and poultry hawkers to get shots of AFD staff counting thousands of chickens before they were systematically slaughtered by blood-smeared workers with long knives in rubber suits, police officers were deployed to manage crowds, maintain peace and cordon off affected areas.

In one instance, because of the swarms of press vehicles parked outside the road to a Yuen Long chicken farm and the over-enthusiastic reporters who ignored safety precautions to chase AFD vehicles to interview staff, about 40 police officers were called upon by AFD to control traffic, prevent injuries and set up road blocks to stop vehicles from smuggling chickens and pigeons out for illegal sale elsewhere. Escort police officers who had to enter infected areas wore protective clothing provided by AFD, and were completely disinfected after completion of their duties - which they carried out with a high degree of professionalism.

More stolen vehicles returned from china
LAST month a batch of seven stolen vehicles, two containers and 980 stolen computer printers, with a total value of $6.4 million, were returned to the Hong Kong Police by the Guangdong Public Security Bureau (PSB) at Huanggang Boundary Crossing Point in Shenzhen. These vehicles comprised six saloon cars, one tractor and four trailers. The vehicles, two 40-feet long containers and the computer printers were reported stolen at various locations in Hong Kong between February 1991 and August 1997. The return of this batch of stolen vehicles is the 17th occasion since Guangdong PSB started to hand over recovered vehicles to the Police in 1991. A total of 131 vehicles including 98 saloon cars, 28 tractors, four lorries and one motorcycle have been returned from Guangdong PSB since then.	Hong Kong Police members about to receive stolen luxury vehicles and containers recovered by the Guangdong Security Bureau in Shenzhen
Acting Deputy Commissioner of Police, Operations, Mr Lau Yuk-kuen, representing the Hong Kong Police took custody of the stolen properties. This is the first time for the Guangdong PSB to return missing vehicles after Hong Kong's reversal of sovereignty to China. There has been a steady decrease in the number of missing vehicles over the past years with only 1,957 vehicles reported missing from January to November this year, a significant drop compared with 6,918 cases in 1992. A spokesman said: "Stringent enforcement action on both sides of the boundary coupled with administrative control on registration of right-hand drive vehicles attributes to the decline." He said that this most recent handing back of stolen vehicles symbolised the continual commitment and co-operation between Hong Kong and Chinese authorities in combating cross-boundary crimes.