Trinidad & Tobago is one of the very
few civil countries where the colonial word “FORCE”
is still used by its Police Service and lends connotations as to how its
officers view their interactions with the community. Police officers in
Trinidad and Tobago are greatly lacking in effective communications skills and
Human relation training, inevitably creating fear in the community rather than earning
RESPECT from the population. Every Civil
society are signatories to the UN Charter on Human Rights and are guided by its
principles, including those on Police Brutality and summary and unlawful Executions
of people.
SEE www.ohchr.org/Documents/Publications/training5Add1en.pdf
Following public outcry of the increasing
Execution of individuals in Trinidad by its Police ”FORCE”,
the Trinidad Express asked readers their
opinion and surprisingly 88% responded that the Police “were just doing their
Job”. One can only presume that citizens
have become so immune to Police beatings and abusing those in their care that
they now see unlawful killings as a mere extension of their police “FORCE” to, however paradoxical, curb escalating
criminal activities. Many of those killed recently by Police in Trinidad were
shot according to witnesses, “on their knees”,
“with their hands up in the air begging don’t shoot”, “in their back”, or “in
the back of their head”, all evidently AIMED to completely diminish a
life ON THE SPOT, denied their inalienable rights to
Justice, KILLED devoid of a fair Trial.
No country can accept any Police Officer
spontaneously being Judge, Jury and Executioner. This is, understandably, left
to the Legal system comprising the Courts, State prosecutors, Defense
Attorneys, a Jury, and a Judge directing the Court on specific legalities. PIRG
wishes
to educate consumers that it is the job of Police to apprehend and bring to
JUSTICE individuals in breach of the LAW. It is NOT the job of any
Police Officer anywhere in the world to kill people, except in specific
circumstances, as regulated by the UN Charter as follows:
Permissible
circumstances for the use of firearms by Police:
1: Firearms
are to be used only in extreme circumstances. (lxxxviii)
2: Firearms
are to be used only in self-defense or defense of others against imminent
threat of death or serious injury (lxxxix)
3: To prevent
a particularly serious crime that involves a grave threat to life (xc) -or-
4: To arrest
or prevent the escape of a person posing such a threat and who is resisting
efforts to stop the threat (xci) -and-
5: In every case,
only when less extreme measures are insufficient. (xcii)
6: Intentional
lethal use of force and firearms shall be permitted only when strictly
unavoidable in order to protect human life.
(xciii)
7: Non-violent
means shall be attempted before the use of force (cix)
8: Force
shall be used only when strictly necessary (cx)
9: Force
shall be used only for lawful law enforcement purposes (cxi)
10: Force applied shall be proportional to the
lawful law enforcement objectives (cxii)
Every
effort shall be made to limit damage and injurycxiii
Procedures
for the use of firearms by Police
1: The officer is to identify self as police official (xciv)
-and-
2: The
officer is to give a clear warning (xcv) and-
3: The
officer is to allow adequate time for warning to be obeyed (xcvi) -but-
4: This shall
not be required if the delay would result in death or serious injury to the
officer or others (xcvii) -or-
5: It is clearly pointless or inappropriate in
the circumstances to do so (xcviii)
After
the use of firearms by Police
1: Medical
aid is to be rendered to all injured persons (xcix)
2: All wounded and traumatized to be immediately cared
for (cxviii)
3: The
relatives or friends of those affected are to be notified
4: Investigations
are to be allowed for where requested or required (ci)
5: A full and detailed report of the incident is
to be provided (cii)
Police
Command and Management
Law enforcement officials shall at all times fulfil
the duty imposed upon them by law, by serving the community and by protecting
all persons against illegal acts, consistent with the high degree of responsibility
required by their profession.
Law enforcement officials shall not commit any act
of corruption. They shall rigorously oppose and combat all such acts (ccvi)
Law enforcement officials shall respect and protect
human dignity and maintain and uphold the human rights of all persons (ccvii)
Every law enforcement agency shall be representative
of and responsive and accountable to the community as a whole (ccviii)
Clear, complete and accurate records
shall be maintained on matters of investigations, arrest, detention, the use of force and firearms, victim
assistance, and all matters of police activity (ccx)
Training and clear guidelines shall be made
available on all matters of police activities affecting human rights (ccxi)
Police agencies shall make available a range of
means for the differentiated use of force, and shall train officers in their
use (ccxii)
All incidents of the use of force or firearms shall
be followed by reporting and review by superior officials (ccxiii)
Superior officials shall be held responsible for the
actions of police under their command if the superior knew or should have known
of abuses but failed to take action (ccxiv)
Officials who refuse unlawful superior orders shall
be given immunity (ccxv)
Confidential information is to be handled securely (ccxvi)
All police candidates shall be of appropriate mental
and physical character (ccxvii)
All police are to be subject to
continuous and effective report and review procedures (ccxviii)
Police shall develop strategies for law enforcement
which are effective, lawful and respectful of
human
rights (ccxix)
Community
Policing (ccxx)
Establish a partnership between police and law
abiding members of the community
Adopt a community relations policy and plan of
action
Recruit from all sectors of the community
Train officers to deal with diversity
Establish community outreach and public information
programs
Liaise regularly with all groups in the community
Build contacts with the community through
non-enforcement activities
Assign officers to a permanent neighborhood beat
Increase community participation in policing
activities and community-based public safety programs
Involve the community in identifying problems and
concerns
Use a creative problem-solving approach to develop
responses to specific community problems, including non-traditional tactics and
strategies
Coordinate policies, strategies and activities with
other government agencies, and with nongovernmental organizations
Police
Violations of Human Rights
Law enforcement officials shall respect and protect
human dignity, and shall maintain and uphold the human rights of all persons (ccxxi)
Law enforcement agencies shall be accountable to the
community as a whole (ccxxii)
Effective mechanisms shall be established to ensure
internal discipline and external control as well as the effective supervision
of law enforcement officials (ccxxiii)
Law enforcement officials who have reason to believe
that a violation has occurred, or is about to occur, shall report the matter (ccxxiv)
Provisions shall be made for the receipt and
processing of complaints against law enforcement officials made by members of
the public, and the existence of those provisions shall be publicized (ccxxv)
Investigations into violations shall be prompt,
competent, thorough, and impartial (ccxxvi)
Investigations shall seek to identify victims,
recover and preserve evidence, discover witnesses, Investigations shall seek to
identify victims, recover and preserve evidence, discover witnesses, discover
cause, manner, location and time of the violation, and to identify and
apprehend perpetrators (ccxxvii)
Crime scenes shall be carefully processed (cxxviii)
Superior officers shall be held responsible for
abuses if they knew, or should have known of their occurrence, and did not take
action (ccxxix)
Police are to receive immunity from prosecution or
discipline for refusing unlawful superior orders (ccxxx)
Obedience to superior orders shall not be a defense for violations committed by police (ccxxxi)