The role of public is crucial for crime control in the society in its partnership with police. The radio programs as part of Ulasi Police project have helped us incorporating several policing needs of the communities into our services on-offer. The advocacy and awareness campaign of this project has been critical in ameliorating the public-police trust deficit. The Charsadda Police, showing an exceptional courage and valor, foiled a major terror attack; stopping three suicide bombers from causing havoc at a local court. The efforts for the capacity building of KP police have made them much more capable of fighting terrorism. The Dispute Resolution Council in Charsadda is an extremely important forum for addressing the civil matters of local population.

These were the remarks made by the Deputy Superintendent of Police, Mr. Nazir Khan during a consultative meeting on police reforms at Model Police Station, Sardheri, Charsadda. The meeting was a part of the project “Ulasi Police”, which is an awareness and advocacy campaign undertaken by the Center for Research and Security Studies (CRSS) – as part of USAID Small Grants and Ambassadors’ Fund Program – to strengthen the rule of law in KP province by promoting and disseminating the significant police reforms aimed at incorporating local communities’ policing needs and international human rights standards. The endeavor aims to tackle the trust deficit between the public and police, help KP police become an accountable and community-focused police force.

Mr. Nazir Khan said that the gaps between the public and police could give rise to crimes in the society. The Charsadda police is performing quite well and successfully preempting terrorist attacks. Had the tragedy in local courts not been averted, it would have been a catastrophe. The Charsadda police has also arrested most of the terrorists involved in the target killing of several police officials. At the core of initiatives for the capacity building of KP police are several specialized training schools.

The female police officers as part of the working group said that female victims of crimes and other incidents confidently visited police stations for legal help. Nevertheless, more women desks are needed to effectively cater to the needs of such victims. The crime-free society is the joint responsibility of public and police. In this regard, they should interact with each other more often and public must also realize their individual responsibilities.

The participating members from the community said that the public-police trust deficit had been significantly tackled through speedy response to public’s complaints and demands, better interactions with them, and robust accountability mechanisms in place in KP police. The public must also contribute to the information sharing mechanisms – such as PIN (Police Information Network) – for crime control in the society. Ensuring law and order in the society is the joint responsibility of public and police. The Ulasi Police has played a great role in disseminating the police reforms, but more propagation and awareness is required to educate public on utilizing the services on offer by police. The strength of KP police (number of personnel) should be increased to cater to the public needs. The KP police is performing much better as compared to other provinces. The public must realize and acknowledge the tremendous sacrifices laid by KP police going above and beyond the call of their duty. The Public-Police cooperation has though increased after reforms, but much more needs to be done in this regard. The political influence over the police has been reduced to a great extent; making it an inspiring example for other government departments. The role of media in addressing the public-police trust deficit and building concrete linkages between them is critical.