Are you ready? Going for Promotion
It was common for criminals to feel nervous in Police Headquarters, but here on the ground floor, ambitious police officers could also get a bit nervous. The offices of the highest ranking officers, like the Regional Commander and District Commander, were located on this floor.
This is also the spot where young officers would wait nervously before going in for their promotion interview, or a meeting with senior officers.
Some would not even sit down for fear of creasing their freshly starched uniforms.
The first lady detective
Here, you’ll see three illustrated characters on the wall, one of them is a policewoman.
The police force started recruiting policewomen in 1949, and Kimmy Koh was the first female sub‐inspector recruited. She was later posted to Central Police Station as a detective.
Today there are over 4,600 women in the Hong Kong police force.
Could you be a good police officer?
If you think you could be a good police officer, take a look at the recruitment advertisements from different eras and the modern fitness criteria on the opposite wall and see how many of these criteria you fulfill. If you meet all these criteria, who knows, maybe you could be the Commissioner of Police one day.
Tiger tale
Just opposite the door to the Parade Ground, a tiger’s head was originally on display for many year in Central Police Station.
In 1915 the residents of New Territories called the police to deal with a tiger in their village. In the course of investigation, Constable Goucher and Constable Singh were savagely attacked and unfortunately died from their wounds. Constable Goucher’s grave is in the Hong Kong Cemetery in Happy Valley. You may read more about this story on the Tai Kwun Tale on the wall to the right.