In September 2020, the Public Relations Wing (PR Wing) (formerly known as the Police Public Relations Branch) issued the first special edition of OffBeat to unfold the stories of Force members and different formations in the format of a thematic report. In the past four years, from the first issue, which records the Force safeguarding Hong Kong during Operation TIDERIDER, to the latest tenth issue commemorating the 180th anniversary of the Force, the special editions serve as an additional window for citizens to understand the Force.

After 50 months of dedicated effort, the evident achievements of the special editions should be credited to the production team. Woman Police Constable Ping of PR Wing is a senior member responsible for research and interview coordination from the first to the tenth issue. Ping grinned, “I had no experience in publishing at all. When I first arrived, I was a ‘blank sheet’, just like the special edition under preparation at the time.”

As a novice editor, Ping worked hard to catch up with the progress and tried to use photos of different perspectives to compare the effects so that the most realistic and professional side of her colleagues could be displayed. “We had to search for photos that can match the theme from the massive photos taken on site in each district. In just one day, nearly 1 000 photos have been taken for some operations. You can imagine how much work is involved.”

Hard work pays. The first special edition was widely echoed and acclaimed. Subsequently, special editions were published when necessary, with more diversified themes ranging from rebutting rumours to animal protection. Ping witnessed the growth of her abilities during the production. When it came to the fourth special edition, which was a collection of compliments from citizens, she had gone from being a newbie to the leading production coordinator. In the process, Ping read many letters of appreciation from citizens. “Although it was stressful to shoulder heavy responsibilities, I cherished the opportunity to produce this special edition as I could compile the achievements and glories of colleagues from different Districts at various ranks into a book and tell good police stories.”

Her most unforgettable issue was the one that was published in March 2022, recording the Force’s all-out anti-epidemic efforts. “The Chinese title alone took us significant effort. After a series of meetings, we voted to choose the title from the 20 shortlisted candidates in view of its simplicity, directness and impact.”

She pointed out that many isolation areas where merely entry of staff was allowed were set up during the epidemic. Ping and her colleagues made countless phone calls, asking colleagues if they had taken photos of working inside the epidemic areas. After all, a photo is worth a thousand words. “Most of these photos were taken hastily with mobile phones. Although their composition and quality are inferior to those of professional photographers, they show a sense of reality because they are down-to-earth.” The click-through rate of this book turned out to be very high, allowing more citizens to understand the contribution of Force members in fighting the epidemic.

For the tenth special edition that commemorates the 180th anniversary of the Force, 18 colleagues from six major formations, including the Commissioner, were interviewed with the concept “from junior staff to the Commissioner”. Ping shared, “Although each interviewee has a completely different experience, every piece is heartfelt and has moved me into tears. I hope readers will enjoy reading the tenth special edition I’ve contributed to!”