Strategically Speaking
Whither police reform?
THE police are yet to get the go ahead for the implementation of the proposed "Draft Police Ordinance-2007." It might interest the readers to know that Pakistan had formulated an entirely new police act in 2002, and in India, although the police Act of 1861 has not been totally replaced, efforts have been made to do away with it through a "Model Police Act" that its National Police Commission formulated in 1981. This has acted as a guideline for many Indian states that have attempted to make the police act relevant to the need at the time.
The proposed police ordinance has been lying with the home ministry since middle of June 2007, and the fact that a 32-member committee had been formed sometime back to "review" the proposals gives the impression that the issue has been successfully shelved, and that it will not be cleared during the tenure of the caretaker government, which in other words, means it may never see the light of day.
The reluctance -- to address the very pressing issue of police reform through a new police act, for the drafting of which a lot of time has been spent, and which one understands is informed by extensive deliberations and exchanges of opinions between the police and a wide cross-section of the people -- is difficult to understand. Just for the record, a roundtable on the Draft was organised by The Daily Star on August 11, 2007, participated by a large number of ex-policemen, eminent lawyers, and members of the civil society and human rights groups. As many as 32 major suggestions were made, many of which have been incorporated in the final draft.
When the police want reform why can't they have it? The answer, one must admit, is not so simple. One must go back to the antecedents of the institution of the police in our country and the Act of 1861 to understand the psyche that predominates the minds of those on whom rests the responsibility of bringing in the necessary changes.
It is sad but true that the colonial legislation that has guided the function of the police in Bangladesh has served the successive governments -- the military, pseudo-democratic, and the democratically elected -- very well. It is worth keeping in mind that the 1861 Act was legislated very soon after 1857; the motivation was not the love for the people of India but to crush dissent and the irredentist aspirations of the Indians. The parameters under which the police in Bangladesh function are a relic of the colonial past, a relic that, regrettably, some would like to continue even now.
Colonial laws infuse colonial mentality -- and this was eminently clear in the attitude of the policemen so far, although one must admit that there is an effort of late by the police leadership to purge that mind-set through motivational training of all ranks of the force.
But more than the attitudinal problems of the police, the institution was never allowed to function even within the parameters of the old laws. The deep extent of political control showed in the way it was used as a handmaiden of the political party in power to go after its political opponents. Almost all its agencies were dysfunctional, most of all the investigative agencies, which were compelled to alter the course of many criminal investigations. An example of this is the ex-home minister's role in influencing a criminal case, which was so clearly revealed recently in the final report, related to an SSP who was framed by none other than the minister himself for investigating criminal activities of some of his party apparatchiks.
The way the erstwhile alliance government had the police conduct the investigation of the August 21 bomb attack on the AL meeting has exposed the inability of the force to resist political pressure, even though the Act of 1861 clearly lays down that the force would be answerable only to the lawful authority and follow legal orders only. No wonder then that some police chiefs could do little except raise their hands in despair and helplessness, although some past IGPs had felt obliged to remain beholden to the party at the cost of state interest.
There was no chain of command, and it is to the political leaders that the lower level officers declared their fealty -- doing at the behest of the bhabans and sadans to demonstrate their efficiency. Whatever few had the gall to go by the book, suffered the inevitable fate. Therefore, if the police did not live up to the expectation of the people, it is the politicians that must also shoulder the blame.
Surely, such a situation cannot continue any longer. The police functions have to conform to the democratic values and the principle of universal human rights. The "Draft Police Ordinance-2007" indeed enshrines those in the very lofty preamble of the proposed policy. It enjoins upon the police, among other things, to be answerable to the people, who want policing by consent and not something imposed upon them. There are some very important features of the draft policy, including that of the provision of a "police commission" which among other things will oversee the workings of the force and also recommend a panel of names to the government for selecting the IGP. The proposed ordinance makes illegal interference into police operations a criminal offence.
We cannot overlook the fact that the police play an important role in the socio-economic development of the country. If they have not played that role so far, the state must ensure that the situation is changed. It is our painful experience that bad policing has often led to promulgation of more stringent laws that were basically "bad laws" to begin with. This must not happen.
But the essential point is that alongside police reform, there is a need to reform the police too. Of essence is the need to change the mindset, both of the police and its political masters. Political interference must end. And the police must be endowed with adequate resources to perform up to par. Without fulfilling these conditions, even the best of legislations will fail to deliver.
It is worth reproducing the last of the "Nine Principles" composed by Charles Rowan and Richard Mayne, as the first and joint Commissioners of the Metropolitan Police, contained in the "General Instructions" for the London Metropolitan police, in 1829. It says: "The test of police efficiency is the absence of crime and disorder, and not the visible evidence of police action in dealing with them."
No new proposal, particularly one that seeks to replace old regulations, can be entirely without flaw. But whatever shortcomings might be present can only be found out after it is put into effect. The issue is too important to brook any further delay.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel.
Comments