The prevailing image of the Indonesian police is one of corruption and poor service, a far cry from the motto “to serve and to protect”.

Aware of this reputation, the city police force is trying to burnish its image in the eyes of the public through the first ever Jakarta Police Expo, being held from Friday to Sunday at Gandaria City shopping mall in South Jakarta.

On Friday and Saturday, crowds of hundreds thronged the main hall where the expo was under way, curious for a closer look at the 12 booths representing the 12 units of the Jakarta Police, from the public order unit and vital location security to the special crimes division. Officers from each unit were on hand to enlighten visitors about the unit’s function and duties.

Visitors were also given the chance to have their photo taken with officers.

“I think this is a breakthrough in bridging the gap between police and public. I learned about the whistleblower system, an online application that allows social control by the public,” said Rina Kristanto, who was visiting the expo with her husband.

Rina described her previous idea of the police – an opaque institution and intimidating officials. “Their image is so bad that even when people fall victim to a crime, they’re reluctant to file a police report,” she noted.

The expo - entitled “Together We Can Turn Back Crime” - aims to “show the public that Indonesian police are the equals of police around the world” and “boost the police’s credibility”, according to the event’s master of ceremonies.

The Turn Back Crime campaign is in fact a global campaign from international police agency Interpol, and has been ongoing since June 2014. According to Interpol, Turn Back Crime is a campaign to highlight the dangers of organized crime and its effects on our day-to-day lives. Using a variety of media channels, the campaign provides advice on how to stay safe and encourages the general public, businesses and governments to play a role in reducing the impact of crimes.

“I have no idea what Turn Back Crime means, but everyone’s always banging on about it and wearing T-shirts emblazoned with the slogan. I want to be part of it,” said another visitor, Resha Pradipta.

The Turn Back Crime slogan attracted the public’s attention when gun-toting police officers took on a group of terrorists that inflicted a series of bombings on the heart of the capital on Jan. 14.

Eager to harness this momentum, the organizers of the police expo set up two booths selling merchandise including hats, shirts, pants and shoes at prices ranging between Rp 10,000 (75 US cents) for a sticker and Rp 1 million for a Zippo lighter. All items have the Turn Back Crime slogan emblazoned on them.

One of the organizers, Putri Oktavia, said that around 1,000 items of merchandise had been sold on the first day of the expo, the most popular being the dark-blue polo shirts with “Turn Back Crime” logo embroidered in yellow on the chest.

“The [Turn Back Crime] campaign began in November last year. This expo is just part of the campaign, and the number of visitors is incredible,” Putri said, without specifying the estimated number.

The funds raised through the event will be used to put on similar exhibitions in support of the campaign, she added.

At the other merchandise booth, watches were being sold, including a limited edition timepiece with a price of Rp 2.6 million.

The booth’s attendant, Ramadhan, said that the watch was “special” because it was the model worn by Jakarta Police general crimes directorate head Sr. Comr. Krishna Murti.

“The watch is limited to 100 buyers,” Ramadhan said, adding that around 30 of the watches were sold on Friday. (fac)

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