Reactions to the Policing Reforms in Northern Ireland
Molly Fiedler

 
Abstract

"When the policing issue is resolved the Conflict in Northern Ireland will be solved." 
- Dennis Bradley, link between the IRA and the British Army and a key figure in negotiating the 1994 IRA ceasefire
 
The police force of Northern Ireland is being drastically reformed.  The two political/religious communities of Northern Ireland have been at war with each other for thirty years.  Do they agree on what reforms are necessary?  Do they even agree that the police force should be reformed?  What impact will these reforms have on the two communities of Northern Ireland?  And the most important question of all: are reforms necessary to move Northern Ireland toward a more peaceful future? 

Introduction

Northern Ireland, a province of Great Britain, is sharply divided by religion and politics.  The minority Nationalists are mainly Catholics who want to see Northern Ireland reunited with the republic of Ireland.  They have been discriminated against in all areas of life since Northern Ireland was formed.  The majority Unionists are mainly Protestants that would like Northern Ireland to remain a province Great Britain.  They have enjoyed privileged status in Northern Ireland since its formation. 

The Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) is the official police force of Northern Ireland.  It is almost exclusively Protestant, and has been condemned by Nationalists and human rights groups for embodying sectarianism.  It has also been lauded by security forces as one of the most professional police operations in the world.  The RUC has worked under extreme pressure in a terrorist state for thirty years, a state which has only recently negotiated a very tenuous peace agreement.  "Today the RUC faces special challenges in policing a divided society. ä  It seeks to provide stability and reassurance and to deliver an impartial, quality police service to all the people of Northern Ireland."1

The actions of the RUC over the last thirty years have been the cause of marches, protests, lawsuits and riots.  RUC officers have been physically attacked by the very communities they are supposed to protect, and have attacked the communities in turn.  Both the Catholic and the Protestant communities have accused the RUC of ignoring calls for aide, allowing and even watching crimes, discrimination, brutality, and outright murder happen. 

The main clash lies between the RUC and the working - class communities.  This is due to the presence of paramilitary groups in these communities, which openly oppose and attack the RUC, both in word and action.  Over the last thirty years, these paramilitary groups have taken the policing and protection of their communities into their own, rather violent, hands.  The main paramilitary groups are the Irish Republican Army (IRA) of the Republican community, and the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) and Ulster Defence Association (UDA) of the Loyalist community. 
However, the RUC is undergoing massive reforms.  Just exactly what changes are being implemented?  Are these reforms enough?  Will the Protestant and Catholic communities accept this new police force?  Can the RUC adapt to its new role in the rapidly changing community of Northern Ireland?

The proposed reforms are extensive and highly controversial.  Because policing affects everyone's safety and security, everyone in Northern Ireland has a strong opinion on the subject.  My research focused on the changes that have taken place since the Good Friday Agreement in 1998 up to the present.  The reforms are being implemented as I write this.  There have been few results, and it is impossible to predict how well the community of Northern Ireland will accept these changes in the long run.  Instead, we will look at the reactions to the reforms now.
 
 
Glossary of Terms
 
Alliance Party - A relatively small Northern Ireland political party with cross - community support
 
Belfast - Largest city in Northern Ireland and the home of Stormont, the government of Northern Ireland
 
CAJ - Committee on the Administration of Justice, a cross - community group that works on a wide array of human rights concerns.  They also work on conflict related issues, including policing
 
Catholic - Roman Catholic, the main religion of the Nationalist community
 
Derry - The city where the Troubles started in 1968.  Derry, with 70% Catholic/Nationalist population, has the highest percentage of Catholics in Northern Ireland
 
DUP - Democratic Unionist Party, an extreme, 'traditional' Unionist political party
 
Good Friday Agreement - An agreement reached in 1998 after more than two years of peace talks and agreed to by most of the political parties in Northern Ireland
 
IRA - Irish Republican Army, the main Nationalist paramilitary organization
 
Loyalist - An extreme Unionist who wishes Northern Ireland to always remain a part of Britain
 
MLA - Member of the Legislative Assembly in Stormont, Northern Ireland
 
Nationalist - The label for the minority of the population in Northern Ireland, most of whom are Catholic, that would like Northern Ireland to be united with the Republic of Ireland
 
Paramilitary - An armed terrorist organization that uses violence to control/protect its communities and to make its political views known  
 
Patten - Christopher Patten, head of team that was commissioned by the Good Friday Agreement to examine the RUC and recommend changes necessary to improve the police force so that the peace process could move forward
 
Patten Report - The Patten team's 175 recommendations for changes and improvements to be made in the RUC
 
Prime Minister - Leader of the government of England, post currently held by Tony Blair
 
Protestant - The main religion of the Unionist community in Northern Ireland
 
PUP - Progressive Unionist Party, a working - class Loyalist political party that is the political wing of the UVF
 
RUC - Royal Ulster Constabulary, the official police force of Northern Ireland
 
Republican - An extreme Nationalist who will settle for nothing less than a united Ireland
 
SDLP - Social Democratic and Labour Party.  A Nationalist political party near the center of the political spectrum
 
Sinn Fein - A working class Republican political party that is the political wing of the IRA
 
Stormont - Seat of the Government of Northern Ireland, located in Belfast.  Was active from 1922 until 1972, at which time the province was placed under direct rule by Westminster.  The Good Friday Agreement reinstated a devolved government at Stormont in 1998
 
Taoiseach - The leader of the government of the Republic of Ireland, post currently held by Bertie Ahern
 
The Troubles - The thirty - year time span from 1968 to the signing of the Good Friday Agreement in 1998, during which the violence in the province was high due to paramilitary activity and tension between the Catholic and Protestant communities
 
UDA - Ulster Defense Association.  A Loyalist paramilitary group associated with the UDP political party
 
UDP - Ulster Democratic Party.  A small, extreme Unionist political party that is the political wing of the UDA
 
Unionist - Label for the majority of the population of Northern Ireland, most of whom are Protestant.  The Unionists wish Northern Ireland to remain a part of Britain
 
UUP - Ulster Unionist Party, currently the largest Unionist political party in Northern Ireland
 
UVF - Ulster Volunteer Force, a Loyalist paramilitary organization
 
Westminster - The seat of the British Government in London, England
 
Women's Coalition - Political party that represents the interests of women from both the Nationalist and Unionist communities
 
Methodology

Choosing Sources

            Policing in Northern Ireland is, and always has been, intimately linked with politics.  The police reforms that are currently being implemented are a result of the Patten Report, commissioned by the Good Friday Agreement and the Police (NI) Act 2000 that was passed in Westminster, to which the political parties of Northern Ireland made many proposals. 
Therefore, I chose to focus my research on the political parties.  There are twelve political parties in Northern Ireland.  I narrowed this field down to the eight 'main' political parties: The Ulster Unionist Party (UUP), the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), The Ulster Democratic Party (UDP), the Progressive Unionist Party (PUP), the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP), Sinn Fein, the Alliance Party and the Women's Coalition.  I also looked at independent bodies that were concerned with the police reforms, so I chose the Committee on the Administration of Justice (CAJ) and the Pat Finucane Centre.  And finally, I listened to the RUC's side of the story, since they are the ones most affected by the reforms.

I conducted my research in Belfast and Derry.  These cities in Northern Ireland have segregated working - class communities with a history of violence between each other and the RUC.  Belfast contains the headquarters of all the political parties and the RUC.  It is also home to Stormont and the CAJ.  I chose Derry because the 70% Catholic population has suffered heavily at the hands of the RUC throughout the Troubles.  As a result, Derry residents have very strong anti - RUC feelings.  Derry is also the home of the Pat Finucane Centre.

Secondary Research

I conducted much of my secondary research at the Linenhall Library in Belfast.  This library has the largest collection of literature on the Northern Ireland Conflict in the world, so it was the ideal place for me to find any information that had been published on the policing reforms.  Plus, the Linenhall Library has a hard copy of the Patten Report.  It was also a good source of newspaper articles and political party publications, especially their submissions and reactions to the Patten Report. 

The Internet was an invaluable tool in my research and my best source of information.  All the political organizations I was researching have web sites, and there are quite a few sites for the Conflict in Northern Ireland in general.

Primary Research

*All quotes from the interviews are marked with an Int before the number of the interview, for example Int4, which refers to the Interviews Cited page.

Formal Interviews

I conducted eight formal interviews.  The following is a list of whom I interviewed and where, with a short description of the organization they represent.

- Alliance Party: a small political party formed at the beginning of the Troubles.  It was based on the idea of having a party that would cross communities and does not focus on sectarianism.  It supported the Good Friday Agreement and the Patten recommendations overall.  I interviewed Steve Farry, City Councilor for Bangor, Co. Down, at the Alliance Party's office on University Street in Belfast. 

- Democratic Unionist Party (DUP): a large, 'traditional' Unionist party. It did not support the Good Friday Agreement or the Patten recommendations. I interviewed Ian Paisley Jr., MLA and Press Officer of the DUP, at the DUP offices in Stormont.

- Women's Coalition: a small, very new political party that represents the interests of women from both the Nationalist and the Unionist communities.  Most of its members are women, and it is based on the principles of human rights, inclusion and equality.  They supported the Good Friday Agreement and the Patten Recommendations overall.  I interviewed Kate Feron, advisor to the party and speaker on policing issues, at the Women's Coalition's office in Stormont.

- Progressive Unionist Party (PUP): a small, Unionist political party that is the political wing of the UDA, a loyalist paramilitary group.  The PUP originated in Long Kesh Prison.  The prisoners of that time felt that the mainstream unionist parties were not representing the working - class unionist people.  The party supported the Good Friday Agreement, not fully, but overall.  It supported the Patten recommendations.  I interviewed William Smith, Prisons spokesman of the PUP, at the PUP office on Woodvale Street in Belfast.

- Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP): a large, Nationalist party that is at the heart of the peace negotiations.  It supported the Good Friday Agreement.  While not fully agreeing with the Patten recommendations, it supported them, as well.  I interviewed Alex Attwood, Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) and policing spokesman of the SDLP, at the SDLP office in Stormont.

- The Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC): the police force of Northern Ireland.  I interviewed Chief Inspector Stephen Crockard at the RUC headquarters on Knock Road in Belfast. 

- The Committee for the Administration of Justice (CAJ): a cross - community group that works on a wide array of human rights concerns.  The organization works on conflict - related issues such as emergency legislation, prisoners and policing.  I interviewed Maggie Beirne at the Europa Hotel in Belfast.

- The Pat Finucane Centre for Human Rights and Social Change: the work of this organization includes a variety of human rights concerns as well as an agenda for democratic political development.  I interviewed Paul O'Connor at the Pat Finucane Centre in Derry.

I used a tape recorder for all of the formal interviews and took notes on body language at key points during the interviews, as well. 

Informal Interviews

            Throughout the course of my research, I was presented with opportunities for informal interviews.  I had two taxi drivers who were natives of Belfast who were willing to share their opinions and stories with me.  I also spoke at length with Christine Acheson at East Belfast Community Development Agency.  This is a blanket organization that coordinates and oversees many smaller, local community organizations in East Belfast, a predominately Protestant area.  And finally, I had the opportunity to chat with RUC Chief Constable Ronnie Flanagan at an RUC commemoration ceremony.

            I did not use a tape recorder for my informal interviews, since I had to take advantage of the situations as they presented themselves.  Instead, I listened attentively, jotted brief notes, and wrote everything down as soon as possible.

Observation

A key part of my research was the observation of the interaction between the RUC and the communities they policed.  I spent hours walking through the streets of Belfast and Derry, observing the RUC at work in both the Protestant and Catholic working - class communities.  I saw heavily fortified RUC stations, heavily armed officers and the extreme caution with which these officers did their jobs. 

I watched the RUC clean up a car accident, bust into a pub, police a Catholic march and guard the Orangemen on parade.  This told me a lot about their relationship with the people of the communities in which they were working.  (They say you can tell who's marching by what direction the police are pointing their guns.)  Lastly, I observed the RUC in an entirely different setting: a commemoration ceremony dedicating a stain - glass window to the memory of RUC officers who had died or been injured during the Troubles.  This revealed an entirely new side of the RUC that I never found on the streets of Belfast and Derry.
 
History

The Troubles

The Northern Ireland Troubles officially began on October 5th, 1968 with a Civil Rights march in Derry that was banned by the Northern Ireland government.  The march proceeded despite the ban, and the RUC attacked the unarmed marchers with batons and a water canon.2  This violent reaction on the part of the RUC sparked a bloody conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted thirty years, until the Good Friday Agreement brought a tenuous peace to the province.

Since the beginning of the Troubles in 1968, 302 RUC officers have been murdered, both on and off duty.  They have been killed by bombs, shootings and beatings.  Most of these murders are attributed to Loyalist and Republican paramilitary groups.  An additional 8,500 officers have been injured, many seriously, since the Troubles began.1  But the violence is not one - sided.  360 deaths have been attributed to the RUC and the British army since the beginning of the Troubles.  This accounts for 11% of the total deaths in the Troubles.3

Internment

"We were very, very disappointed in the parliamentary debate when the government minister said the RUC has an excellent human rights record.  There was absolutely no recognition that the police had been somewhat criticized by people in the past." - Maggie Beirne of the CAJ
 
In 1971, internment without trial was introduced.  This allowed the RUC to hold and interrogate suspects for up to a week, instead of the usual 48 hours.  Between 1971 and 1975 1,981 people were interned.  Of these, only 107 were Loyalists and the rest were Republicans.2  The Catholic community was enraged at this blatant discrimination by the RUC against its community.

The treatment of internees angered the Catholic community, as well.  The RUC maintained that it did not abuse suspects in internment.  But reports soon emerged of systematic abuse of those held at Castlereagh, one of two centres given the specific responsibility of interrogating suspects.  A former member of the RUC Special Patrol Group commented on a typical reaction to Castlereagh: "It had a grim reputation.  Suspects would be held there in windowless cubes for up to a week.  They might be denied sleep, stripped, beaten or humiliated. No one wanted to be taken to Castlereagh."
One of my taxi drivers was from a Republican area of Belfast and had been active in the IRA during the early 1970s.  He had been interned three times, and spoke of the treatment he received at Castlereagh.  He said they used psychological terror (lack of contact with the outside world, cold, dark, and fear) and physical torture to get one to talk.  They always punched you in the soft spots so it did not leave any bruises.  Using soft cop/hard cop techniques, they would interrogate you for hours at a time for an entire week. "When they say they never abused suspects, never physically beat them, don't believe a word of it.  I was there.  I got beaten up.  I know it went on because it happened to me."Int9

High - Profile Cases

The clash between the RUC and the Nationalist community is best illustrated by two high - profile cases that have yet to be resolved: the murder of Pat Finucane and the death of Robert Hamill.  In 1989, human rights solicitor Pat Finucane was murdered in his home by Loyalist paramilitaries.  Nationalists claim he was murdered because he was accused of being sympathetic to the cause of the IRA.  The RUC is suspected of destroying evidence that would lead to the arrest and conviction of the Loyalists responsible for his death.  The Pat Finucane Centre has called for an immediate, independent judicial inquiry into the murder of Pat Finucane following the latest revelations that RUC Special Branch perverted the course of justice in the wake of the murder.4

In April 1997, Robert Hamill, a Catholic civilian, was severely beaten in a sectarian attack by a gang of about 30 Loyalists in Portadown, NI.  Hamill died 10 days later as a result of the head injuries he received in the beating.  RUC officers were present close to the scene of the attack, in a police vehicle some 30 meters away.  They were accused by witnesses and by Hamill's family of not intervening to save him.5  These are just two examples of the RUC's attitude toward crimes involving the Nationalist community.

The Ceasefires

            The main paramilitary groups (the UVF, UDA and IRA) declared a ceasefire in 1994.  This ceasefire was call a in "recognizing the potential of the current situation and in order to enhance the democratic process (the peace talks) and underlying our definitive commitment to its success."6  But two years later, an IRA bomb in Canary Wharf, London broke the IRA ceasefire.  The IRA reinstated its ceasefire in 1997 so that its political wing, Sinn Fein, would be allowed to enter the peace talks.  This ceasefire has not yet been broken.

The Peace Talks

            Dr. Mo Mowlam, then Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, said that she "accepted the veracity" of the renewed Irish Republican Army (IRA) ceasefire and invited Sinn Fein to attend the multi - party talks at Stormont on September 15, 1997.  Tony Blair, the British Prime Minister, and Bertie Ahern, the Taoiseach, issued a joint appeal to all Unionists to join the multi - party talks.

The UUP agreed to attend the talks but would not sit at the same table as Sinn Fein.  The DUP boycotted the talks when Sinn Fein was invited to join in the negotiations.  It was absolutely opposed to "negotiating with terrorists," and it is still opposed to the presence of "terrorists" in the Northern Ireland government.Int2

The Good Friday Agreement

The Good Friday Agreement is a peace agreement.  It was signed by the Taoiseach of Ireland and the Prime Minister of England and agreed to by most of the political parties on April 10, 1998 after two years of peace talks between the political parties of NorthernIreland.  The talks included, for the first time, the political wings of the main paramilitary groups.  These parties were Sinn Fein, connected with the IRA; the UDP, connected with the UDA/UFF; and the PUP, connected with the UVF.  The Agreement, which is very ambiguous, was widely accepted by the political parties of Northern Ireland, with the notable exception of the DUP.  The Good Friday Agreement is considered by many to mark the beginning of an era of peace in Northern Ireland. 

The Agreement proposed a new Northern Ireland Assembly of 108 members, elected by proportional representation, with an executive comprised of a First Minister and Deputy First Minister.  This reinstated a devolved government for Northern Ireland.  This new government took its seats in Stormont on July 1st, 1998.  The 108 seats in Stormont are currently filled by representatives from seven of the eight parties that I am focusing on in my paper.  The distribution of the seats is as follows: 28 UUP, 24 SDLP, 20 DUP, 18 Sinn Fein, 6 Alliance, 2 PUP, and 2 Women's Coalition.  There are also 8 independent Unionists.

The section on Police and Justice of the Good Friday Agreement proposed that a commission be set up to investigate the RUC and suggest changes to be made to the police force.  The goal of the policing section of the Agreement was to create a police force that was "effective, efficient and impartial; accountable, representative and free from partisan control; working in partnership with the community and supported by the whole community."7

The Patten Report

"A new beginning to policing in Northern Ireland with a police service capable of attracting and sustaining support from the community as a whole." - The Patten Report
 
The Good Friday Agreement called for an independent commission to look into the policing situation and to make recommendations for future policing arrangements in Northern Ireland.  "Its proposals on policing should be designed to ensure that policing arrangements, including composition, recruitment, training, culture, ethos, and symbols, are such that in a new approach Northern Ireland has a police service that can enjoy widespread support from, and is seen as an integral part of, the community as a whole."8

The Rt Hon. Christopher Patten, former governor of Hong Kong and a Northern Ireland Minister from 1983 to 1985, chaired this independent commission, which was made up of seven prominent policing experts from around the world.

            The Patten Commission held public meetings throughout Northern Ireland to hear what the community wanted from its police force.  It is estimated that over 10,000 people attended these public meetings, and over 1,000 people spoke both in support of and against the RUC.  Some called for disbandment of the RUC, while others saw no need for change at all.  The commission also called for written submissions from organizations, political parties and any individual who wished to make one throughout Northern Ireland.  Its approach was to ask the fundamental question, what is the best police service for Northern Ireland? In September of 1999, after extensive research, Patten's team published 175 recommendations for changes and improvements to be made in the police force of Northern Ireland. 

            These proposals were greeted with a variety of reactions from the political parties.  The Women's Coalition supported the Patten report overall, as did the Alliance party.  The SDLP had some reservations.  "The Patten proposals are radical. The Patten proposal would not have been the structure of policing that we would have chosen if it was left to us.  The model Patten proposed was not in all ways a model that was supported by the SDLP.  But, we recognized that this was a basis for the start of a new beginning in policing."Int5 

The DUP, which disagreed with the Good Friday Agreement in the first place, completely opposed the Patten report.  And the UUP, a party whose majority supported the Good Friday Agreement, claimed, "The Patten Report breached the terms of the Belfast Agreement. It does not have the support of both sides of the community in Northern Ireland."9

The British government accepted, in principle, the findings of the Patten Commission, but saw that there was much work to be done in the area.  "With 175 recommendations there will clearly need to be further consultation on the implementation of the Report - with the political parties and the Irish government as the Agreement requires - but also with the wider community. It's their police service.  I believe the Commission have charted the way forward for the best possible police service in Northern Ireland."7

Police (NI) Act 2000

The Police (NI) Act 2000 was passed in Westminster in November of 2000.  This Act put most of the 175 Patten recommendations into law.

Representation

"Real community policing is impossible if the composition of the police service bears little relationship to the composition of the community as a whole." - the McPherson Report
 
Ever since the establishment of the RUC in June of 1922, the proportion of Catholics on the force has been significantly lower than the percentage of Catholics in Northern Ireland.  "The initial agreement of the RUC when it was set up in 1921 was to reflect the population of Northern Ireland, which was at that time 2/3 Protestant and 1/3 Catholic, but it never really achieved these numbers."  The reason?  "A lot of Catholics felt abandoned by Michael Collins for accepting the 26 counties as a free state.  They didn't want to accept Northern Ireland as a state.  The police were a physical function of the state and they didn't want to join." Int6

In 1968, before the Troubles, Catholics made up about 32% of Northern Ireland, but the Catholic representation on the police force was about 12%. "The police service was seen to uphold the union with Britain, and that would have dissuaded young Catholics from joining it.  That predates this conflict."Int5 

At the time of the Patten report, the RUC was roughly 88% Protestant, 8% Catholic, and 3% other (the RUC is currently over 90% Protestant).  The Patten commission was very concerned about the under - representation of Catholics on the force.  It proposed a ten - year plan, involving recruiting practices, a quota system and an early retirement scheme to raise the percentage of Catholics in the force to 33%.   The ultimate goal is true proportional representation of Catholics on the police force.  The RUC has adopted this plan, and is actively recruiting Catholics, as well as taking other measures suggested by the Patten commission to increase the Catholic percentage of the force.

What is the real reason behind Catholic under - representation?

"The problem has not been against discrimination against Catholic applicants who have applied, but problems in getting Catholics to apply in the first place." - Briefing on the Police (NI) Bill 2000, Sean Neeson, head of the Alliance Party
 
"Oh, the Catholics have definitely been discriminated against over the years when it comes to police recruitment."  - Taxi driver #1
 
I heard two very different explanations for the chronically low percentage of Catholics in the RUC.  The CAJ thought a reason for Catholic under - representation is that young Nationalists might have been more like to be involved in public disorder, perhaps relatively minor, but enough to disqualify them for a job in the RUC.Int7   Others thought that Catholics would not apply due to the anti - Catholic history of the RUC. 

But most claim that IRA intimidation of Catholics is responsible.  Parties from across the political spectrum, from the PUP to the SDLP, agreed on this.  "One of the main reasons (that there aren't many Catholics in the force) is because the IRA would have shot a Catholic if he joined the force."Int4  "There has also been a systematic attack on the police by paramilitary organizations, particularly the IRA.  And the consequences of that, over and above the problem in the community one, is that Catholics and Nationalists would be dubious to join the police if they live in a Catholic neighborhood, they would feel as if they were in danger."Int5  "Catholics, especially those living in largely nationalist areas, were quickly getting the message that if you wanted to join the police, either you're taking a real big risk and you've gotta leave and bring your family with you, or you'll die."Int1

Has this intimidation stopped since the IRA ceasefires and the Good Friday Agreement?  Do Catholics feel safer joining the police force now?  Perhaps.  According to the RUC, "The number of people applying from the Catholic community, once the IRA ceasefire came out in '94, went up dramatically, and has continued to go up."Int6  However, the higher percentage of Catholics' applications was not reflected in the actual appointments, a fact that the CAJ was concerned about.  "After the ceasefire, statistics show that there has been quite a dramatic increase in the number of Catholics that have applied, but that proportion was not followed through in terms of the number of Catholics that were appointed.  The reasons for this have not been very well explored.  Was it something intrinsic, either conscious or unconscious, in the recruitment process that was weeding the Catholics out in larger numbers than Protestants?"Int7

My second taxi driver, who lives in a Catholic area, had a very proactive stance on how to solve the under - representation problem.  "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em.  I'm actually encouraging my daughter to join the RUC.  That's the only way to make change happen, is by joining them, and making a difference from the inside.  And as Catholics, we have to step up and make that change, no one can do it for us."Int9   In his eyes, the only way to solve the problem of under - representation is for the Catholics themselves to step up and getinvolved.  Eventually, by being a part of the police force, they can change the way the police treat the Catholic community.

The Quota System

The Patten report suggested that a quota be set to raise the percentage of Catholics in the police force.  A quota is similar to affirmative action in the United States; it says that one must hire a certain percentage of people based on gender, religion, ethnicity, etc.  Quotas are used to increase the percentage of people from under - represented groups of society in a business or organization.

However, under the Fair Employment Act of 1989, quotas are illegal in Northern Ireland.  The RUC gets around this in the following way: it puts all the applicants through interviews, written tests and physical tests.  At the end of this process it has a pool of qualified applicants.  Out of that pool it takes 50% Catholic and 50% non - Catholic applicants.  The unknowns are considered non-Catholic.

The RUC's use of this quota system has its supporters and its critics.  The Women's Coalition agrees with the quota system, calling it "positive action."Int3  Likewise, the SDLP supports the 50/50 ratio plan.  It also supports aggregation, meaning if there are not enough Catholics in the pool to reach the 50/50 ratio one year, then the RUC should work to get a 50/50 Catholic/Protestant ratio of appointments over a few years.  This may be necessary in the early years, if there are low numbers of Catholic recruits. 

The Pat Finucane Centre calls for an even more detailed application of quotas. "The perception has to get out and the reality has to be there that the police represent the entire community.  Which does not mean the recruitment of Catholics.  It means the recruitment of Nationalists and Republicans.  Someone who believes in a united Ireland and has no loyalty toward the crown should also be in the police service.  Someone who, while they're off duty, might go on a Sinn Fein march; otherwise this community is not represented."Int8

Critics of the quota system include the Alliance Party, the DUP, the CAJ and the UDP.  The Alliance party thought it might divide the force.  "Alliance believes that police officers should be judged on the basis of their individual qualities, not arbitrarily labeled.  Alliance fears the use of quotas will in fact be divisive and only serve to sectarianise what could otherwise be an integrated police force, by labeling individual officers as 'Protestant Officers' and 'Catholic officers'.  Alliance believes the police should be judged on the basis of their individual qualities, not arbitrarily labeled."11

The biggest concern raised was that the quota system would mean that officers might not be hired on merit, but purely on religion.  This would undoubtedly raise questions as to the qualifications of the new officers.  "People might say that those hired under the quota weren't qualified, that they only got (the job) because they were Catholic or a woman or whatever."Int7   The DUP also thinks that religion should not matter in recruitment; it should be purely a matter of merit.  "This (quota) system would sacrifice the best in terms of recruits for political reasons."Int2

The UDP was very critical of the quota system.  "The UDP is totally opposed to the concept of reverse discrimination proposed by the (Patten) Commission. The recommendation that Protestant and Catholic applicants should be drawn from a pool on a 50/50 basis is offensive and discriminatory. We believe that all recruitment practice must be based on the principle of equal opportunity. The method outlined in the report discriminates against religions other than Protestant and Catholic."12

And for some, the 50/50 recruitment quota was not enough, soon enough.  "If all goes to plan, there will be 75 more Catholics in the force next year than this year.  This is in a force that is currently 12,000 strong.  So it's not exactly going to bring about a massive radical change in the culture."Int8

Recruitment

To increase the number of Catholics in the force, the RUC has to get Catholics to apply in the first place.  The RUC has recently begun a massive recruitment drive and it already has 8,000 applicants for this year.  The first 240 recruits selected will start their training in September. They are to begin duties on the streets next spring.  A further 480 recruits will join the new service next year.   The Chief Constable said he was confident that requirements for equal recruiting between Catholics and Protestants in the force would be met.  "I'm not going to count any chickens before they are hatched, but with such an overwhelming response I'm confident we can meet the levels of officers we need, and we can meet them on a 50 - 50 basis," said Chief Constable Ronnie Flanagan.10

Size of police force and early retirement

"We recommend that, provided the peace process does not collapse and the security situation does not deteriorate significantly from the situation pertaining at present, the approximate size of the police service over the next ten years should be 7,500 full time officers." - The Patten Report 
 
The RUC is currently over 12,000 officers strong.  "We have a large police service in Northern Ireland because of the Troubles.  It's been at its highest point, 13,500, for a population of 1.5 million and we are cutting it down to 7,000.  That's a massive job and will not happen overnight."Int6 
Shifting from policing a terrorist state to policing a peaceful society will require the RUC to cut down its size.  They do not need as many officers anymore because paramilitary activities and violence have fallen drastically since the ceasefire.

Patten's ten - year plan included the early retirement of RUC officers.  "We recommend that the early retirement or severance package offered to regular officers and full - time reservists aged 50 or above should include a generous lump sum payment according to the length of service, pension enhancement of up to five years, early payment of pension commutation entitlement and payment in lieu of pension until pensionable age is reached."13
In line with the Patten recommendation, the RUC is offering its older officers very nice severance packages.  Almost 500 officers, among them some of the most senior figures in the RUC, have already left under severance arrangements negotiated under the Patten Report.  About another 750 could leave over the next 12 months.10  

Conclusion

            How can we make policing applicable to the society we hope to create and develop here for the first time?  The PUP asked this question, a question that defines the very core of the policing problem in Northern Ireland.  The policing system, as well as the Northern Ireland community as a whole, is going through rapid and radical change.

It is impossible to please everybody in a situation where two sides have such a long history of hatred and violence.  These reforms manage to walk the thin line between these two communities, and are supported, albeit rather reluctantly, by both sides. 

But the real change must be in the community's attitude towards the police.  It must accept and cooperate with the police if Northern Ireland is to move beyond this issue and get on with the peace process.  Is that attitude changing?  Is the stage set to recreate a police force that has a long history of both giving and receiving abuse from the community?  There is much work to be done, but the people I met gave me the impression that this work is being done as quickly as the communities can adapt and old grudges can be forgotten.  

Judging by my observations and interviews with key players in this issue, I think these reforms have great potential, and will eventually succeed.  I sensed a maturing of the Northern Ireland community as a whole.  The people are willing to set aside their personal grudges, face the issues of the past and work together toward a more peaceful future.  People want to live in safety and peace, and a number of compromises have already been made between groups that have hated each other in the past, with the goal of moving Northern Ireland toward a more peaceful future.
 
 
Interviews Cited (in the order they were conducted)
 
Int1  Alliance Party - Steve Farry, City Councilor, Bangor, Co. Down
 
Int2  DUP - Ian Paisley Jr., MLA and DUP Press Officer
 
Int3  Women's Coalition - Kate Feron, Advisor to the party that speaks on policing
         issues
 
Int4  PUP - William Smith, PUP Prisons Spokesman
 
Int5  SDLP - Alex Attwood, SDLP Policing Spokesman
 
Int6  RUC - Chief Inspector Stephen Crockard
 
Int7  CAJ - Maggie Beirne
 
Int8  Pat Finucane Centre - Paul O'Connor
 
Int9  Taxi Driver #2
 
Works Cited
 
1 Program from an RUC Commemoration, April 21st, 2001, at the Bangor City Hall.
 
2 Bew, Paul and Gillespie, Gordon.  Northern Ireland, a Chronology of the Troubles 
    1968 - 1993 Gill and Macmillan Ltd, Dublin, 1993.
 
3 Submission by the CAJ to the Commission on Policing for Northern Ireland, August,
    1998.
 
4 www.serve.com/pfc
 
5  cain.ulst.ac.uk
 
6 IRA Ceasefire Statement, 31 August 1994.
 
7 "Secretary of State's Statement on the Patten Report," by Peter Mandelson.  Northern
    Ireland Information Service, 9 September 1999.
 
8 Agreement Reached in the Multi - Party Negotiations, 1998 (The Good Friday
   Agreement).
 
9 UUP Taylor attacks Mallon over RUC Rt. Hon. John Taylor MP, 20/09/2000.
 
10 news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/uk/northern_Ireland  
 
11 Briefing on the Police (NI) Bill 2000, Sean Neeson. 
 
12 www.udp.org/Information/Patten/patten.html
 
13 A New Beginning: Policing in Northern Ireland.  The Report of the Independent
     Commission on Policing for Northern Ireland, 1999  (The Patten Report).
 
 
 
Appendix
Timeline of Events
 
1922 - The province of Northern Ireland is formed.  The other 26 counties of Ireland  
  win their independence from Britain and form the Free State of Ireland.

- June 1st, a new police force was formed for Northern Ireland.  This force was
  named the Royal Ulster Constabulary by Royal Decree.
 
1968 - October 5th, a civil rights march in Derry is attacked by the RUC.  This event
marked the beginning of the Troubles in Northern Ireland.
 
1970 - April 21st, the Alliance political party is formed.

- August 21st, the SDLP political party is formed.
 
1971 - The DUP political party is formed.

- August, internment is introduced.
 
1972 - March 24th, suspension of Stormont government is announced and direct rule by
Westminster is imposed.
 
1975 - December, the end of internment.
 
1977 - The PUP political party is formed.
 
1981 - June, the UDP political party is formed.

- The CAJ is founded.
 
1989 - February 12th, human rights solicitor Pat Finucane is murdered by Loyalist
paramilitaries.

- The Pat Finucane Centre of Human Rights and Social Change is founded.
 
1994 - August, the IRA announces a ceasefire.

- October, the Combined Loyalist Military Command (CLMC), speaking on behalf of all Loyalist paramilitary organizations, announce a ceasefire.
 
1996 - The Women's Coalition political party forms.

- February, the IRA breaks its ceasefire with a bomb in Canary Wharf in London.
 
1997 - April, Robert Hamill is severely beaten as RUC officers look on.  He later dies of
his injuries.

- July 20th, the IRA renews its ceasefire.

- Sinn Fein invited to join peace talks.
 
1998 - April 10th, Good Friday Agreement is agreed to by all political parties in  
Northern Ireland and signed by Tony Blair, Prime Minister of England, and
Bertie Ahern, Taoiseach of Ireland.

- May, the Good Friday Agreement is endorsed in Northern Ireland.

- July 24th, the Police (Northern Ireland) Act 1998 is passed in Westminster.
 
1999 - September 9th, the Patten Commission publishes its recommendations for
changes to be made in the RUC.
 
2000 - January, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland announces his decision to
implement the Patten Commission's recommendations.

- November 23rd, Police (Northern Ireland) Act 2000 is passed in Westminster and received Royal Assent, putting most of the recommendations of the Patten Report into law.