Quora Answer: If People are Free, Why Do Police Officers Make Their Rounds Like Prison Guards?

The following is my answer to a Quora question: “If people are free, why do police officers make their rounds around a city like prison guards?”

Those two points are unrelated.  Freedom does not mean there are no police.  If police presence is not felt or made to be known, we would have crime.  When the criminals have no fear, the people are not free.

In Singapore, we have this concept called community policing.  The police do not make regular rounds.  Rather, they engage in community engagement, visiting schools, businesses in the neighbourhood, and giving talks educating the public.  This creates a bond with the community, which makes it easier to identify problems and solve crimes.  Also, we would never have a patrol of only one ethnicity.  The police should be in a position where it can interact with most of the complainants.

Foot patrols are only carried out in groups when there are large events, such as during the National Day Parade, or the Singapore Grand Prix, where there are large crowds.  They are meant to provide assurance, arrest people for petty crime, diffuse tension, and provide crowd control as needed.  They are less prison guards, and more shepherds of unruly cats.