Page 146 - The History of the Royal Army Veterinary Corps 1962–2021

THE HISTORY OF THE ROYAL ARMY VETERINARY CORPS 1962 – 2021
conditions ran alongside a severe housing shortage. There was a labour surplus, especially at the level of manual labourers and, meanwhile, across the border, South China’s farming community had just suffered two years of bad weather – drought at first, followed by torrential rains and floods convening to create a perfect storm of ruined crops. Unsurprisingly, rumours about a better life over the border soon spread amongst China’s peasant farmers. Very soon the rumours about the easy living and the land flowing with milk sparked action. With hope in their hearts many of the farmers took the decision to move to Hong Kong where they could start life afresh.
At the beginning of 1979, the desperate farmers and peasants were crossing the border illegally at an average rate of two hundred and forty-six per day. It was a situation that the Hong Kong Government soon found intolerable and it was decided that positive steps needed to be taken to stem the constant flow. One of the ideas under discussion was the possible use of dogs, both as a detection device and an arresting power. Conse- quently, a small trial Dog Section of six men and three dogs was formed in May 1979 under the supervision of Captain Peter Roffey and Sgt Bob Davies.
Just two weeks into the training and the first illegal immigrant was arrested by LCpl Ho Kam Chung during a training exercise at Sha Tau Kok on the eastern end of the border. The evidence was then irrefutable – dogs were ideally suited to this type of anti-illegal immigrant operation and so more men and dogs were transferred from the Guard Dog Section to bring the total border patrol team up to twelve men handling six dogs. Their capture rate was amazing – seven hundred and ten illegal immigrants had been caught by the six dogs by the end of 1979 and, as a result, authority was given to form the Specialist Dog Group with an establishment of one hundred and seven men and forty-two dogs (thirty-six Sweep and six Tracker dogs).16
It was not the first time the British Army had been used on the Border. Soldier Magazine picked up on this in 1968 when it reported: “The Army’s role on the border is to keep the temperature down, to keep life running normally without imposing a great deal of military control. It has to ensure that no illegal crossings take place; at present they are not on any scale – thanks to the Chinese authorities on the other side.” The article echoed the events of
8th July 1967, several months after the last Hong Kong Emergency, when in Sha Tau Kok, a village divided by the border of Hong Kong and China, machine gun fire resounded around the buildings. The target was five Hong Kong Policeman, who were preparing to deal with an unruly Communist crowd. Five policemen were killed and thirteen wounded. Another Emergency had begun, and for another five months, more incidents took place in this location and other border points including Hong Kong’s urban areas.17
On 11th March 1980, at 0100 hours, the RAVC dog handlers of the Unit reached an impressive landmark when they captured their 1000th illegal immigrant and credited it to the dogs. This was recorded as the largest capture, in any form, made by Army dogs during the Corps history. A sense of pride spread through the Unit and rightly so, as this feat was achieved with only six dogs and twelve handlers and, crucially, they had only been operational since the Dog Section was formed in May 1979.
Tasked with capturing and deterring illegal immigrants the Section, at that time, was working within the parameters of the ‘touch base’ policy which allowed any illegal immigrant who made it to the teeming streets of Kowloon and Hong Kong to register as a Hong Kong citizen. However, in October 1980 this policy was thrown out, in favour of a much harsher approach involving ID cards and work registrations. And, to tighten the system further – any illegal immigrant reaching the city would be immediately returned to China.
For those who recall the impressive result of the thousandth ‘capture’ there will be recollections of the Section’s accommodation back then. The dogs and handlers of the Section were housed in the converted stables at Casino Lines where they were completely self-contained right down to having an automatic washing machine although, in true tradition, the handlers preferred to use the horse trough for their laundry!
As luxuries go, the Unit was also the proud owner of its own canteen in Sek Kong which had been designed for the Chinese dog handlers and for the few members of the British RAVC who were able to use chopsticks – knives, forks and spoons were not supplied. The deliberate move to cater essentially for our Asian handlers was recognised as being necessary as no other, even similar facility existed within Sek Kong Garrison. It was just one of several ‘attractions’ for the dog draft escorts who were roped in to do a spell along the border.
16 Chiron Calling article ‘The Border Detachment HK DASU RAVC’ dated May 1988.
17 Soldier Magazine article dated August 1968.
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