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Empowering the police

The Police Department which celebrated its 137th anniversary on Wednesday, on a comparatively simple note, continues to establish its relevance and usefulness in times which are proving to be an acid test of the effectiveness of law enforcement. Admittedly, these are exceptional times which bring under great strain public institutions, such as the Police Department, which have to cope with a myriad law and order problems, the like of which they have never confronted before.

In present day Sri Lanka, crime competes with the cost of living, to be on the ascendent and the blame for the entirety of this problem cannot be laid at the doorstep of the Police Department. For, crime is also rooted in social and moral degeneration and inhuman acquisitiveness which flourishes in a fiercely competitive economic environment. Naturally, the Police Department and other law and order agencies couldn't be blamed for the latter conditions.

These are usually the creation of some of our country's politicians and policy planners, besides some sections of the professional elite who figure prominently in public life. Moreover, a society's inactive moral leaders, such as some sections of our religionists who prefer to turn a Nelsonian eye on evil, need to also take the rap for our galloping crime rate and rapid societal degeneration.

Accordingly, crime is a complex problem with multifarious roots, but the police cannot be absolved of any blame for ineffective law enforcement. While the police is not responsible for the creation of a country's legal regime, which provides the basis for law and order, it is up to the police, among other institutions, to enforce such a structure once it is brought into being.

It is in the area of law enforcement that police lapses have become particularly evident. We are particularly concerned about increasing human rights petitions filed in the superior courts, alleging excesses by the police. For instance, petitions by some of those taken into custody by the police, alleging torture and inhuman treatment at the hands of the latter, have registered a marked increase in recent times. Custodial deaths are also tending to put the Police Department in a cloud.

A recent case of this kind, is noteworthy. An army personnel taken into police custody by a suburban police station for alleged robbery, had been found dead in detention. Police claimed that the man had hanged himself with a belt which was found in his possession. This begs the question: why was the suspect allowed to be in possession of such an item of clothing, which could be easily used for hanging himself? Obviously, not all the precautions have been taken by the police to ensure the total security of the suspect. It is the responsibility of the police to ensure that every suspect is free of harassment while in their custody. The police is also obliged by law to ensure the complete protection of the suspects.

The police is, moreover, expected to act without fear or favour. There has been some hesitation on the part of the police to act against rampaging and bullying politicians, who sometimes run berserk under their very noses, but the Independent Police Commission, we hope, will prove a tangible presence, sooner rather than later, and ensure the full empowerment and independence of the police.

We also take this opportunity to call on the State to ensure due process of the law in instances where policemen have been harmed and humiliated by power-drunk, highly connected persons who have been a menace to not only the police but also the public.

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