Barbados
| Author | George Kurian |
| Pages | 196-197 |
Page 196
Official country name: Barbados
Capital: Bridgetown
Geographic description: Caribbean island between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic, northeast of Venezuela
Population: 279,254 (est. 2005)
The Barbados Police Force was established in 1835 and became the Royal Barbados Police Force in 1966.
The Royal Barbados Police Force (RBPF) is headed by a commissioner. The island is divided into three territorial divisions: Northern, Southern, and Mobile, and these divisions are further divided into 15 police districts. The Headquarters Division includes a Criminal Investigation Department, Traffic and Transport, Special Branch, Mounted Branch, Canine Section, Marine Section, Special Services Unit, Office of Professional Responsibility, Research and Planning Unit, Training Unit, and the Police Band. Junior ranks are housed in barracks and work on a double shift system. There is a mounted detachment for ceremonial and rural police duties. In 2002 the government created a special rapid response unit to respond quickly to emergencies. RPBF has both motorized (60%) and foot patrols. The majority of the foot patrols are assigned to Bridgetown. Community policing comprises ministations in housing estates and 93 neighborhood watch organizations.
The principal police ranks, in descending order, are Commissioner, Deputy Commissioner, Assistant Commissioner, Senior Superintendent, Superintendent, Assistant Superintendent, Inspector, Station Sergeant, Sergeant, Corporal and Constable.
Officers wear a working uniform of khaki trousers; an open-neck, short-sleeved bush tunic with a belt; and a blue forage cap with a red band. On formal occasions, a short-sleeved tunic is worn with a white shirt and tie. Rank-and-file members wear a gray shirt or open-neck, short-sleeved tunic and blue serge trousers with a two-inch-wide stripe on the seam. A white helmet, black boots, and brown leather belt complete the uniform. On ceremonial occasions officers wear a white tropical helmet, and other ranks wear a white spiked helmet. Police patrols generally are unarmed except for sentries at important public...
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