Hong Kong police have issued nearly 3,500 tickets for the alleged violation of social distancing restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic, of which only three were retracted.

The police told Apple Daily that officers have handed out 3,498 tickets, and 1,948 of those have paid the fines. Only three were retracted, believed to be a family of three that was fined at the Cityplaza mall in Tai Koo on Mother’s Day on May 10. The family received assistance from Democratic Party district councilor Andrew Chiu to fight the fines, and they were notified by the police in late August that their tickets were retracted.

The ticket system was established after the government introduced social distancing restrictions in March, banning gatherings from two people to 50 people at different periods. Those in violation of the rules would have to pay HK$1,500 (US$194).

The police said it would follow up on any unpaid fines which were past the due date. Residents could contact the Central Traffic Prosecutions Division if they had any enquiries or complaints over the tickets, and police would follow up in accordance with existing procedures. Residents could also defend their cases in court, the police said.

Democratic Party lawmaker Lam Cheuk-ting, who had received two tickets, said many residents who had not paid their fines planned to contest them in court. He said police had already issued almost 100 fines to his party colleagues.

Many innocent residents may have already paid the fines, fearing lengthy procedures, Lam said. He argued the police had abused the system by randomly giving out tickets to anyone found inside a loosely setup cordon area, without considering whether they were journalists or lawmakers doing their job.

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