The police force respects the freedom of the press and will only set up "press zones" when it is necessary, said Commissioner of Police Dick Lee after a meeting with four journalist associations Thursday morning.

The media guilds sought the meeting with the police after reporters were carried away from the Central Government Offices, where a protest was taking place on April 2.

And on Tuesday, policemen stopped a Cable TV cameraman from filming protesters with a petition outside the central government's liaison office in Hong Kong.

The police chief admitted that since there are countless daily contacts between police officers and the media, disagreements and conflicts are inevitable.

"It is necessary for police to control the scene for large-scale activities, especially petitions, but we also understand reporters have a duty to cover news," he said.

"The police force fully respects freedom of the press. We hope we can minimize the conflicts by way of better communication," Lee stressed.

It has been agreed that, when possible, the size of the 'press zone' will be discussed between frontline police officers and reporters on the spot, said Mak Yin-ting, honorary secretary of the Hong Kong Journalists' Association, after the meeting.

"The police should seek reporters' consent on the size and boundary of 'press zones'," she said.

Mak also hoped policemen and journalists can hold more talks in future to strengthen communication and deepen understanding for each other's jobs.

In a related development, a senior police officer told legislators that an operation took place to remove protesters from outside the Central Government Offices in the early hours of April 2.

The police intended to remove about 80 people to a "protest zone" in order to clear the carpark entrance for civil servants coming to work.

"We also had to remove several stubborn reporters who had gone out of the 'press zone' and obstructed us from discharging our duty," Lee Wai-lam, district commander of Central, told the Legislative Council Security Panel Thursday.

"Only minimum force was used and they were carried away after they were repeatedly asked to stay behind the barriers.

"Most reporters co-operated with us. But some even incited the protesters to ignore us."

(China Daily HK Edition April 9, 2004)