The World Economic Forum Does Not Have Its Own Police Force

The Misbar team investigated the claim and found it to be misleading, as the WEF does not have its own police force. Every year, police officers in Graubunden canton, where Davos is located and the WEF is held, wear patches to commemorate the occasion and show participation.

Police Patches to Mark the WEF Event

The Graubunden canton police officers assigned to work at the WEF wear a patch as a form of identification to commemorate the event, their participation, and to foster team spirit. The patches over the years are shown below, courtesy of the Swiss Police Patch website.

As seen in the screenshot, the WEF patch is the same and only the colors change, the patch is the same as the one shared in the circulating claim. Moreover, 5000 members of the army were also deployed to support the police in Davos. 

Furthermore, the second patch circulating in images is the official Graubunden Police patch as seen on their official website. The two images are shown in comparison below.

Given the two patches, an official police patch and a WEF patch, this is a subset of the Graubunden Police selected to work at the event. The WEF would not be allowed to wear the local city police patch on their uniform if they had their own police force.

WEF Committee of the Government of Graubunden Canton

According to the WEF Committee of the Government of Graubunden Canton, the annual meeting is a "valuable platform for Swiss foreign policy and one of the most important economic and social-political events in Switzerland," and they place a high emphasis on ensuring it runs smoothly and orderly. Especially in terms of ensuring a safe environment and peaceful demonstrations. The Committee also stated that they "place the highest priority on security for the WEF participants as well as the safety of the local populace and guests, as has been the case in previous years." Given the emphasis on safety, it is not uncommon for the police officers working at the event to wear their own special patch.

No Credible Sources

The Misbar team also thoroughly reviewed official Graubunden locality sources, as well as WEF channels and credible news sources, and discovered no evidence that the WEF had its own police force. Furthermore, it makes no sense for the WEF to have its own police because the event only lasts up to five days each year.

Based on the findings, the Misbar team confirms that the claim is misleading, the WEF does not have its own police force.