Juvenile Crime and Responses to Delinquency in Hong Kong

This article describes the juvenile crime trend and responses to juvenile delinquency in Hong Kong since the 1970s. It explores how changing conceptions of the causes of juvenile crime have influenced delinquency control policies. Although Hong Kong has a relatively low crime rate, the heavy emphasis on the use of custodial programs over community-based programs is obvious. Whereas the scope of delinquency literature is narrow and the legal professional’s opinion is rather conservative, new initiatives to further advance the juvenile justice system are difficult. Before China took back the sovereignty, Hong Kong was a British colony between 1842 and 1997. At first only a small fishing port, even before World War II, the overall crime rate was very low and the government paid little attention to the problem of delinquency. The evolution of Hong Kong’s economy has brought massive changes in the quality of living since the 1970s. Similar to any city in the developing world, Hong Kong has experienced a number of social problems such as poverty, housing, and a poor environment, arising from rapid urbanization and industrialization. JUVENILE CRIME TREND IN HONG KONG According to the official statistics, the rate of juvenile delinquency was 212 per 100,000 aged 7 to 15 in 1976. This rate increased rapidly and by 1989, it has risen more than four times to 962. The rate started to decline in the 1990s, falling to 800 by 1997. Juvenile delinquency also increased as a proportion of total crime from 8.2% in 1976 to 17% in 1989, again falling to 14.3% in 1997. Youth delinquency for those aged 16 to 20 has also been rising since the early 1970s, but the momentum has not been as great as that of juvenile delinquency. Official statistics show that youth crime rates have risen from 973 per 100,000 in 1976 to a peak of 2,203 in 1994. It stood at 1,579 in 1997 when the proportion of youth to total crime was around 16.4% (Census and Statistic Department, 1998; Vagg, Bacon-Shone, Gray, & Lam, 1995). The majority of delinquents (aged younger than 21) are male, constituting 91% of the youth offender population in 1990. The percentage dropped to 85% in 1998, whereas the sex ratio kept relatively constant. This International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 44(3), 2000 279-292  2000 Sage Publications, Inc.