Eva Hafström recounts her experience as a police officer

Posted by Susanna at 2:48 PM, Apr 29, 2009 (Comments)

Category: Events

Count Peder Bonde, Ingrid Beach, Eva Hafström and David Paul

AT A RECENT luncheon, arranged by SACU (Swedish American Cultural Union) in Washington, D.C., the Swedish Ambassador's wife Ms. Eva Hafström talked about her experience as police officer.

SHE SAID that when she started the police college in the early 1980's only 15 percent of the students were women. Today the number is 40 percent.

RECOGNIZING the changing ethnic populations in Sweden, she added, "the police force should reflect the society we live in, where the genders make up 50 percent each, and also the same diversity in the force as in the society as a whole."

MS. HAFSTRÖM pointed out that it is important for police officers to have "a big heart," and that the police education is now very popular in Sweden, perhaps because of the influence, in part, of the well-known Swedish TV series "Martin Beck."

"The education is changing and moving more towards a university degree," she said. Moreover, she noted an education in law enforcement frequently leads to other opportunities, such as in her case, international affairs.

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