PSNI Chief Constable in the US; INAC Policing Update for activists
Published: 14 March, 2004
This St. Patrick’s Day season, Sir Hugh Orde, the PSNI’s Chief Constable, has been ordered to Washington, D.C. and beyond to hype his force.
Last year in a NYC speech, Orde caused a ruckus when he complained about those within the PSNI who were “actively working against” the GFA and police reform. This is his penance.
Following is an update on policing that may be useful to counter whatever propaganda Orde’s visit manages to generate through the media and our political representatives.
More importantly, it should be used over the coming months to highlight the lack of progress by the British and Irish governments to live up to their commitments.
An Irish Northern Aid , Political Education Department UPDATE: “Policing in the north of Ireland”
Overview
The GFA requires a policing service democratically accountable, representative, and free from partisan political control, as would be required in any just society.
The Patten Commission, established by the GFA, made recommendations which had the potential to fundamentally change the current police force into a service that would better conform to international standards of accountability, community participation and equality.
The British government chose not to implement key aspect of Patten’s recommendations.
Until there is an acceptable policing service, nationalists will continue to refuse to join the PSNI and republicans will continue to refuse to sit on a Policing Board denuded of the power envisioned by the Patten Commission.
These are the facts:
1. Partisan political control of policing continues.
The Northern Ireland Office [NIO], a direct rule British government agency, is in ultimate control of policing and justice. The British Secretary of State for N. Ireland, a political appointee of the British PM, informed by the British army and intelligence and the PSNI Chief Constable, is essentially in charge of the PSNI.
The result is actions of the PSNI often have the appearance of or are actually motivated by political concerns, such as the raid on Sinn Fein’s offices at Stormont or the vastly different way nationalists are treated by the PSNI as opposed to as opposed to unionists.
The only way to rectify this would be to transfer policing policy and powers to a locally elected, democratic Assembly in the north.
2. The PSNI remains unrepresentative of the community it polices.
There are over 9,000 members of the PSNI, including full and part time Reserves. The full force is made up of 11.6% Catholics, the vast majority at the lowest ranks.
A 50:50 recruitment quota was introduced three years ago, yet the British government has yet to establish a strategy for bringing about community parity.
The British government needs to live up to its commitments in accordance to full implementation of the Patten recommendations. At this rate, relative parity in the PSNI might be achieved by mid century.
3. Plastic bullets are lethal and need to be withdrawn from use.
Four years ago, Patten recommended the rapid withdrawal of plastic bullets from the PSNI/British army arsenal for use in the north [they never were legal in the England, Scotland or Wales]. Although the British committed to replace plastic bullets by 2003, they are still in the hands of the PSNI.
The British have published the final research report into alternatives that recommends either: 1] a new plastic bullet [an “attenuated energy projectile”] or 2] a new CS gas bullet [a “discriminating irritant projectile”].
The Policing Board has approved for use a hand-held CS gas spray without any health impact research or consultation.
4. Repressive legislation continues to be used by the PSNI, as it was by the RUC.
Since the undemocratic imposition of the six-county state by the British government in the early 1920s, there have been “emergency laws” used almost exclusively against the nationalist population. They were ostensibly “temporary,” to help deflect world approbation for such undemocratic and draconian measures against one’s own citizens.
Recently, the British junior minister for security in the north, Jane Kennedy, introduced an Order to renew this repressive legislation on a “temporary” basis for the 83rd year in a row!
5. PSNI stations and vehicles have not been demilitarized. They still patrol in combat vehicles from heavily armed, military fortresses in nationalist areas.
The failure to demilitarize has been noted by the Oversight Commissioner on Policing as an area of noncompliance with the GFA: “Unfortunately, despite repeated requests for evidence of a fully funded plan that addresses this important need, there has been little or no progress.”
6. Key positions in the PSNI are held by human rights abusers, many involved in collusion with loyalist paramilitaries to kill citizens.
RUC collusion with loyalist death squads to target and kill citizens is widely acknowledged. Recent inquiries and reports point to a web of interaction between British Intelligence, RUC and their agents within the loyalist paramilitary groups.
Any new beginning for a non-sectarian policing service depends upon serving officers, and those in leadership, to adhere to principles of civil and human rights. Nationalists will not join a force that harbors members who willingly colluded in the killing of hundreds or abused thousands of their own community.
7. The PSNI Chief Constable and senior members of the Policing Board, including its chair and deputy chair, oppose inquiries that would see human rights abusers exposed.
Chief Constable, Sir Hugh Orde, stated publicly that inquiries were unhelpful and that the Saville Inquiry into the state killing of 14 citizens was “a waste of money.”
All of the above oppose inquiries into the murders of Pat Finucane, Rosemary Nelson, Robert Hamill, and many others.
8. Chief Constable Orde continues to withhold vital inquest evidence on controversial killings involving British state forces.
Inquests for ten people killed by state forces or by loyalist paramilitaries with suspected collusion with state forces in County Tyrone are cases in point.
Despite being ordered by the courts to hand over vital information to the state coroner, the PSNI, like the RUC, refuses to cooperate. This interference has lead to the inquests being aborted on more than 12 occasions over the past decade!
9. The infamous Special Branch operates as a de facto cartel inside the PSNI.
The RUC Special Branch, “the force within the force,” has shifted into the PSNI and renamed REMIT [“Regional Major Investigations Team.] Together with Regional Crime and Regional Intelligence, they are a political cartel inside the PSNI.
The Oversight Commissioner on Policing stated: “The Oversight Commissioner has previously reported on the seriousness of this prolonged delay in fulfilling the intent of the Patten Commission regarding Special Branch.”
The Oversight report into the “Structure of the Police Service” details 11 specific recommendations from the Patten Commission’s report; there is noncompliance by PSNI in 10.
10. Political destabilization at key points in the peace process has been orchestrated by the Special Branch.
One particularly damaging example of Special Branch political manipulation was the so-called “Stormont gate” incident.
T.V. crews were tipped off by the Special Branch to be at Stormont prior to the raid on Sinn Fein Assembly offices in October of 2002. The raid was a publicity stunt accruing nothing more damaging than a harmless computer start-up disc.
This provocative PSNI raid was condemned throughout the world, including members of the US congress. Irish Senator Martin Mansergh said, “It is an extraordinary thing in any democracy for the parliamentary offices of a political party to be heavily raided by a police force.”
The raid provided the pretext for the British to collapse the GFA’s political institutions and blame republicans.
The most serious charges in this trumped up operation have already been dismissed. The so-called “Stormont spy-ring” turned out to be bogus. But, the damage had already been done.
Deliberate misinformation and manipulation of the media is a staple of recent policing operations.
11. The families of Protestants killed recently by loyalist paramilitaries have publicly stated that Special Branch agents were involved in the killings and given immunity.
The families of Raymond McCord and David McIllwaine are among those who accuse the PSNI of preventing the prosecution of Special Branch agents still at large in loyalist murder gangs and of interfering with disclosure of evidence required to facilitate inquests into the killings.
12. The Director of Public Prosecutions [DPP], part of the failed justice system and policing, continues to prevent prosecutions against human rights abusers in the PSNI.
In the case of John Boyle, who recently had a political conviction overturned as a miscarriage of justice, the DPP refused to prosecute the members of the RUC who perpetrated it, despite an investigation by the Police Ombudsman and the discovery that police evidence was fabricated.
The DPP refused to give any reasons why he failed to prosecute.
On 1 March 2004, the DPP dropped charges against seven members of the PSNI who were the subject of an investigation by the Police Ombudsman in the road death of Raymond Boyle in west Belfast. In this case, the DPP blamed faulty forensics as an excuse for not prosecuting.
13. The DPP and Special Branch continue to interfere with forensic evidence and the activities of the Forensic Science Agency.
In the trail of Noel Abernathy, during the autumn of 2003, Mrs Ann Irwin, a forensic scientist, gave evidence under oath that Special Branch interference in the gathering and processing of forensic evidence had been carried on throughout her employment in the Forensic Science Agency, involving both the RUC and PSNI.
In the case of Mark Carroll and Martin Brogan, the evidence vital to the defense, including information about a Special Branch agent provocateur was concealed by the DPP and PSNI Special Branch in a vain attempt to convict the men.