‘Feel the impact’: Hong Kong police show off pistol practice to lure recruits
Inaugural firing range show a highlight at recruitment event, as force tries to fill 6,612 vacancies
Attendees at the event in Wong Chuk Hang on Sunday were able to see an officer conduct live-round target practice using the force’s mainland Chinese-made pistols. But visitors did not get the chance to use the 9mm CF98-A pistols at the Police College’s indoor range.
Senior Superintendent Mike Kwok Ka-chun of police’s human resources branch said he hoped candidates would be inspired to sign up.
“[We hope to] let potential applicants hear the sound of a real gun at the indoor range where recruits practise to feel the impact, and let them understand how recruits receive firearms training,” he said.
The full-day exhibition and workshop event welcomed 1,620 attendees and garnered more than 400 job applications, with 111 for the inspector role and 253 for constables. It was the ninth to be held by police since May 2021 as part of efforts to boost application numbers.
Police have been grappling with a personnel shortage in recent years amid a declining young working population, with the force failing to reach hiring targets in recent years.
