AFCD Policy – What is it?
On the 22nd September 2006, the AMOD attempted to relocate a buffalo herd from the Shap Long villages in South Lantau. Due to poor planning or inexperience, the operation ended in disaster. Of the 18 buffalo tranquilised for relocation 17 never made it. Injured or suffocated during transport, packed too tightly in the AFCD trucks. Only one survived, able to breathe by being atop the pile of its herd. Justification for the relocation has never been shared by the AFCD.
“AFCD share the wish of providing an
environment that the residents and stray cattle/buffaloes could live harmoniously”Mrs Stella Hung
Director ACFD – 14 November 2006
Following public outcry, the AFCD reviewed its policies and procedures. In a LegCo meeting on November 14, 2006, the Director of the AFCD confirmed their commitment to maintain the bovine population of South Lantau stating the policy was to:
“maintain the bovine population of South Lantau at a sustainable level.” – Mrs Stella Hung
Director ACFD – 14 November 2006
The policy of herd management and co-existence was publicly confirmed.
Current Situation
In 2024, the Director of the AFCD reaffirmed to the Legislative Council (LegCo) that this policy remained in effect. In response to questions raised by LegCo member Dr. Hon Tik Chi Yuen, Dr. Ho Chin Ho (Kenny), acting on behalf of the Director of the AFCD, stated:
“the AFCD has been implementing the Capture-Sterilise-Relocate (CSR) programme to control the number of stray cattle by sterilising them, so as to minimize the nuisance caused by them to the public and the public safety risk posed by them, and to ensure that they can co-exist harmoniously with the public.” – Director of the AFCD, 5 March 2024
Despite 19 years of public assurances that the future of the bovine policy in South Lantau was secure, investigations have revealed that the actions of the AWOD team are in direct contradiction to the statements made by the Director of the AFCD in LegCo, as well as to those made to animal welfare organisations and the residents of Hong Kong.
In December 2024, the AFCD publically revealled that the CSR program had been effective in rendering the cattle population unsustainable …
“Regarding those brown cattle on Lantau, we have not seen any newborns since 2019. It is expected the number of brown cattle on Lantau will decrease over the next 5 -10 years.” AFCD – December 2024
Over the past two years, the AFCD has consistently refused to provide similar data for the buffalo population, including a breakdown of sterilized versus unsterilized buffalo and the targets they are working towards. It appears that such information is only shared with the public once the long-term eradication of the herds has been confirmed.
Local animal welfare groups have confirmed that there are no longer any breeding pairs of buffalo in Mui Wo, and within the Pui O and Shap Long herds, only one active male and two unneutered females remain
Animal Welfare (Operations) Division (AWOD)
The AWOD team within Dr. Sit’s Inspection & Quarantine Branch is led by Senior Veterinary Officer Dr. Bi Dan (Denise). Dr. Chan Chi Ching (Jason) oversees the teams responsible for capturing and relocating the buffalo, as well as for sterilising both the bulls and cows.
In a recorded interview with local animal welfare groups on 12 November 2024, Dr. Chan confirmed that there was no overall monitoring of the percentage of the herd that had been sterilized, nor was there a specific target his team was working towards. He also acknowledged that there were no safeguards in place to ensure the herd’s sustainability. As a mitigation measure, Dr. Chan revealed that the AFCD was breeding buffalo at their Yuen Long farm, which could be used to replenish the population if necessary:
“We have like sort of backup plan. We have like breeding herds in our farm. We have buffaloes from Lantau as well. We had 22 babies last year from in our farm.”
He also stated that this was his personal plan, and that senior management at the AFCD were neither aware of nor in agreement with it:
“I hope like don’t tell my boss about this, OK. My, my boss sort of know about this, but this is sort of a backup plan…. this is only my personal plan, OK? Don’t, don’t tell my boss”
It remains unclear whether Dr. Chan intended to personally fund this operation or if public funds would be involved. The request to keep the knowledge of sharing details of the program with the AFCD Snr Management should not come as a surprise given the lack of cohesion across the department.
Regardless, the approach of eradicating the buffalo on South Lantau only to replace them with buffalo from Yuen Long at public expense can only be seen as a flagrant misuse of time and public money.
Sustainable Lantau Office (SLO)
The SLO was setup in 2017 with the remit to “take forward the planning, assessment, design and implementation of various development projects and initiatives in conservation, local improvement and leisure and recreation in Lantau in a well prioritised, coordinated and integrated manner.”. The vision is “balancing development and conservation” whilst “ providing new opportunities associated with land and housing supply, economic development, commerce and trade, leisure, recreation and tourism, and at the same time enhancing the conservation of our natural, cultural and heritage resources.”. In short, the SLO has been “has been adhering to the overall principle of ‘Development in the North and Conservation for the South’”
The SLO recognises the importance of conserving the bovine population of South Lantau due to its cultural and heritage value. The SLO website image above highlights the South Lantau bovine as part of the East Lantau Cultural Legacy. In 2018, the SLO launched the Lantau Conservation Fund (LCF), a HK$1 billion initiative aimed at… “promote conservation of Lantau … and support projects that would contribute to the overall conservation of Lantau, raise community awareness on the conservation of Lantau, and engage the community to put conservation into practice.”
The Government seems to be promoting South Lantau as a destination to boost tourism and highlight its rich ecology. However, the actions of the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) suggest that the government is simultaneously contributing to the loss of biodiversity and the destruction of the ecosystem. This conflicting approach appears to be a waste of public funds, with two government departments working at cross purposes.
It is difficult to fully assess the AFCD’s actions, particularly regarding their impact on local biodiversity and the environment, as they do not seem to follow a cohesive policy. At times, their efforts appear inconsistent with the broader objectives outlined by AFCD leadership, further complicating the evaluation of their approach.
We welcome the Ombudsman’s investigation of the points mentioned above, with the aim of proposing recommendations that will align government departments, reduce waste and inefficiency, and better serve the broader public interests of the citizens of Hong Kong.