HONG KONG: A 16-year-old girl convicted on drug trafficking charges has chosen to go to jail in preference to a lighter punishment at a treatment facility. Ip Ka-lei told the court she thought a jail sentence would be shorter. District Judge Josiah Lam Wai-kuen reprimanded the girl, saying she appeared to have failed to learn from her mistake. Then he handed her a three-year sentence.

Ip told the court through her lawyer that she does not want to be sent to the center.

When asked by judge Lam for the reason, Ip told the court that she realized that she could learn discipline at the training center. But she believed the maximum term of three years at the center to be too long. She said she preferred imprisonment in the belief that she would serve less time, meaning she could finish her education earlier.

Judge Lam expressed dismay at the young woman's preference. He noted that while the girl claimed to be remorseful, what proved most important to her after four months in remand was the duration of her punishment.

The judge said the girl was unable and unwilling to learn from her mistakes.

He said prison was his only alternative, since sentencing Ip to a training center would be a waste of resources.

The judge said the court normally does not pass sentence based on the preference of an accused, but the cooperation of an offender is necessary for rehabilitation to work.

Considering Ip pleaded guilty, judge Lam sentenced her to three years, giving her a one-third reduction in sentence from the outset.

The judge added that many traffickers use youngsters to deliver drugs in the belief that courts will be lenient toward youthful offenders.

He said drug trafficking is a serious offence and the youth of the offender is no mitigation of the crime.

Ip's family refused to answer reporters' questions as they left the court.

Ip, a secondary student at Yan Chai Hospital Tung Chi Ying Memorial Secondary School, was arrested by police at her home in Sha Tin in March. Police found 27.53 grams of white powder in her possession. Some 21.52 grams proved to be ketamine worth HK$2,600.

The girl admitted she was in possession of the drug and delivered it to male classmates. She told the police that she had delivered drugs a few times.

In handing down the sentence, Judge Lam said a training center for young offenders would be more suitable for Ip.

Training periods range from a minimum of six months to a maximum of three years. Inmates of the center are required to attend half-day classes from primary to secondary levels. They are also required to take a half-day of vocational training, according to information provided by the Correctional Services Department.

The department assists inmates to find placements in the Construction Industry Training Authority and the Vocational Training Council if they wish to continue job training after they are released. Those remanded to the center remain on probation for three years after release.

A total of 141 male and six female young offenders were admitted to training centers last year, the Correctional Services Department said.

Hong Kong Children and Youth Services social work supervisor Kent Lam Kwok-keung said Ip's case is not rare. Many youngsters prefer imprisonment, he said.

"This situation has come about because the youngsters don't really understand the seriousness of a jail term. They just want to be done with their punishments, so they chose whichever punishment is the shortest. It is very silly to go for the jail term instead of the training center," he said. "But I have to say this is a common misunderstanding among youths. They can be rather short-sighted."

Chan Siu-cheuk, principal of the city's only drug rehabilitation school Zheng Sheng College, called Ip's choice silly.

"What a shame. The girl is still very young. She took a risk when she told the judge she would rather go to jail than go to the training center, but she made a mistake," he said.

(HK Edition 07/25/2009 page4)