Reforming the Police
That no less a personage than the Head of state has
ordered a probe into complaints against police officers is a
clear indication that there is something 'rotten in the state of
Denmark'. According to our lead story yesterday President
Mahinda Rajapaksa has directed the IGP to investigate 170 public
complaints made against Police officers. This is against the
backdrop of the Police assault in Malabe and the murders at
Angulana. These are among the 1,380 complaints against Police
officers referred to the IGP by the National Police Commission
in it's 2008 report. The report says that the 170 complaints
have been classified 'very serious' and they would be the first
to be investigated.
As we have stated before in these columns the Police played a
not inconsiderable role in the country's war against terrorism
and the Department deserves all the kudos lavished on it by a
grateful public when honouring the deeds of the Armed Forces.
Thousands of Policemen sacrificed their lives during the three
decades of war while trying to defend Police stations under
attack or during the normal course of their duties.
We also mentioned that the Police along the way did acquire a
military mindset and that although essentially a civilian force
it was not always civil towards the general public. Incidents of
Police brutality though prevalent even during the pre-war days
reached a new high during the recent past as highlighted time
and again in the media. The nadir of police behaviour was
reached at Malabe and Angulana which nullified whatever sympathy
the public had for the Police for it's role in the anti-terror
campaign plunging it's reputation to new depths. The heroes of
hardly two months ago are today reduced to zeros. It will be no
exaggeration to say that IGP Jayantha Wickremaratne will have a
Herculean task on his hands to regain the lost prestige of his
Police Department following the recent events and it would take
much more than hounding out errant officers to turn the tide.
The Police Department will need a complete shake up in this
post war era to attune itself to the change and function
essentially as a civilian force with close links to the public.
We will refrain from commenting further on the incidents as
the matters are being adjudicated before court. But suffice it
to say that the respect, regard, and awe for the Khaki Uniform
has simply evaporated. The attack a few days later on a Police
party by a group of residents in Borella while on a mission to
apprehend a drug dealer was proof of this.
This no doubt is a dangerous trend which could descend to
anarchy very soon with a wrathful public taking the law into
it's own hands. Something had to be done urgently to reverse
this negative public perception towards the Police.
While taking to task errant officers could be a first step in
policing the Police, as mentioned, the Department needs to be
transformed in outlook and mission. True, weeding out the black
sheep within the Department who had brought calumny on the
entire force could help dissipate some of the public anger. But
the Police Department as a whole should reform itself if it is
to win back lost public confidence.
Hence the President's decision to hound out the bad eggs from
the Department should serve as a first step in overhauling the
entire Police to bring it back to it's pristine days when the
Police Department lived up to the highest ideals and code of
ethics of a civilian law enforcement agency.
We are not aware whether these 170 officers on the mat are
those holding high rank or the ordinary PCs and sergeants. But
it is important that no top officer is shielded or spared. For,
making an example of a high ranking officer would have it's
reverberations down the line and make the rank and file fall in
line. Today it is common knowledge that the lower ranked
officers do the bidding of their bosses and the recent incidents
is ample testimony to this. Now that the war is over steps
should be taken to revert the Police Department to it's former
role of a civilian law enforcement force. It cannot act with
impunity any longer. According to the Police Commission report
it had monitored over 3418 complaints against abuse of powers
and 92 complaints of assault and 84 complaints against arbitrary
arrest and detention, in 2008 alone. No wonder then some of the
Police officers had acquired a sense of immunity as testified to
by the statements attributed to the Angulana OIC.
The IGP should start his mission from scratch. He should
prevail on his charges on the changed circumstances and need to
act in terms of this change. He should also take steps to
de-construct the negative image of the public towards his
Department as a corrupt ridden institution as revealed in recent
survey. For this there needs to be an effective supervisory
mechanism to police and Police. There should be no room for
political meddling in the functions of the Police and officers
should be told in no uncertain terms to act and conduct
themselves in keeping with the dignity of their Uniform. Police
- Public relations too should be improved and taken to a new
level in the post war era. It is the image of the Police that
has taken a beating over the years. Building this image would be
half the battle won.
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