Ambrose Lee

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Ambrose Lee Siu Kwong (Chinese: 李少光) IDSM JP is Secretary for Security of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China and a member of the Executive Council. He was appointed to his post in August 2003, replacing Regina Ip.

[edit] Background

Ambrose Lee is a Social Sciences graduate at The University of Hong Kong. He has also been trained at Tsinghua University in China, Oxford University in the United Kingdom and Harvard University in the United States.

He joined the civil service as an Immigration Officer in 1974. He became Assistant Director of Immigation in 1995 and was promoted two years later to Deputy Director of Immigration. He served as the Director of Immigration between 1998 and 2002. He was appointed as the Commissioner of the Independent Commission Against Corruption in July, 2002.

[edit] Controversial Deportations

Ambrose Lee was caught up in a series of deportations of human rights activists and Tibet supporters in April and May 2008.

On 26 April 2008, Jens Galschiot, Danish founder of The Color Orange, artist of the Pillar of Shame, a sculpture commemorating the 4th June Tiananmen massacre in Beijing, on arrival at the Hong Kong International Airport, was separated from his two sons, each of whom were detained for hours, interrogated, had their phones and cameras confiscated, escorted by a dozen armed police officers and put on an outbound flight.

On 29 April 2008, Matt Whitticase, Kate Woznow and Tsering Lama of the Free Tibet Student Movement were similarly detained, questioned, denied entry and deported.

On 29 April 2008, three Chinese writers including Chang Yu, a resident in Sweden and member of a group of imprisoned writers, were also detained, questioned, denied entry and deported.

On 30 April 2008, another Briton was also detained, questioned and denied entry and deported.

This series of actions has caused an outcry in Hong Kong, a city that prides itself on being free. There are also calls for Ambrose Lee to step down.

Preceded by: Regina Ip

Secretary for Security 2003-

Succeeded by: Incumbent