Why people want to be a police officer?  Is it for attractive remuneration and fringe benefits, or for a challenging and diverse job?  Different officers might give different answers. For Woman Senior Inspector Hui Yee-wai from Commercial Crime Bureau, who is a volunteer worker for the Police Negotiation Cadre (PNC) and the Suicide Prevention Hotline, the answer was: "The job allows me to earn a living and help people.  Nothing is better than that."  By now she has more ideas about "why become a police officer".  Here she tells her story behind the Force crest.

 

 

The core responsibility of police is protecting life and property.  Over the past 10 years, I have done my best to discharge my duties.  Protecting life and property has long become a goal and driving force of my job.  In the past, I had witnessed my colleagues getting hurt or even losing their lives while saving people. This is a deep grief to me, but I realise that the police are duty-bound to protect the public.  I do hope the sacrifice of those police officers would inspire people and the value of life would mean more to all.

 

Yet, I have also come across many cases of people taking their own lives. Some chose to commit suicide and some turned to dangerous drugs. They got on my nerves as if they had thrown away my precious things into the sea.  Therefore, I volunteered to work for the Suicide Prevention Hotline and became a member of the PNC, hoping people would be motivated to treasure and respect life through interaction and communication.  In fact, I have got a better understanding of life from cases of negotiation.

 

 

One day I was told to report for duty.  The target of negotiation was an ex-police officer.  He locked himself up together with his children in his flat following a quarrel with his wife. He was drunk, speaking incoherently and wielding weapons. Emergency Unit officers put on protective gear outside the flat before taking action.

 

To handle problems impartially, we have to stay calm and put aside our emotions.  After all, police officers are human beings with personal feelings.  If we always hide our feelings and fail to relieve pressure, we might suffer from negative emotions without knowing it.

 

After hours of "conversation", the target started to regain consciousness and was able to speak sensibly. He let us enter his flat and showed the commendation awards he had got for busting crimes. Then he spoke of the changes in his relationship with his family after leaving the Force.

 

I am aware that "playing the role" of a tough guy is no easy task. The target had lost his job and had financial difficulties, leading to his emotional outburst.  In our conversation, I felt that he treasured and loved his family, but his relationship with the family worsened because of his hot temper. He was helpless and required assistance so we tried our best to offer proper counselling.

 

 

It is reasonable for the public to have high expectations of police, which motivate us to get the job done. As such, we have to remain restrained in face of conflicts at work, and we even have to be cautious in leaving messages in the social media. The long-term requirement to pay attention to personal manners on any occasion will bring more pressure to police officers. Therefore, it is very important for us to learn to relieve our pressure and take care of our emotions.

 

The PNC aims to save life and stave off crises.  As negotiators, we have to look at things and handle problems with a positive approach.  We always have to maintain a balanced mind for helping people.  The same approach also works for police officers.  Staying positive will definitely help to relieve work pressure.