The Police Negotiation Cadre (PNC) concluded the two-week comprehensive Crisis Negotiation Course (CNC) at the Hong Kong Police College today (December 1). This training featured a series of negotiation exercises tailored to simulate a variety of suicide intervention scenarios. In view of the recent rise in student suicides, similar scenarios were included in the exercises with an aim to strengthen the capabilities and negotiation skills of the negotiators in handling similar cases.
The simulated exercises involved scenarios of students attempting to jump off buildings. Negotiators promptly arrived at the scene and initiated persuasion tactics. By displaying patience and empathy as well as actively listening to the students’ needs, the negotiators effectively communicated with them and successfully convinced them to return to safe positions. Additionally, the exercises also simulated suicide attempts by non-ethnic Chinese individuals, presenting the challenge of language barriers. With the assistance of interpreters, the negotiators worked as a team to convey persuasive messages to the individuals, eventually defusing the crisis and saving lives.
Following the exercises, the Commanding Officer of the PNC, Chief Superintendent Liauw Ka-kei, shared the design principles of the CNC. Crisis negotiation work often involves unpredictable duty hours, sometimes requiring overnight operations. The two-week intensive training places high demands on the emotional control, physical stamina and negotiation skills of the personnel. The course features a variety of exercises, closely aligning with cases that occur in daily life and taking into account the diverse development of the society. It aims at enhancing the personnel's ability to respond to crises, improving communication and co-ordination with stakeholders, and keeping pace with the times.
Through these training exercises, the PNC hoped to enable the public to understand from another perspective the pivotal role that Police play in preserving life. The PNC also seizes this opportunity to promote positive messages about suicide prevention and encourage citizens, especially the younger generation, to actively seek community support and assistance when facing difficulties.
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