Officers look at policing in Sweden
With the arrangement made by Police College, a Force delegation, led by Chief Inspector Andrew Gilhooly and comprising two Senior Inspectors, two Sergeants and six Police Constables, visited the Swedish National Police Academy in Stockholm, from November 1 to 7. The objective of this study visit was to share knowledge and experience in three policing areas: Domestic Violence, Basic Tactics Training, and Conflict Resolution and Negotiation. It was the first Force delegation to Sweden in recent years.
At the start of the visit, the delegation was welcomed by the Deputy Director of Studies, Mr Joakim Jansson, and Superintendent of the Division for International Affairs, Mr Michael Isdahl, who gave an overview of the structure, recruitment and basic training of the Swedish National Police.
The delegation quickly found the differences in policing environments between Hong Kong and Sweden. Sweden has a population of around nine million and a land surface of 449 964 sq. km. The country has a low population density of 21 inhabitants per square kilometre, mostly concentrated in the southern part of the country. The Swedish National Police Service has a staff of 28 500, of whom 20 000 are police officers (26 per cent women) and 8 500 are civilian staff (70 per cent women), working in 21 policing districts or authorities.
Delegation members learned that the Swedish National Police Academy has two recruitments each year, one in March and the other in September. After an admission test, recruits will undergo basic training at three locations in Sweden: the academy and a university at Umea and Vaxjo. Distance learning courses, comprising the same subjects, contents and durations as the courses run on campus, are provided for prospective police officers, allowing them to study at their homes, which may be far away from the main centres of learning.
They also learned that the Swedish Police's basic training lasts for two and a half years, consisting of five semesters. Emphasis is placed on inter-personal skills, conflict resolution and de-escalation of confrontational situations while dealing with members of the public. On graduation, recruits were posted to one of the 21 Police Districts to join uniform patrols or crime teams.
Delegation members had an opportunity to observe recruits' practical exercises in their second semester of training, with the Superintendent in charge of tactics training, Mr Hans Alven, guiding them during a series of exercises on stop-and-question, disorderly conduct, noise complaints and domestic conflicts.
The delegation was also briefed on domestic violence and violent crime in family relationships. As is the case in Hong Kong, Sweden takes domestic violence seriously and considers it a policing priority. This subject was discussed in depth, covering legislation, police procedures, departmental responsibilities and social welfare provisions. Despite the differences in legal systems, the protocols and methodologies are in fact very similar, both focusing on providing a first class service to victimised families and their children.
During a visit to the Vasterort Police District, the delegation shared knowledge and experience of domestic violence with frontline investigators and social workers. Of great interest was an ongoing initiative, known as Project KARIN, to enhance the efforts of both the social welfare and police departments. In this pilot scheme, social workers and police are housed under the same roof to facilitate after-care, protective, and investigative process to minimise inconvenience to victims and their families.
The delegation also visited one of the three Tactical Response Units responsible for armed intervention, dealing with barricaded suspects and resolution of hostage situations. They met Mr Paul Hansson, Head of the Negotiation Section and Crisis Negotiation Coordinator, who briefed them on the fully integrated and coordinated approach of the tactical firearms teams and negotiators to handle violence.
The study visit offered delegation members a valuable opportunity to observe policing in a different culture and to gain an insight into other policing concepts.
A report on the study visit, focusing on domestic violence, will be available in the Police College Library.
Superintendent
Hans
Alven describes tactics training to delegation members on the
exercise ground