That's how a Norwegian policeman does it

And if someone persistently repeats the same offense, he goes for a psychiatric examination, and very often also for treatment

In the small Olympic town of Lillehammer, Norway, I spoke with the local police officer and his chief.

It was easy to talk to them, the policeman is a tall guy from our area and he easily compared our police force to the one he works for now. Smiling and cheerful people, approachable.

They kindly answer every question.

The key, he told me, is that the main philosophy of the Norwegian police is not to lose the citizen they sanction, that he himself must understand and understand where he made a mistake and that they work together to not repeat it. Force is used in extreme situations.

Another man of ours practically confirmed this to me, while we were driving from Oslo to Lillehammer, about 1 hour after midnight. He was following a vehicle that was traveling at a speed of 80 km per hour. There was no one on the road except us, and there are not many settlements on that route, and the road is inspected, without curves, the direction is complete. I never saw a police car on that route. I asked him: "Well, why don't you overtake him, he drives really slowly?" He explained to me that the limit was 80 and if he overtook the car in front of us, the chance that that driver would call the police and report it was huge. "Because I'm not endangering myself by driving like that, but also others," he told me enlightenedly.

Traffic fines are rarely issued, but they are very high. And if someone persistently repeats the same offense, he goes for a psychiatric examination, and very often also for treatment.

If you are lucky enough to go out at night in Oslo on weekends, you will see people in fluorescent vests standing in front of the clubs you visit. Due to drunkenness, they are punished with socially responsible work and wait in front of clubs to help drunk people to get to a taxi or to prevent them from getting into their own car in such a state.

Police officers from the Balkans could learn a lot from the Scandinavian experience on how to treat citizens, but vice versa, citizens could learn how to treat the police. Because the goal for both of them is to live better, to feel safe, and neither the police can provide that alone, nor can we do it without them.

Global surveys say that Norway is the best country to live in.

What's the secret? The answer is simple - the most important thing in this country is people, first as individuals - then as Norwegians. Everything is subordinated to the common man, so the administrative centers in the municipalities are bigger than the state administration buildings.

Perhaps the Norwegian system could be most easily explained by the famous catchphrase of their long-time Prime Minister Einar Gerhardsen: "Do your duty, then claim your right."

(6yka.com)