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"Preface" [2009] ELECD 212; in Young, N.M. Simon (ed), "Civil Forfeiture of Criminal Property" (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2009)

Book Title: Civil Forfeiture of Criminal Property

Editor(s): Young, N.M. Simon

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

ISBN (hard cover): 9781847208262

Section Title: Preface

Number of pages: 2

Extract:

Preface
In 2000 when I was still working for the Ontario government I witnessed the
political process of how civil forfeiture laws were proposed, deliberated upon,
marketed to the public and introduced into the provincial legislature. It was a
cornerstone of the then Conservative government's get tough on crime plat-
form. The government's political resolve to pass the law notwithstanding real
constitutional concerns over provincial authority to enact such a law was
impressive. The proposed law was also controversial from a rights perspective
and a lively public debate both inside and outside the legislature ensued.
When I left Canada for Hong Kong in 2001, about a year before the Ontario
law was passed, I was hoping to find a similar debate in this new jurisdiction.
Not only was such a debate non-existent but many had not heard of civil forfei-
ture. Over the next few years the introduction of civil forfeiture in the United
Kingdom and Australia did little to stimulate public discussion of the topic in
Hong Kong. Thus in 2005­2006, I applied for and was successful in obtaining
a research grant to study the topic in a new government initiative to promote
better public policy research. This was an opportunity not only to research what
would be best for Hong Kong (in terms of both the need and manner of reform)
but also to stimulate interest and discussion in the community.
The project, which became known as the Hong Kong Civil Forfeiture
Project, was ...