Mandatory Reporting of Child Abuse Ordinance takes effect
發佈日期: 2026-01-20 20:46
TVB News
The Mandatory Reporting of Child Abuse Ordinance came into effect on Tuesday.
Specified professionals in sectors such as education and social welfare who fail to comply with obligations under the ordinance could face penalties, including a three-month imprisonment.
Aiming to protect children under the age of 18, the new ordinance applies to 25 categories of professionals in the social welfare, education and healthcare sectors, requiring them to report suspected serious child abuse cases that come to their notice during their work.
These include: child care workers, social workers, teaching staff, pharmacists, nurses and medical practitioners.
Those who violate the ordinance or obstruct a specified professional from reporting a suspected case can receive a sentence of up to three months in jail and a fine of 50,000 dollars.
But several situations are exempted. For instance, if serious harm is caused by an accident and not by negligence from a child's guardian.
A kindergarten's principle said that teachers would observe students' relations with their parents and carers more regularly from now on.
The headmaster said children's mental status could be another sign for teachers to determine if students might have been abused.
The government has set up two residential child care centres to handle a potential increase in reported child abuse cases.
