The other side of Police work
Learning new things everyday, having a real sense of achievement and working with a great bunch of people is a pretty typical day for Constable Li’Ying Cai.
Name: Li’Ying Cai
Job: Police Constable - Asian/Ethnic Community Relations Officer
Age: 28 forever!
Q. How did you get into a career with NZ Police?
A. I was introduced by an officer from Auckland while I was interviewing her on TV. I thought it would be a great way to get to know Kiwi society (at the time I had only been in NZ for 2 years) and to help and protect ‘good people’. I saw it as an opportunity to explore and develop my own ability and potential.
Q. Did you go straight from school or study/work first?
A. I finished university study with a B.S in Business Management then worked for an import and export corporation for 5 years; I had also held a few media profiles.
Q. Most people think of police work as being frontline. Tell us about your role.
A. I am part of Crime Prevention Group. It is also called ‘proactive policing’ as opposed to front-line police or ‘reactive policing’.Proactive policing is more about trouble spotting than catching criminals red-handed like front-line policing. For instance, we designed a ‘robbery prevention programme” for small business owners - helping them understand the causes of crime, the trigger factors to eliminate the chances of being a target.
We also work very closely with other government and non-government agencies, adopt a multi-agency approach, to design initiatives and create projects in order to target potential or specific local issues.
Q. What’s the most rewarding part of your job?
A. The smiles on the faces of those we served well! When people who needed your
help smile at you, shake your hands and say “thank you officer” after you solved their
problems, resolved conflicts or even saved their lives. My job also gives me an understanding of people from various backgrounds. I am learning new things everyday, a sense of achievement, a great bunch of people to work with and I am developing all sort of skills while doing the job.
Q. What’s the hardest part of your job?
A. When we see some kids from poor family backgrounds and neighbourhoods committing crime, when we see young people so drunk in the middle of the night with no regard for their safety…when we see the criminals repeatedly committing crimes.
Q. What advice would you give to young women thinking about joining the
Police?
A. If this is the career you decide to take on, then stick to it! Determination is the best advice I would give - trust yourself, have a can-do attitude, make a training schedule and have some fun!
To train as a cop, you’ll need to be 18 years of age or older when you graduate, be fit and a quick thinker. To see how you’d go, take the test for your chance to win an 8G iPod.
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