HONG KONG – Under Secretary for Security Sonny Au Chi-kwong, Director of Immigration Au Ka-wang and Commissioner of Customs and Excise Hermes Tang Yi-hoi apologized on Friday for violating group gathering rules at a dinner.
In response to media inquiries, the Security Bureau noted that only three officials from the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government attended the dinner.
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The Security Bureau said the dinner concerned was an ordinary social gathering and the food served consisted of normal hotpot ingredients
“They were invited to attend it at a place where they were told by the host was a private premise, and therefore mistakenly believed that the venue fell outside the regulation of the prohibition on group gathering,” according to the statement issued by the bureau as the three officials made further clarifications on the incident.
It noted that the dinner concerned was an ordinary social gathering and the food served consisted of normal hotpot ingredients, adding that the trio's work requires frequent communication with different sectors in the community.
The three officials admitted that they were negligent and lacked sensitivity on the occasion, and pledged to exercise caution when attending events in the future.
The bureau also said the police found that several people had breached the regulation during an investigation of a criminal case, and emphasized that the three officials were not involved in the case.
“As the case's legal proceedings are in progress, further details will not be disclosed,” the statement reads.
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