Disorganizing and Reorganizing the front lines of community policing: institutional aspects of the Japanese Koban System in São Paulo.

Abstract

This article explores some the disorganizations and reorganizations occurring within the organizational culture of the PMESP (São Paulo State Military Police), after the adoption of community policing practices based on the Japanese Koban System. The emergence of a new (democratic) order, confronting the old (repressive) one, posed incongruent challenges to officers’ self-perceptions and daily routines. Many started responding by means of personal effort, performing social service activities. However, the idea of being a “social firefighter”, searching for the solution of deep social inequalities, seems to contain in itself a promise that many officers, especially sergeants, cannot accomplish. Some cultural traits from the Japanese model propose different angles for observing this dynamic. They suggest that a sense of purpose at the front lines of police work – and group cohesion that emanates from it – represents a strategic concern for the PMESP in its endeavor to become a more responsive institution.