Who Will Police The Police

SUNDAY LEADER: 05/06/2010

The latest incident of police brutality has once again highlighted serious problems facing that service. The police service was always seen as corrupt. Those who defend the police say that they are underpaid, over worked and have to constantly please politicians. They claim that this has lowered morale and discipline.

Although these issues are valid, it is also a fact that the police are one of the, if not the most, corrupt organizations in the country, except for governing politicians. That and the continuous interference by politicians have taken it’s toll.  All of the above, underscore reasons behind the fiasco that took place in Katunayake last Monday, May 30, resulting in scores of people being injured.

The appointment of an independent Police Commission would help to improve discipline. It would also allow efficient policemen to get promotions without having to lick the boots of politicians, a distasteful exercise for any human being. But will that be enough ?
A majority of policemen believe bribery is a perk that goes with their job. Their links with drug smugglers and  underworld bosses are well-known and well documented. For example if the Bribery Commission sends out decoys on a Friday night in Colombo the entire force of the city traffic police could be rounded up. Ask any person stopped for drunk driving or for any traffic offense for that matter and they will tell you that cops will solicit a bribe as if it is their due.  But here again, the Bribery Commission is also defunct with a lack of investigators and staff to carry out its functions as it should. In a society where bribery is endemic most people will be happy to pay the bribe and justify it by saying that the ‘hassle of going to court’ is not worth it.  That is the real problem. As long as society as a whole does not demand zero tolerance to bribery and corruption, nothing will change.
To add to the tragedy we have had a series of IGPs who have made laughable public statements bringing the entire police force into disrepute. One IGP said that there were too many ‘white vans’ to successfully investigate the abductions while the current one, Mahinda Balasuriya called for the public to use their cell phones to film or photograph crimes. One wonders whether President Mahinda Rajapaksa carries out an IQ test before appointing the police chief. Clearly not.
The other factor is the government’s double standards when it comes to the rule of law. The same government that has given the police a ‘free hand’ to ‘crackdown’ on drug smugglers and underworld bosses cry foul when the police use the same extra-judicial methods to settle personal scores. The same people who quietly applaud when underworld bosses are murdered by police without adhering to the rule of law, are shocked when students are abducted and assaulted or youth are arrested and murdered.
For decades the police took cover behind the war for the rising crime rate and police brutality. They told us that they were stretched by counter terrorism operations and did not have enough personnel or time to investigate  common crimes. The other reasons given, were that policemen were traumatized by serving in the operational areas and acted brutally when serving in non-combat areas.
Well the war is over. That was two years ago. So why has nothing changed in the country’s police force? For a start, the President can appoint a senior policeman who tops the IQ test and not the one who brings up the rear.