Hong Kong (dpa) - Police in Hong Kong were Tuesday facing an inquiry
into why they carry out 18 strip searches a day on suspects with some
claiming they are repeatedly ordered to undress.

Legislators have set up a sub-committee to investigate the practice
after hearing that more than one in five suspects detained between July
and September were strip-searched.

Many of the suspects strip-searched are women from mainland China
and other South-East Asian countries detained for prostitution and
related offences in the wealthy city of 6.9 million.

A hearing of the legislative council's security panel Monday heard
that of 8,086 people detained by police between July and September,
1,674 were fully strip-searched, having to remove all their clothes.

Human rights campaigners claim that as well as women arrested for
prostitution, strip searches were being used to intimidate people
involved in peaceful anti-government protests.

Activists protesting over the demolition of a historic pier and the
redevelopment of a celebrated street in the city were subjected to
strip searches after being arrested, they pointed out.

Police in Hong Kong last year came under fire for paying for sex
services from prostitutes in undercover operations to close down
brothels, a practice still widely used by officers. dpa