Swapping a view of Telstra Tower with the Eiffel Tower would be refreshing for two ACT Policing members who’ve joined 15 Australian Federal Police and 35,000 French police deployed daily at the Paris Olympics.

Instead of reporting to Tuggeranong Police Station, First Constable Jamie Foster-Daley reports to French National Police and Gendarmerie. Rather than clock on at ACT Policing’s Emergency Management and Planning Team, Acting Sergeant Amanda Williamson patrols Paris tourist sites and Olympic venues.

If that doesn’t make you jealous, two AFP officers are deployed in Tahiti, French Polynesia, to help with the Olympic surfing events. The lucky members were nominated by their Commands for the deployment.

This is second-time lucky for Canberra’s Acting Sergeant Amanda Williamson, who also worked in a similar role at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996.

“This unique and unprecedented experience of policing alongside foreign law enforcement has been extraordinary and has identified the similarities within policing culture and practices globally,” Acting Sergeant Williamson said. “It has been an amazing experience and career highlight.”

While none of our AFP officers speak French – apart from basic greetings and ordering a croissant or baguette – conversing with the mostly English-speaking tourists hasn’t been a problem.

Security in Paris is in itself an Olympic effort. In addition to the 35,000 French police, there are 10,000 soldiers and a further 1,800 police officers from around the world. France is also deploying 20,000 private security personnel.

Rather than being called out to investigate Canberra’s nightly “very loud bangs”, our two ACT Policing members are helping French authorities with anything from cordons for unattended bags, through to providing language support to English speaking tourists.

The AFP’s presence at the Paris Olympics is a great ad for recruitment, if anyone’s considering a policing career. The AFP has more than 200 personnel located in 34 countries as part of its international network.

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