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Australian Federal Police - Platypus Journal/Magazine |
Policing: What does it really mean?
At the Attestation and Award Conferral Ceremony for members of New Agent Qualifying Program 2/99 on October 15, , Director, Australian Institute of Police Management, highlighted the important role police occupy within the community, and the impact their duties have on the lives of people around the world.
He said that police held a unique place in society, given their responsibility for helping to maintain the quality of life of members of the communities they protect.
Throughout their careers, the actions and decisions made by police can influence the livelihoods of the public. As such, Professor Rohl offered words of advice to ensure this role is carried out to the maximum benefit of both police and the public.
Days such as today are occasions for much celebration. The attestation of new members is an occasion of considerable pride for every member of the Australian Federal Police because it symbolises organisational renewal — the arrival of new people, a new generation, new ideas and new thinking.
It is important to take the time to celebrate those milestones which act as the markers in our lives. As members of the various groups being recognised in today's ceremony, each of you has attained an important milestone in your life and in your career.
On behalf of the many guests and visitors present, I congratulate the new agents from the New Agent Qualifying Program 2/99, who were sworn into the AFP. We congratulate each of you on your decision to join the AFP and in so doing, enter the profession of policing.
We congratulate those of you who received the Diploma of Policing and those who successfully completed the Trainee Scientific Officers Course.
I want to publicly thank and congratulate your teachers. I know, from first hand experience, of their commitment and dedication. Your success is also an occasion of great pride for them.
I am fortunate to work with people in leadership positions, and with others aspiring to them. I work with leaders within Australia and internationally, within policing and external to it — and they are mostly of the view that succession planning and preparation for leadership should start as soon as a person joins an organisation, or before.
It wasn't always like this in policing. Fifteen years ago, or even less, career progression was slow and cumbersome and promotion was based mainly on seniority. This is no longer the case. You've joined the AFP at a time of great change and great opportunity.
You've joined at a time when good policing is being defined much more globally and by a community that is more critical, better educated and more demanding, and where government places a strong emphasis on accountability, ethics and transparency of action. Modern policing is complex, demanding and intellectually challenging.
Of recent times, our community values have changed — we are more concerned with the sustainability of our environment, conservation of our precious resources, and the preservation of those icons which have marked both our presence and progress on the planet. We are also concerned about human rights, the dignity of individuals, reconciliation, tolerance for diversity, and our civil obligations and responsibilities.
Our organisations are changing also. The best organisations, like the AFP, are those underpinned by guiding principles which define and describe organisational values and standards.
Principles have an educative function: they establish standards, set expectations, and allow for the flexibility of people and organisations to accommodate the uncertainties of a constantly changing environment.
Modern, western democratic policing was established on a set of guiding principles proposed by Sir Robert Peel when he introduced the Metropolitan Police Act into the House of Commons in 1829. Those principles are as relevant today as they were then, and every police officer acknowledges them when they take the oath or affirmation of office.
Some time ago, I was reading about the career of General Colin Powell, whom many of you will remember was the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff at the time of Operation Desert Shield. You don't get to that position by accident. During his career, he developed a collection of rules and maxims (which his biographer described as his guiding principles), which he used as a practical road map for his daily decision making. They served him well.
I encourage each of you to think about developing some guiding principles for yourself. If you choose to do this, there are some simple rules to follow: they should be eminently sensible, practical, realistic and accessible — and they should be visible. You should keep them where you can see them and reflect on them every day.
I would like to use this occasional address to suggest a number of guiding principles that you might adopt.
1. Keep the faith
2. Respect all citizens
3. Know your profession
4. Determine always to make a difference
5. Take care of yourself and be kind to each other
6. Respect the office of commissioner
7. Fight for the future — not the past
8. Celebrate your heroes and your successes
When a police officer takes the oath or affirmation of office, he or she does so using a set of words in which you declare before everyone present that you will uphold the law, serve and protect the community and do so in such a way as to bring credit upon yourselves and your organisation. You are making a most serious promise.
In return, the members of your community are giving you the most unique and awesome authority to invoke the criminal process — to search, seize, enter, detain, prosecute and properly secure conviction.
I urge you, therefore, never to forget today — the pride you feel in yourselves, the pride you bring to your families and the trust the community is giving to you.
Keep your oath or affirmation nearby and re-read it from time to time.
The law is imperfect, but it is the only system communities have of agreeing on the rules they believe essential for them to live together in harmony.
In all societies there are law makers and law enforcers. Democratic societies worked out a long time ago that it is smart to keep these two functions separate. Police officers don't make the law — they are the first link in the chain we call the justice system.
As police officers, you are given, as I've just said, unique and awesome powers to both ‘interpret' the law, and within a set of guidelines, the discretion to enforce it and maintain the peace.
Few jobs require such split-second thinking or judgement as policing, or carry with them the potential for such post-judgement analysis. Judgement is something that you develop over time. It's not meant to come easily.
The best the community can ask is that you make your decisions in good faith. If you do this, and value your integrity, you will have kept the promise you made today.
On the face of things, this point should seem self evident and not worthy of special mention — and of course, under ordinary circumstances, you would be quite right. But police and other professionals often find themselves working with people in less than ordinary circumstances.
This was brought home to me a few years ago when Professor Eric Single and I reviewed the National Drug Strategy. Part of our task was to interview people from various organisations who were involved in one way or another with people who were the users and abusers of both legal and illegal drugs, their carers, members of their families and also police officers.
Clearly, the police had a particularly difficult job. At one level they would have to deal with domestic violence and public disorder often brought about from alcohol abuse. At another level, they would deal with the suppliers and traffickers of illicit drugs and people who had become hopelessly addicted to them.
We particularly noticed the language used by many young officers to describe the people they dealt with, irrespective of whether they were users, dealers or suppliers. It was often derogatory.
My point is that our choice of language often colours the way we see and deal with people. If we say or do things often enough it becomes a habit, and can ultimately influence our belief systems.
For this reason I would urge you to resist using slang or derogatory language when describing people or events amongst yourselves but particularly when you are dealing with members of the public. Set high standards for yourselves and expect them from your colleagues.
Eric Single told me that in Holland, the police now refer to drug addicts as ‘Dutch citizens who take drugs'.
Whether you realise it or not, police officers are real role models in the community. How you speak and behave will be judged more harshly because you are so respected.
Respect all citizens - in Holland,
the police refer to drug addicts as
'Dutch citizens who takedrugs'.
Act professionally in all of your dealings with the public, irrespective of the circumstances, provide everyone with a service which is fair and equitable irrespective of their situation, race, colour, gender, political or philosophical persuasion. Respect all citizens!
You are the new custodians of your profession, and as such, you have a responsibility to leave it better for your stewardship.
If you are fascinated and interested in every aspect of your profession — its past, its present and its future — it will be easier for you to be an impressive advocate for it and for the AFP.
You could create an entire game of Trivial Pursuit out of questions like:
• What is the origin of the term ‘police'?
• How many ‘principles' did Sir Robert Peel propose?
• When was the term ‘policeman' first used?
• How did the nickname ‘copper' originate and why is it a good idea not to use it?
• Why are police vehicles often called ‘paddy wagons'?
• Why do the police have two patron saints?
• Why did Honore de Balzac describe policing as the noblest of the professions?
• When and why did police organisations adopt the blue and white checkered band as its symbol?
• Why is Police Remembrance Day held each year on September 29?
• When and why was the first police force established in Australia?
There can be no doubt that the past is interesting — but it's the present and the future that matter most. To contribute to the future, you must first know, and be fascinated by, the past.
Some people work in jobs that they find mind numbing and boring. Others work in jobs that are intellectually stimulating but otherwise not greatly rewarding. Police officers, on the other hand, do work that ‘really makes a difference'.
No matter what aspect of policing you might be doing, determine to do it well. Your actions will impact either directly or indirectly on the lives of people. Make sure they impact for the best. Accept responsibility, be accountable for your actions — and for the actions of your colleagues.
Determine to overcome frustration. Remember that our real worth to our organisations (and the community we serve) is not our experience or our qualifications, but rather the value we add to our organisations. Unless we are adding value, we are only treading water.
Remember also, that every problem has a solution. Determine to become known as problem solvers, not problem makers. And, when some of your colleagues complain about resources — which we all do from time to time — remember the only thing governments give freely these days is advice.
Determine that through the quality of your work, you will always make a difference and personally contribute to advancing the reputation of the AFP.
While this may seem self-evident, and even a bit soft, it is not meant to be.
Policing, like all important work, can be stressful. It can also be dangerous at times. If you are under pressure, tired, or not on top of things, your judgement can be impaired. You owe it to yourselves and your colleagues to look after your physical and mental health.
Having worked closely with police officers for a long time, it is very clear to me that policing is much more than a job for many — for some it is almost an addiction. Be passionate about it, make it your career, but keep it in perspective. Some people become so absorbed in their daily work that they fail to take good care of themselves.
Take time to plan for the future, become a consummate professional — keep fit, build and nurture friendships both within and external to the job, and look after your families.
There may come a time when you, or one of your colleagues, is having difficulties — they may be personal, or they may be work-related. It doesn't matter. Ask for help, or give it as circumstances require. One of the great features of belonging to a profession is that you have the support of your colleagues for just these occasions. Be there to support one another. Don't be too fast to judge.
Good policing is not about individualism; it is about teamwork. It is not about the power of one, but rather, as Janet Holmes a Court likes to say, "the might of many".
It's not until you're overseas and away from Australia that you can understand how dysfunctional and unpleasant that perverse streak in the Australian psyche — the ‘tall poppy syndrome' — really is. It surfaces in all aspects of Australian life, with the exception perhaps of our sporting heroes.
Other cultures are very different. You can't help noticing how Americans like their leaders — and they like their winners. The novelist, Tom Wolfe, described the difference between Americans and Canadians, who we resemble, this way ". . . Americans distrust their institutions and adulate their leaders, whilst Canadians venerate their institutions and are suspicious of their leaders as soon as they take office."
We see this time and time again in Australia. We saw it recently in some State elections.
I raise this point because, I have observed over the last few years a trend in policing which seems to me to be counter-productive to what it means to be a professional. It is a propensity for police officers in most of our jurisdictions to be publicly critical of their commissioner.
The irony is that a few years ago, this simply would not have been permitted. It was the commissioners who, as part of their leadership in transforming policing, created an environment where public comment was welcome.
There is, of course, a significant difference between comment and criticism. There is a place for both. They should be handled differently. Respect your leaders!
The distinguished English scientist, Sir Ieuan Maddock said, "To cherish traditions, old buildings, ancient cultures and graceful lifestyles is a worthy thing — but in the world of technology, to cling to outmoded methods of manufacture, old product lines, old markets or old attitudes among management and workers, is a prescription for suicide"(New Scientist, 1982).
He said this in 1982, long before the microchip, e-commerce and the other technological advances that are commonplace today.
Today's technological environment is a far cry
from that of a few yers ago, and no doubt, that of the future
Towards the end of the 1980s, policing in Australia began the process of transformation from occupational to professional status. While much has been achieved in the past decade, there is still more to do.
Commissioner Palmer says that the "way we do our business is even more important than the business we do." Leaders know that the fundamental problem confronting organisations today is not structural, it is cultural and attitudinal. The emphasis has to be on how we work together and on the many ways and levels we relate to one another.
The industrial movement of the 20th century provided many with a job for life, often with one employer. But as we approach the 21st century, things are very different. The rules have changed. Now we must position ourselves for a lifetime of employment, be it with one or a number of employers.
While the best industrial associations know this, and have adapted to meet the needs of their members accordingly, others, it seems to me, want to fight for the past, not the future. In times of change, it's simply not possible to progress and go backwards at the same time.
You've joined the AFP without any baggage, you've also chosen to join a profession — ensure the movement for professionalism maintains its momentum. Take personal control of your future, seek opportunities for your professional development and also for mobility within the Commonwealth.
Think carefully about the choices you will be asked to make. Hang out with the best, and remember the words of Mark Twain: "I am concerned about the future, because that's where I'm going to spend the rest of my life."
In popular terms, a hero is someone much admired for their achievements and their noble qualities.
Policing produces different sorts of heroes — some distinguished by acts of personal bravery, others because of the exceptional way they do their work and others because of their outstanding leadership.
In the main, police officers are ordinary people who are occasionally called upon to do extraordinary things. As a community, we know this, we are grateful and we respect you.
Hardly a week goes by that we do not hear of an act of personal bravery by a police officer.
How many anonymous heroes has the AFP produced in these past months in East Timor? Certainly Alan Mills — a former Assistant Commissioner and General Manager in the AFP who led the United Nations team so capably — is a hero.
On October 1, Victorian Police Sergeant Peter Lukaitis — who, when shot by a gunman at Bendigo, threw himself across his senior officer because he was wearing a bulletproof vest — is a hero.
The quiet achievers are also heroes. Senior Constable Adrian England was recently named the 1999 Western Australian Police Officer of the Year. He was nominated for the award by both sides of the forest debate — the Western Australian Forest Alliance and the Forest Protection Society — for continually defusing volatile confrontations in the forests. Surely, he is a hero because he can be much admired for doing his job outstandingly.
Many of our current and past police commissioners are heroes too. I know this because I have now worked closely with 27 commissioners. Leadership is not easy — its not supposed to be, but it is essential.
When the history books are written, I'm sure the 1990s will be remembered as the decade which separated the past from the future, and a time which produced exceptional leaders.
Celebrate your successes and those of your colleagues — just like we are doing today. It's a good thing to do.
To each one of you being attested or graduated today, may you be truly police officers of, and for, the new millennium.
May your dreams be big and inspiring, may you execute them brilliantly, and most of all, may you keep your promise.
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URL: http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/journals/AUFPPlatypus/1999/34.html