HOMEPROTECTION
Homeprotection - in peace, crisis and war!
History:
Already during the 1930´s there was an homeprotectionorganization in Sweden. In the general directions of the air raid precaution service´s group of inspection, you could read as following: "Onto the individual air raid precaution service belongs to count all of the measures which intend to prepare the protection for residential properties and their habitants against air raid-damages. Therefore, the individual air raid precaution service is to look upon as a protection to the home - homeprotection."
This organization was removed in the 1950´s from the civildefence organization at the time. One of the causes was that they believed that a future war would involve terrorbombings of the people with nuclearweapons among other things.
This approach ment that they were planing great evacuations of the densley populated areas, which in its turn could mean the division of the homeprotectionorganization. The threatening picture of a nuclear war was in the end of the 1970´s changed into a threat of a regular war. This included among other things new principles for the protection of the people with respect for the pictures of threat and shaping of the air raid precaution service. Efforts of terror directly against great concentrations of people was not very likely. Threats of sureprising attacks with a short military notice would make the whole population taking the risk to be affected because of that you can not determine where in the country the attack may occure until in a very late stage.
This made the philosophy of evacuation change considering the thougt of that the society has to function as good as possible during preparedness and war. The new philosophy involved seeing a new combination of protection and evacuationmeasures and therefore not just one of the alternatives.
The changed way of looking at the protection of the population led to the making of the homeprotection organization with the goal to create a link between the society and the authorety on the local stage to be able to give the people guidance and help during preparedness and war.
The homeprotection of today
In the early 1980´s it was determined that the homeprotection organization was to be built and that it would be a common rescource to the civil totaldefence.
It´s a striving during the 1990´s to direct the homeprotection to become a rescource to the society in peace also (to stand by the communities in big accidents for an example). In the document "Homeprotection in the 90´s" from Räddningsverket, following important pieces have been quoted to the volonteer homeprotection.
Goal and aims with the activities
One of the bases in the civil preparedness is that the people not can trust that the authorities and organizations alone will be able to cope with the difficult situations which can occure in big accidents, preparedness and war.
The people themselves have to take initiative to solve these situations in the best way. To support the people, the homeprotection was created and the main aim is to decrease the restlessness, suffering and need in a crisis- or warsituation plus increasing the possibilities of survival in these situations.
Because of that the crisis and war may strike the people surprisingly, they are given small opportunities in these situations to have a lot of time to prepare oneself. To create real conditions, the activity of the homeprotection has to be active already before the crisis, in times of peace.
The organization of the homeprotection
The homeprotection is organized on communitylevel. The communities are divided into homeprotectionareas with an homeprotectiongroup in each area. Each group has three homeprotectioncommanders, educated in duty plus volontary recruted and educated HPI´s. In peace there will bee 4 HPI´s in each area. In crisis, the amount is increasing.
The most important tasks of the homeprotection
to collect and distribute information from the community´s administrations and cooperating authorities to the inhabitants and vice vesa.
to support and help the inhabitants to take different protective measures in crisis and war.
to support and help the inhabitants to secure their providing during crisis and war.
to already during times of peace be a rescource in the community, for an example in connection with big accidents, fires, powerfailures etc plus functioning as an scource of information to the inhabitants.
The preparedness and the part of the inhabitants
The homeprotection plays a leading part when it comes to get the people interested to learn, to increase the own preparedness.
The modern society´s vulnerability has increased the risks of losing electricity and other energies plus water and draining, which may bring great stress to the inhabitants of the community.
To cope with this, the habitants in the community have to have knowledge about survival, providing and how to protect oneself in crisis and war. This may for an example include information about storing in the household and preparations of cultivating for household use.
Today great parts of the population have very little knowledge to be able to handle such situations.
This is where the homeprotection plays one of its parts. Educated commanders and HPI´s may either through individual efforts or through civildefence organizations share their knowledge to make the interest in learning more about the possibilities to increase their own preparedness greater. By taking part of different studycircles or courses in as some examples selfprotection and preparedness in the home (living- and providingpreparedness, survival) the interest may grow larger.
Ume.Cff@swipnet.se or call/write/fax to your local Cff.