CPC Series
Licence checks can be a minefield

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(An article by Station Sergeant So Kwan-yeung of B Coy, Police Tactical Unit)

Licence checks by our front-line officers on triad-controlled entertainment establishments are just one of the ways in which unlawful activities can be foiled and law and order maintained.

Licence checks quickly reveal whether or not an establishment is properly licensed, has under-age customers or problems involving drug abuse and trafficking.

Usually, the first thing our officers do on entering an establishment is to ask the supervisor to turn off loud music and turn on bright lights. He then asks customers to switch off their mobile phones and stop smoking, drinking or talking.

Up until the late 1990s, people regarded the Police as all-powerful, awe-inspiring, crime-busters and so they did just what they had been told to do. Nowadays, the general public are much better educated and more aware of their personal rights, and this is the likely explanation for so many people refusing to cooperate with the Police during licence checks.

Of course, some of those refusing to cooperate could be under the influence of drugs or alcohol and that alone can lead to them challenging authority, obstructing officers, resisting arrest and even assaulting our officers. Afterwards, many of them lodge complaints against the Police.

Most complaints resulting from licence checks could be avoided if all Police officers fully understood the limits to their authority. In the case of a licence check, the establishment supervisor would certainly be guilty of obstructing the Police if he did not stop the loud music or turn on the lights as directed.

However, customers are under no legal obligation to switch off their mobile phones, or to stop smoking, chatting and drinking. Their reluctance or refusal to do so is not 'obstruction' merely an inconvenience to officers conducting the check.

Those adopting a 'tough stance' to protect their perception of the 'right Police image' are inviting complaints.

Officers giving orders to members of the public must be prudent and ensure the rationality and lawfulness of their instructions. When we are requesting people to do something simply for our own convenience, we must ask them politely for their cooperation. If they refuse the request, we must control our impatience and irritation and proceed as best we can.

I emphasise that, as Police officers, we must be fully conversant with our powers and the limits to them. We must be totally professional and forbearing to ensure that in dealing with the public we are both rational and lawful.

We need to acquire the tactfulness that will enable us to handle awkward customers who will jump at any opportunity to challenge Police authority. That way, we can surely reduce the number of complaints filed against us.