Community
6 April, 2023
Improving CBD safety
New Esplanade police liaison officers to bridge cultural divide on streets
A CROSS-Cultural Liaison Police Unit (CCLU) involving seven officers is now operating on the Esplanade, aiming to increase safety in the CBD and support culturally diverse communities.
In a joint initiative from Cairns Regional Council and Queensland Police Service (QPS), seven Police Liaison Officers (PLO) of First Nations, Pacific Islander, Japanese and Chinese backgrounds have been stationed on the Esplanade to support the council in reducing anti-social incidents in the CBD as part of the Community Safety Plan CBD – Pilot 2022-2026.
Police assistant commissioner Brett Schafferius said the CCLU would give police greater capacity to engage with the community.
“What this gives us is a greater reach of people from different backgrounds and languages to be able to provide our services to them,” he said.
“At the end of the day, the police are here for one reason and one reason only, and that’s safety across our communities. It doesn’t matter whether you’re a local or a visitor.”
Mr Schafferius said the PLOs would support frontline police officers and take on an educational role.
FNQ PLO coordinator and First Nations woman Maj-Lis Dalton said bringing cultural sensitivity into safety and crime prevention was crucial.
“We have First Nations people and multicultural communities all coexisting, and when those demographics need assistance, language can be a barrier,” she said.
“Across the communities, there are different protocols and ways of doing business and understanding language, so when there’s police intervention, we want to know how to support these communities.
“For example, for First Nations people we don’t mention the name of deceased people because it’s part of our protocol, and that goes for different faiths, religions and cultures.
“We want to understand how people live their values and how we can balance those values and expectations out with delivering policing services.”
The PLOs will have a distinctive uniform with yellow epaulettes to differentiate them from frontline officers, and the council has provided a highly visible vehicle decorated with the ‘Look to the Stars’ artwork created by a purpose-built working group representing a crosssection of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community and the Queensland Police Service.
Cairns Mayor Bob Manning said the CCLU consolidated a strengthening of QPS and the council’s collaborative relationship.
“The first priority of all governments should be the wellbeing and safety of the community, and as the closest level of government to the community, we must play some role in executing this remit,” Cr Manning said.
“Policing remains the jurisdiction of the Queensland Police Service and the State Government, but we are providing support to assist, understand, and address this complex issue.
“Stationing of PLOs at council’s Esplanade office builds on that partnership.”
