Police tactical assaults raise the risk of casualties and lose opportunities for peaceful resolution. However, a rigid policy of non-negotiation and police aggression is potentially dangerous. Others have argued the Lindt Cafe siege shows the failure of “contain and negotiate” strategies with terrorists, and that police should be more aggressive in future. This has led some to suggest that negotiating with them is pointless. Terrorist behaviour defies logic, as they usually do not care for their own safety or that of others. An example would be the release of a sick or injured hostage in return for increasing air conditioning.Įvaluations have highlighted the success of these negotiation strategies, with 95% of situations dealt with in this way ending peacefully without fatalities. A general principle is to play for time and make the hostage taker work for every concession, extracting something in return. Most hostage takers make demands, and how these are dealt with is fundamental. Attempting to proceed too quickly is where negotiations often fail. Only when rapport is established is the hostage taker likely to listen to, and be influenced by, the negotiator. It gives them opportunity to raise concerns and demands, signals empathy for them, and helps establish rapport by signalling the hostage taker has been heard.

This helps model and encourage calm in the hostage takers. The negotiator adopts a calm, non-judgmental demeanour and uses active listening techniques. Emotion de-escalation is emphasised as a prerequisite before any negotiations can occur.

Contemporary approaches to hostage negotiation therefore aim to stabilise the situation and de-escalate emotion.Ĭrisis intervention has become an important element in hostage negotiation. When emotion is high, rational thinking and the ability to identify non-violent solutions are compromised, which elevates the risk of violence. It is a period of high emotion among hostages and hostage takers.

The first 15 to 45 minutes of a hostage situation are considered the most dangerous.

The hostage bargain