Editorial
Police reform in limbo
No excuse to keep it there
It appears that the issue of police reform has been all but swept under the carpet. The recent remarks of the state minister for home only aggravates our apprehensions that it will never be implemented.
We have in the past several years, particularly since 2007 when the Draft Ordnance was in the process of being finalised, been ceaselessly harping on the need to get rid of the antiquated Police Act of 1861 and formulate a new set of laws that would help police perform their tasks befitting a force of an independent nation. Colonial laws breed colonial mentality and, regrettably, such mentality has been clearly manifest in the behaviour of the police. It must be stated too that the senior police officers have been rooting for new laws governing the police force, particularly the need to keep it from political influence and control, so that it serves the people, not the party in power.
We are afraid that we cannot agree with the idea of reform of the state minister. He sounds very unconvincing when he dismisses out of hand the Draft Police Ordinance 2007 saying that the government is depoliticizing the police and making it pro-people by setting up need based units. Well, that is not quite what one understands by police reform. And quite contrary to his assertion that the force is being depoliticised our experience shows that it has been made into a coercive arm of the government.
The draft ordinance, which has been painstakingly drafted, has some very appropriate suggestions that would not only make the police more accountable, its performance will also be enhanced once freed from political control.
We would hope that the government would implement the suggested reforms instead of dismissing it.
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