The 57-year-old also defended the force’s tough approval processes for demonstrations since the social unrest in 2019.
He highlighted the public still enjoyed freedom of speech and free assembly as long as the rights of others were respected.
“When it comes to voices of opposition, I completely understand that, as Hong Kong residents enjoy the freedoms of speech and assembly. However, the turning point comes at any signs of soft resistance,” he said.
Yuen added police would look out for intent to harm national security, as well as behaviour that would incite others.
He joined the police as an inspector in 1986 just out of secondary school, after completing the Hong Kong Advanced Level Examination, while most of his peers had completed university programmes. He went on to spend 37 years in the force, mostly in criminal investigations and intelligence gathering.
Yuen said his career had spanned three decades of crime, including shoot-outs in the 1980s to modern cybercrime.
He said large-scale unrest in 2019 linked to opposition to a later-shelved extradition bill was a watershed moment for the force and shifted its priorities to maintaining national security.
“It is clear that we are very concerned about national security and social safety situations,” he said.
“Therefore, the police force will remain vigilant against any criminals using this period to cultivate soft resistance through underground means that threatens national security. We definitely will not relax on this matter.”
A spokesman for the Security Bureau last month said media, art, culture and even rumours could constitute soft resistance, which could be used to incite hatred against authorities and law enforcement.
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A government crackdown on the resistance was not an attempt to control people’s thoughts, but there was no room for compromise over national security, the spokesman said.
But Albert Chen Hung-yee, a University of Hong Kong law professor and former Basic Law Committee member, warned against authorities’ use of the law to curb soft resistance during a panel discussion at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club last month.
Chen explained his comments were related to the legal principle that criminal law should not be applied to policing people’s speech or thoughts simply because authorities were opposed to them. He told the Post at the event that the government could consider classroom education and cultural activities as alternatives.
Yuen insisted that people still had their freedoms of speech and assembly when asked about the force’s rare approvals for public protests since 2019.
Police did not approve any protests during the three years of pandemic social-distancing restrictions. It granted a request for a demonstration in Tseung Kwan O in March over local residents’ opposition to proposed land reclamation.
But the force imposed unprecedented rules for rally participants to wear numbered lanyards, march without masks on a cordoned off route and keep the protest to under 100 participants.
“We of course will consider [protest bids] with our existing mechanism, but we will also consider recent court judgments to determine the nature of the protest. The route, number of participants and track records of the organiser are factors we take into account when processing bids,” Yuen said.
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The veteran police officer said people who exercised freedom of assembly must not harm the rights of others.
Yuen also reassured the public that the force was dedicated to public safety after a spate of violent crimes in recent months, including a double murder at Plaza Hollywood shopping centre in Diamond Hill that shook the city.
“Relevant information has been spread widely across social media, sparking concerns. We understand. That’s why we have done a lot of work to solve cases and, as you’ve seen, most cases were solved in a short period of time,” he said.
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Police statistics show the number of violent crimes dropped by 8.8 per cent from 2019 to 2022, as the tally fell from 9,690 to 8,830.
Yuen also revealed that marine police officers had been called on to help boost the number of street patrols.
Yuen said he had no regrets, just a sense of pride at having served during turbulent times.
“I already feel honoured about my role in helping the police force and having a purpose during such a tempestuous time.”
