National Police Agency (Japan)

National Police Agency
警察庁
Keisatsu-chō
Abbreviation NPA
Logo of the National Police Agency.
Agency overview
Formed 1954
Employees 7,721 (2013)
Annual budget ¥258,344M (FY 2005/6)
Legal personality Governmental: Government agency
Jurisdictional structure
National agency Japan
General nature
Operational structure
Civilians 4,900
Parent agency National Public Safety Commission
Child agencies
Bureaus
Regional Bureaus
Website
www.npa.go.jp/english/index.htm (English)
www.npa.go.jp (Japanese)
Footnotes
 See the reference[1] below for the source of the above data.
Aichi Prefecture Toyota Crown police car in the parking lot in the Expo 2005 Aichi Japan Before the South Korean pavilion.
NPA building
Japanese Police Patrol Nissan Caravan in Osaka
Japanese riot police in Hibiya.

The National Police Agency (警察庁 Keisatsu-chō) is an agency administered by the National Public Safety Commission of the Cabinet Office in the cabinet of Japan, and is the central coordinating agency of the Japanese police system.

Unlike comparable bodies like the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, the NPA does not have any police officers of its own. Instead, its role is to determine general standards and policies, although in national emergencies or large-scale disasters the agency is authorized to take command of prefectural police forces. Policy for the NPA in turn is set by the National Public Safety Commission.

Organization

Rank

Police officers are divided into nine ranks:[2]

Commissioner General (Japanese: 警察庁長官 Keisatsu-chō Chōkan): The Chief of National Police Agency. The rank outside. 1 capacity.
Senior Police Officer or Corporal (巡査長 Junsa-chō): Honorary rank of Police Officer.

The NPA Commissioner General holds the highest position of the Japanese police.[3] His title is not a rank, but rather denotes his position as head of the NPA. On the other hand, the MPD Superintendent General represents not only the highest rank in the system but also assignment as head of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department.[3]

Transportation

Ground

In Japan, there are about 40,000 police vehicles nationwide with the average patrol cruisers being Toyota Crowns and Nissan Crews and similar large sedans, although small compact and micro cars are used by rural police boxes and in city centers where they are much more maneuverable. Pursuit vehicles depend on prefectures with the Honda NSX, Subaru Impreza, Subaru Legacy, Mitsubishi Lancer, Nissan Skyline, Mazda RX-7, and Nissan Fairlady Z are all used in various prefectures for highway patrols and pursuit uses.

With the exception of unmarked traffic enforcement vehicles, all Japanese police forces are painted and marked in the same ways. Japanese police vehicles are painted black and white with the upper parts of the vehicle painted white. Motorcycles are usually all white and riot control and rescue vehicles are painted a steel blue.

Aviation

Helicopters are extensively used for traffic control surveillance, pursuit of suspects, rescue and disaster relief. Total of 80 small and medium-sized helicopters are being operated in 47 prefectures nationwide.

Watercraft

Japanese police boats are deployed to major ports, remote islands and lakes, where they are used for water patrol and control of illegal immigration, smuggling and poaching. Ranging from five to 23 meters long, there are about 190 police boats nationwide.

Bodies supervised by the NPA

National Police Agency Imperial Guard

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Police of Japan". National Police Agency. Archived from the original on 2008-02-22. Retrieved 2008-08-06.
  2. ↑ "Metropolitan Police Department Organization Chart". Tokyo Metropolitan Police. Archived from the original on 2012-02-15. Retrieved 2012-02-15.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Description of the Japanese Police Organization". Archived from the original on 2011-07-06. Retrieved 2012-02-15.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to National Police Agency (Japan).
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Police of Japan.