What is wrong with our police?

Frankly nothing is right. The government introduced what it calls the RAB (Rapid Action Battalion) and some other forces like the plainclothes roving crime-busting forces etc. The crime rates, particularly related to political animosities including high profile murders and other forms of terrorist activity, seem to be on the rise. The ghost (or is it the man in person) of Kala Jahangir still continues to haunt and terrorise peace-loving and respectable citizens of the country. What one finds most difficult to understand is that even at a time when the names of the perpetrators of a particular crime have been identified, for months the police are unable to nab them. On the contrary often the relatives and family members of the victims continue to be threatened with dire consequences and yet no action is taken.

If one takes a round of Dhaka city, particularly areas other than the diplomatic enclave of Baridhara, one is bound to come across quite frequently members of the police forces on duty, either sitting in tea stalls, gossiping, or strolling around in a casual manner with their guns hanging as though one is carrying an umbrella. On the other hand many of the officers posted in the various police stations are not even literate enough to write a simple FIR. As a matter of fact I have been witness to such a situation where the complainant wrote the entire FIR and the concerned officer simply affixed his signature to it. The image of our police forces also stands vandalised due to its high-handedness in dealing with the public and particularly with people from the media. The police forces today are viewed with suspicion and complete distrust.

The other day I was in the midst of some of the better-recognised members of civil society, including some retirees from the defense and civil service. Present were also some veteran members from the world of journalism, now retired. All of them told me that the major beneficiary of the mass arrests from April 27 through 30 were members of the police forces, particularly at lower levels, who collected grafts of varying degrees from members of the public in exchange for their freedom from arrest and harassment. To me, however, it appears that this was a foolish act on the part of the police directed by some overenthusiastic policy makers higher up in the government, just as Donald Rumsfeld is said to be the architect of the abuses at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq. On the other hand, the police carried out the operations under extreme provocation from the opposition, although by no means could the actions be justified.

Let us now take a look as to the main causes and possible remedies to some of the failures of the police as described above.

It is my strongest belief that the major cause for most of these lapses and failures is due to interference in its operation by politicians and lawmakers of both the ruling class and the opposition.

The point often made about the lack of manpower and modern equipment does hold good to a large extent. Within the various agencies of the police there is clear sign of absence of adequate supervision. It appears as though the senior officials merely pass on the orders and thereafter sit back with their hands folded.

At the ground level, particularly relating to day-to-day incidences of crime, much blame also lies with our laws governing the handling and treatment of convicts. Sometime back I was in the company of one of the seniormost police officers when I happened to observe that the concerned officer while listening to the reporting officer was enquiring whether or not "these criminals were the same ones who were released on bail last week or so."

The media, particularly the print media, is not helping the situation either. This may sound strange to some readers, but I can assure you that there is much truth in this, too. The other day I was talking to one of the countries leading sociologists who had recently carried out an extensive survey with a group of students from Dhaka University. He showed me the results of the study, which clearly indicated that compared to the period between 1996 through 2000, there were actually fewer crimes committed during the period 2000 onwards to date. The problem is that reporting in the dailies has been more during the latter period. Clippings from as many as twenty major dailies in Bengali and English were attached to the results of the survey dating back as far as 1996/97 through the present in to order substantiate the findings.

At the backdrop of the above I believe the following actions are called for amongst others, with immediate effect in order to salvage the credibility and operational efficacy of our police forces:

1. The first and foremost is to ensure complete non-interference in its operations by both lawmakers of the ruling class and the opposition.

2. Additional manpower should be recruited as soon as possible.

3. Additional vehicles and modern-day equipment by way of small arms and intelligence apparatus should be procured for the entire system.

4. There should be a drastic change in the criteria and the process of recruitment. Each individual's background including educational, social and family should be thoroughly verified and investigated before employment.

5. Police stations being the main focus of any police action should undergo complete overhaul. Amongst others, OCs and the seconds in command should be above any reproach with good academic background. Not only that, the OCs should have ready access to the Chief of Police in addition to his immediate supervisory authority as warranted by circumstances.

6. There should be an upgrading of overall training facilities. More and more mid- level and junior officers should be sent abroad for training with such international agencies like the Scotland Yard and Interpol.

7. Last, but not least in importance, is dealing with the issue relating to the media. While the police should build a proactive communication channel with the dailies based on moderation, reasoning, and compassion, the media too should stick to facts, avoid sensationalism, and not to be pre-emptive and judgmental in reporting of incidences. It should also refrain from playing to the gallery and the political mafia.

One could go on, but the fact remains that nothing can be achieved without the political will. Time is fast running out. Islamic fundamentalists and all kinds of terrorist networks are becoming more and more active. We must realise that we can no longer have the excuse of "occupation forces" ruining us and hence we should all unite and act truthfully and honestly without recourse to pursuing coterie interests or a personal agenda. There is simply no time to waste in high profile seminars or round table discussions.

Shamsher Chowdhury is a frequent contributor to The Daily Star.