Egység, Hűség, Becsület: Integrity, Loyalty, Honor: The Riot Police Moto

The officers waiting to perform

The building with the officers barracks.

       This morning the JSBPer’s headed to the Riot Control Police Center off the Red Line Metro, in Budapest. I was surprised when we arrived and entered the Center because it was much larger than I expected. There were multiple buildings; it looked like its own miniature town. Later we learned that some of the buildings are barracks for the trainees, while other buildings are offices, buildings the riot police train in, or other buildings that hold equipment.

The JSBPer's walking through the
"miniature town".

The opening page of the presentation.
This the label on all of the uniforms
for the Riot Police.

            We first saw a presentation on the Center, which explained how the Riot Police work throughout Hungary and within the Center. The woman explained that the Riot Police have fourteen departments throughout Hungary, together holding about 3,459 people. They are the second largest force, standing behind the local police. I learned that the Riot Police are present during all of the national holidays either on horse, by car, in helicopters, or other types of transportation (sorry UNH, didn’t mention segways!) There are also many different duties of the Riot Police, which are all very similar to the Local Hungarian Police. Overall, besides a uniform, unlimited movement within Hungary and a smaller population, the Riot Police and the Local Police can seemingly do the same types of things. This was one of the main observations I made while in the Riot Control Police Center. In addition, although somewhat different, the Riot Police are quite similar to the Local Police of the United States. One could consider them UNH or UVM cops, except the Riot Police are responsible for the whole country, rather than strictly jurisdiction within a school or one district.

Some of the police walking
through the town.

            One aspect within the Center that I was interested in, that I wish I got to learn more about was the psychological support provided to the police. The woman who showed us the presentation mentioned that there was a psychological unit, which, being a psychology major really perked my ears up! She only mentioned it briefly, but I wonder if it compares to the psychological units within American Prisons, or American Police Agencies. One of my favorite professors at UNH used to work as a clinical psychologist at an American Prison, and he explained the hardships of it. Of course, the Riot Police are much different than a prison, but I wonder the similarities and differences of how the police officers are helped and supported when they are having trouble psychologically. Is it like therapy?

            After the presentation, the JSBPer’s headed outside to see the automobiles the Riot Police use, hear about their weapons, and see a performance put on by some of the officers. Each aspect was interesting, but again seemingly similar to all police. The main weapons that the Riot Police use are tear gas launchers. This is the easiest way to break up a crowd, especially when there is a lot of resistance. The officer, who was explaining the weapons to us, also told us that all of the guns and tear gas launchers were made from AK-47’s. Since I don’t know too much about weapons, this was one of the only guns I knew off hand, so that was interesting to hear! The performance was also very informative. The officers wear large, and I’m sure heavy, bulletproof suits, as well as helmets. They run around in circles and showed us some of their moves to defeat the rioters! It was very interesting to see.

Some of the large vehicles!

Police car

The gear they wear - with a gas mask to protect the officers after they launch the teargas

The weapons! AK-47s, ah!

Another large vehicle they use.

            Overall, it was another great field studies trip to the Riot Police Center. It was reassuring that the Hungarian Police seems quite similar to the American Police. It means that everyone is fighting crime and riots correctly and with the same goals! Go Police Men!

This is the word that means "police" in Hungarian.

This was the officers doing their performance.

Another part of the performance - they were arresting a guy - I thought it was real!

This is when they arrested him and threw him in the back of the cop car.