UNION, NJ — Jerome Hatfield, Kean University acting associate director of public safety, is in Indonesia with a federal team to assess that country’s police force’s emergency management.
The team is assessing the Indonesian National Police’s incident management capabilities, facilities and training for natural disasters, Hatfield said, as well as the INP’s finance administration, hazard mitigation and more.
Indonesia asked the State Department for an assessment of the country’s emergency response capabilities. Hatfield was chosen for the team through his association with the Emergency Management Assistance Compact, a national mutual aid system. He has done previous assessment work in Kenya.
“They were looking for someone who had an understanding and the ability to assess homeland security, law enforcement and emergency management, and I have all three,” Hatfield said. He formerly served as a regional administrator for the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency and is a retired deputy superintendent of the New Jersey State Police.
“I’m looking forward to it, to be able to be a part of a process that fortifies best practices,” Hatfield said before the trip. “I have a passion for being part of this process. We can make a difference.”
Working with representatives of the Indonesian government, national police and military, the team is also studying operational planning and public information operations. Hatfield said he believes the trip will positively affect his work at Kean with the 45-member Kean Department of Public Safety.
“It will expose me to policing in another country,” Hatfield said. “I will be looking at different ways they engage the community.”
An archipelago made up of thousands of islands, Indonesia has faced challenges such as earthquakes, flooding and the massive 2004 tsunami that killed more than 227,000 people in the region.
Hatfield’s experience with responding to natural disasters includes having taken part in the mutual aid response in New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina, while with the New Jersey State Police.
The six-member assessment team includes representatives from the Centers for Disease Control, the U.S. military, the U.S. Agency for International Development and other agencies. It will provide the Indonesian government with a written assessment and recommendations. Whether Indonesia acts on the recommendations is up to them, Hatfield said.
Hatfield left on Friday, Sept. 23, for the 10-day trip.
“They are open to an objective assessment and they prefer it is done by the United States,” he said. “There is an understanding that the United States can provide support that is accepted internationally while assessing the capabilities of countries.”
Photo Courtesy of Kean University