Mobile Power

Soldiers and Police Use Text Messaging and Mobile Phone Applications to Serve the Public

UNIPATH STAFF

No longer simply pocket telephones, cellphones have evolved into mobile computers allowing users to search the Internet, take pictures and transfer money. In Pakistan alone, an estimated 125 million people use mobile phones, or about 70 percent of the population. Disproportionate shares of those users are people under 25, for whom mobile communication has become second nature.

Recognizing the importance of this technological trend, military and police officials throughout the Middle East and Central and South Asia are enlisting mobile apps and text messaging programs to better engage with and protect communities. These programs are helping to bridge gaps between the government and the people — especially youth, who have embraced smartphones as essential tools of daily life. By maintaining direct lines of communication with the populace, the military and police have made themselves more accessible, with advantages for good governance and public trust.

Internal defense

The Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) Shield app for smartphones was launched in the summer of 2013. Once the app is downloaded to a cellphone with iPhone or Android operating systems, a user can take an active role in fighting crime and promoting security.

“With this application, the Lebanese Army seeks to involve a large number of citizens in protecting the nation as it seeks to offer possible help when in need and in case of danger,” the Army noted in a news release.

LAF Shield allows residents to report dangers such as suspicious vehicles or objects by sending text messages, videos or pictures. People can also review photos of wanted or missing people or activate an “SOS emergency” feature to help police locate them in an emergency.

Maps contained in the LAF Shield system help users navigate away from areas threatened by crime, natural disasters, land mines and violence — a more frequent occurrence because the Syrian conflict has spilled over Lebanon’s borders.

“In other places in the world, the only thing that might obstruct your path is traffic,” Mohammad Taha, an entrepreneur working in Lebanon, told RT news network. “In Lebanon, there are many things that can happen.”

National approach

In Oman, government agencies strive to be as accessible as possible by offering mobile phone apps and services. In Muscat Municipality, for example, motorists can pay parking fees with their phones. Another service helps engage students.

“Higher secondary school students can now retrieve their end of semester grades … by messaging their student seat numbers to a phone number designated by the ministry of education,” Syed Jafar Naqvi, assistant professor at Oman’s Sultan Qaboos University, wrote in a paper published in 2011.

The Royal Oman Police offers its own smartphone app. For a small fee, people can subscribe to the short message service, better known as SMS, which allows customers to inquire about drivers’ licenses and vehicle registration expiration dates, traffic offenses and associated fees, and visa application status, to name a few services. People can also locate the nearest police station based on GPS coordinates provided through their devices. The service distributes news about crime, accidents and other emergencies.

The special application, called ROP for Royal Oman Police, is available in the Google store. In the future, the police plan to offer additional services for free.

Save our Souls

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has joined Oman in public service innovations. Dubai Police launched its Save Our Souls (SOS) program in 2012 to connect with the public. A person in trouble need only press a phone’s SOS button to activate GPS tracking. The program also works with a special wristband designed for the elderly and the infirm — a feature that Commander in Chief of Dubai Police Lt. Gen. Dahi Khalfan Tamim said is the first of its kind offered by police in the world.

“If you press the app button, you will receive a call from the command center in less than two minutes. The center will call you back in cases of an emergency even if you are abroad; if you are in the country, they will also arrive at the scene,” Dahi told Gulf News.

It has already helped people stricken by heart attacks and other emergency health issues. An Emirati man traveling in Russia unexpectedly needed emergency surgery and wanted to summon the embassy for help. Using SOS, he reached the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which sent embassy officials to his aid.

Gender considerations

Police in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province are using SMS text messaging to serve women who are wary of going into police stations to report incidents. Female officers follow up the complaints to determine if women received positive and immediate responses from local police stations.

“Looking at the hesitation that women face in availing police help, it seems practical that police should reach out to such complainants,” police supervisor Azam Khan told the English/Urdu-language newspaper Dawn.

In addition, police agencies across Pakistan are integrating SMS into operations. For instance, in 2013 Karachi traffic police launched a text program for people to learn about accidents, traffic flow and road hazards. In the Sargodha district, what was once an email program in which the public could submit complaints and reports through www.sargodhapolice.gov.pk has morphed into the SMS Complaint Redressal System.

Sargodha police officer Dr. Haider Ashraf told Dawn the new program will save time and money by streamlining reporting and increasing public access to law enforcement. Before SMS, people either had to go to the station or email complaints through a police website.

One thing is certain: As millions more young people rely on increasingly sophisticated mobile phones, governments throughout the region will have to adjust the way they communicate with their citizens.