The Northern Ireland Experience
Tripoli, Libya, 24 – 25 September
BROAD OBJECTIVES
 Brief review of Irish policing history
 Focus on Northern Ireland police reforms
 Identify common elements:
 Key steps and processes
 Frequent challenges
 Outcomes and benefits
 Elements reflected in other police reforms
 Potential relevance for Libya
 Discussion
Please ask questions at any time
POLICING IN IRELAND
 Always affected by political identities and tensions
 Associated with foreign state control
 Perceived as harsh and repressive
 Unresponsive and unaccountable
 Partition of Ireland (1921) creates two police forces:
 Northern Ireland - Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC)
 Republic of Ireland - Garda Síochána
 Policing in Northern Ireland (1921 – 1969):
 Increasingly politicised and contentious
POLICING THE ‘TROUBLES’
 Increasing terrorism from 1969 – 1998
 Increased role for the military in everyday policing
 Increasing separation of police from the community
THE POLICE STATIONS (FORTRESSES)
OF THE ‘TROUBLES’
1998 BELFAST AGREEMENT
 First significant peace effort in many years
 Support from all parties in Northern Ireland
 Endorsed by common referendum (71.1% of vote)
 The RUC still largely Protestant (92%)
 Policing reform is seen as key to a lasting peace
 One outcome is the Patten Commission:
 Patten Reform Report released in 1999
 175 sweeping recommendations
 Major change for the RUC and policing generally
REFORM STEPS AND PROCESS I
 Begins with public perceptions of policing:
 Multiple legitimate perspectives on policing
 Confirms the central role of the community
 Human Rights
 Accountability (over 30 recommendations):
 Need for links to other institutions
 Governance board; complaints agency; inspections
 Prevent political interference and direction
 Central function of community-based policing
REFORM STEPS AND PROCESS II
 De-Militarization and Normalization:
 Joint operations with the Army
 Fortified police stations
 Armoured vehicles
 Police Organizational Structures:
 Management
 Command-and-control
 Composition and Recruitment
 Training, Education and Development
 Symbols and culture
THE NEW POLICING VISION
 Policing is impartial and taken out of politics
 The police are clearly separated from the military
 A new name, badge and symbols
 Police represent all communities
 Focus on anti-crime operations
CRUCIAL ISSUE:
OPERATIONAL INDEPENDENCE
 Police are given extraordinary powers:
 Arrest, questioning, entry, seizure, detention
 Essential need to minimize the risk of political influence
 Patten recommends that the chief of police:
 No longer be operationally guided by the Minister
 Have ‘operational responsibility’ for the police
 Chief must be able to exercise policing responsibilities
 Only the chief – a career police officer – has the proper:
 Investigative and forensic facts
 Operational expertise and judgement
OVERSIGHT OF REFORM
 Patten recommends an independent means of
overseeing and assessing reform
 Oversight Commission for Policing Reform (2000)
 Broad mandate to:
 Monitor
 Evaluate
 Report on progress
OFFICE OF THE OVERSIGHT COMMISSIONER
 Hold police to account for pace and degree of reform
 Report publicly three times per year
 Implementation of over 82% of Patten recommendations
SIGNIFICANT OUTCOMES
 New Police Service of Northern Ireland
 Badge, uniform, symbols, equipment
 Reduction from 13,500 to 7,500 police officers
 Critical and ongoing relationships with outside actors:
 Policing Board and local Policing Partnerships
 Police Ombudsman and Criminal Justice Inspectorate
 Civil society and citizen groups
 Increased proportion of Catholic police officers:
 From 8% in 2001 to 30% by 2011
 Better criminal intelligence and operational effectiveness
 An increasingly normalized policing environment
SOME CHALLENGES REMAIN
 Ongoing terrorism threat in Northern Ireland
 Two distinct and divided communities remain:
 Protestant – keep the union with the United Kingdom
 Catholic – want a union with the Republic of Ireland
 Annual parades and marches
ANNUAL MARCHING
(RIOTING) SEASON
ANNUAL COSTS TO POLICING
 Massive drain on financial and human resources
 Damaged community relations:
 Continuing tension and confrontation
 Now with both communities
 Direct impacts on police officers and morale
ANY OBSTACLES?
BARRIERS TO
POLICE REFORM
 Political indecision and interference
 Resistance to change at senior police levels
 Incoherent planning and internal coordination
 Uncertainty and fear among police officers
 Insufficient community engagement
 An over-focus on tactical police training
 Lack of emphasis on organizational changes
 Significant costs over the longer term
 A pace of change that is slow and frustrating
ELEMENTS OF POTENTIAL
RELEVANCE FOR LIBYA
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Police reform is part of a wider justice system change
Conscious move away from military links
A focus on effective operations and community safety
Operational responsibility of the chief of police
Strong links to other justice and oversight organizations
 Statutory
 Community-based
 Representative police organizations:
 Women
 Regions
 Minorities
 Key elements as reflected in other reform initiatives
INTERNAL
REVIEW
IMPLEMENTATION AND
OVERSIGHT
EXTERNAL
REVIEW
Capability
Integrity
Framework
Prepare the
ground
Oversight
Commission
Validate and
legitimise
Engage public
& politics
Incentivise
Recognition
Empowerment
Representation
Modernisation
Retirement package
Unity of will
Cohesion of forces
(political)
(international & national)
ENSURING STABILITY
SECURING THE PEACE
A REFORM PROCESS FOR POLICE
the Northern Ireland experience
QUESTIONS?