Készentleti Rendőrség

"Egy ség, hűség, becsület"

"Integrity, Loyalty, Honor"

This is the motto of the Hungarian Készentleti Rendőrség, or Riot Police - the subject of Wednesday's field studies. We paid a visit to the Budapest headquarters and listened to an informative presentation before viewing some of the tactics and equipment. The basic function of the Riot Police is to keep order during public events. This may be a precautionary duty, as officers are often stationed at sports events in case of rowdy, opposing crowds. Going into the visit, I thought the Riot Police had only one duty - maintain order at times when the public cannot. We've all seen footage of the London riots this past summer. Out-of-control crowds of peaceful protestors trying to send a message, looters fleeing with their arms full, violent opposers crashing glass windows - all being contained by uniformed officers with shields, helmets, and batons.

As we found out, however, the duties of the Hungarian Riot Police lay far beyond containing crowds. There are 14 departments within the Készentleti Rendőrség, with a total of 3,459 personnel. That's the second largest police unit, after the local police. The departments encompass an entire spectrum of duties. There are departments and duties devoted to immigration control, money, assisting transportation of convicted criminals, bomb disposal, passenger train escorts, and many more. The new Tactical Riot Division employs skilled officers to assist the police in tracking down criminals in hiding. The Készentleti Rendőrség have jurisdiction throughout Hungary, as opposed to local officers who can only operate within their city's lines. The misconception I had about these officers duties may be chalked up to language - "Készentleti Rendőrség" does not translate to "Riot Police" exactly, but they are the only words that come the closest.

I was truly impressed with the training process. Every officer must undergo two years of training, then apply to a specialty force. After being accepted into the Riot Police, all new officers are under a mandatory one year probation period. They must train under an established officer, and are only permitted to give orders to civilians if their mentor officer is present. The training periods for officers back home is much shorter. Each state is different, but most academies only train for six to twelve months. Some intensive academy training can be crammed into twelve weeks. I would be interested in learning if the difference in training lengths has any effect - perhaps decreasing the amount of incidents the Internal Supervision Service must get involved in, or even allowing for fewer officers on the streets without increasing crime rates. Would training officers for longer periods allow them to be more educated, more versed in the law, more effective on the streets? Or is it just extra time spent reading, with little effect?

After the presentation, we were led outside to check out some of the Készentleti Rendőrség equipment. We saw weapons laid out on a table, held a protective shield, and walked in the shadows of hulking riot control vehicles. If there was one time I wish my little brother could have been on a field studies trip with me, this definitely would have been it. He would have gone crazy, I don't think he's ever seen anything like these in his piles of tractor and truck books. Some of the vehicles have bulletproof plates within the tires, others were specially designed to prevent people from climbing, and others still had guns and water cannons mounted on the front. We were also treated to a demonstration of various Készentleti Rendőrség tactics. The first video shows the process of escorting someone - criminal, diplomat, extradited convict. the other shows self-defense and restraining techniques, including how to deal with multiple attackers at once. It's pretty amazing to watch, considering these officers are hauling full-grown men over their shoulders like they're empty pillowcases. Check them out, I'm sure my little brother will be amazed.