The Hong Kong Police Force (HKPF) has always attached great importance to communication and collaboration with the public whose support and cooperation allows its officers to do more with less. To cope with the needs of different community groups, HKPF has implemented various communication strategies for better community engagement.

CONNECT DIFFERENT COMMUNITY GROUPS, EXPAND ONLINE SERVICES

HKPF communicates with different community groups through various channels. For example, the Police Community Relations Office in each district maintains close communication with key district stakeholders. As a growing partner among many youths of Hong Kong over the decades, the Junior Police Call scheme has been continuously developed and currently has over 180,000 members. The Senior Police Call scheme, which targets the elderly, has attracted 8,000 members within only a few years of operation. These two schemes have greatly contributed to conveying crime prevention messages to the community and built mutual trust and partnership between the police and the public.

With the rapid development of the internet and to cater to the needs of netizens, HKPF has launched various social media platforms to enhance external communications. The online platforms provide the community with updated police information in a timely manner and share interesting or exclusive information with online users. For example, a photo capturing the bomb disposal operation of a 500 lb bomb found in Pok Fu Lam earlier this year has been shared on HKPF’s social media platforms to provide citizens with glimpses of the police’s activities inside the cordoned-off area.

ENHANCE MUTUAL TRUST AND CREATE A WIN-WIN SOLUTION

HKPF actively engages the public and communicates about its work in a transparent way by using social media platforms. For example, its Facebook page features the Briefing Support Unit (BSU), which assists in criminal investigations and court hearing. It does this by producing stereoscopic scale models of landmarks to re-enact crime scenes, thereby facilitating the understanding of the cases.

HKPF also values its partnership with the media. The Force Media Liaison Cadre (FMLC) was established in December 2015. It has about 190 members from different units who are responsible for on-the-ground media activities. They facilitate press activities without interrupting frontline officers’ operational roles, and also identify the most appropriate time and location for media interviews or other related activities. This ensures that both sides can complete their work in an efficient and effective way.

HKPF also actively organises media sharing sessions for police officers, especially frontline officers, from the Regions and 24 Police Districts to meet and interact with members of the media, and also share experiences and mutual challenges. For example, they gave tips on avoiding pepper spray which is sometimes used during police operations at public demonstrations. The participants found these sessions useful because they foster better understanding and enhance collaboration.

With its holistic strategies, HKPF facilitates co-operation between the police and the public. This public recognition motivates police officers to strive for excellence and to serve the community with dedication.