On Jan 20, a landmark in child welfare was achieved. With the coming into operation of the Mandatory Reporting of Child Abuse Ordinance (Cap.650), the most vulnerable members of society will enjoy extra safeguards. Although it has taken a long, hard slog by campaigners to reach this point, the tide finally turned in 2022, when the then-incoming chief executive, John Lee Ka-chiu, threw his weight behind the proposal, particularly in his first Policy Address.
He was undoubtedly influenced by the inexorable rise in reported child-abuse cases. Whereas the incidence was 892 in 2016, it had risen to 1,367 by 2021, and the public was horrified by some of the cases that came to light. In 2018, for example, it emerged that a 5-year-old girl, Chan Sui-lam, who died after being found unconscious at home, had 133 injuries on her body. She had, without any meaningful intervention by the school authorities nor anybody else, been continuously abused over many months by her family members. She died after having been repeatedly thrown at the ceiling and poked with scissors at home, and her case was by no means a one-off.
This situation was intolerable, and no civilized society could countenance its continuation. Although the Social Welfare Department prepared a guide to encourage the voluntary reporting of suspected child abuse cases, it contained gray areas that resulted in the nonreporting of cases by professionals. In 2019, when the Law Reform Commission issued its consultation paper on “Causing or Allowing the Death or Serious Harm of a Child or Vulnerable Adult”, it included research on the mandatory reporting of child abuse. An offense of “failure to protect” was mooted, requiring certain individuals to report abnormal injuries to children of which they became aware, which helped galvanize policymakers. Various other jurisdictions had similar laws, including Australia, Canada and the United States, and, as Lee recognized, there was a crying need for Hong Kong to follow suit.
Although the ordinance was enacted in 2024, its operation was delayed until 2026. This was to enable mandated professionals to prepare themselves and to become conversant with what was expected of them. This was clearly sensible, and the authorities promulgated the Guide for Mandated Reporters in July 2025, supplemented by expert briefings for affected professionals by, for example, the nongovernmental organization Against Child Abuse. An e-learning platform (Child Protection Online Training) has also been created to dovetail with the ordinance’s implementation, providing professionals with free access to training and reference materials on child protection. This will hopefully facilitate the early identification and reporting of child abuse cases. Nobody, therefore, who is required to do so has any excuse for not acting when the situation requires, and a dedicated reporting platform has been established (www.mrr.gov.hk/mr/).
In welcoming the ordinance, the Labour and Welfare Bureau called it “an important milestone in Hong Kong’s efforts regarding child protection by creating a comprehensive and effective protection for children”, and it is undoubtedly a big step in the right direction. A spike in reported cases must now be expected, and appropriate resources will need to be allocated to cope with them
The ordinance identifies 25 categories of specified professionals from the social welfare, education, and healthcare sectors who must make reports of child abuse. They are required to do so as soon as practicable if, in the course of their work, they realize there are reasonable grounds for suspecting a child is suffering serious harm or is at real risk thereof. Although this should facilitate the early and effective detection of child abuse cases, many campaigners would have liked the net to have been cast more widely — this would have placed a similar burden on, for example, neighbors (as in Ontario, Canada), and the situation will need to be monitored.
The acts considered serious harm include inflicting physical injury, forcing or enticing a child to participate in a sexual act, and intimidating, terrifying, or denigrating the child in a severe or repeated way that impairs its mental health. If a child’s basic needs are repeatedly neglected, causing its health or development to be endangered, this could also constitute causing serious harm. An offender faces a maximum sentence of three months’ imprisonment and a fine at Level 5 of HK$50,000 ($6,412), which is very much on the low side, and its efficacy will also require close monitoring (when penalties are light, they may not provide sufficient deterrence to potential offenders).
The ordinance also makes it an offense to inhibit or obstruct the making of a report. Moreover, to allay concerns among affected individuals, it provides legal protection for professionals who make reports in good faith. It also criminalizes the unauthorized disclosure of a reporter’s identity.
In welcoming the ordinance, the Labour and Welfare Bureau called it “an important milestone in Hong Kong’s efforts regarding child protection by creating a comprehensive and effective protection for children”, and it is undoubtedly a big step in the right direction. A spike in reported cases must now be expected, and appropriate resources will need to be allocated to cope with them. However, the proof of the pudding is in the eating, and nobody should underestimate the scale of the problem that needs to be tackled.
For example, Hong Kong reported 1,504 child abuse cases in 2024, up from 1,457 in 2023 and 1,439 in 2022. Shocking as they are, these statistics are only the tip of the iceberg. Indeed, Talk Hong Kong reported (Dec 4) that although 16 percent of children may experience sexual abuse (affecting one in five girls and one in nine boys), up to 96 percent of cases never reach the authorities. This was because stigma, fear, social taboos, and cultural barriers prevented children and families from coming forward, and the same is undoubtedly also true of other types of child abuse.
Although there is no magic bullet when it comes to combating child abuse, the available mechanisms have to be made as effective as possible. If the mandatory reporting procedures are not as effective as hoped, they may need to be refined (which could involve making them more comprehensive). Although they will undoubtedly help, child protection is a work in progress, and the situation must be kept under review. While welcome, the latest advances provide no justification for concluding “job done”, let alone resting on laurels.
The author is an honorary consultant to Against Child Abuse and was previously the director of public prosecutions of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.
The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.
