Principles and Concept of Democratic Policing

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Principles and Concept of Democratic Policing
10th Young Faces Network Event Police Reform
and Cooperation in the Western Balkans on the
Path to EU Integration
Geneva,
15/16 July 2009
Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed
Forces (DCAF)

• Dr. Markus H.F. Mohler
• Lecturer on public, especially safety/security
  and police law at the University of Basel

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What means Police?

• Politeia (old Greek p???te?a)
• Constitution, law
• Politics, policy
• Application of the law
• Law enforcement
• Forms of good life in a city virtues, happiness
  (eudaimonia), knowledge (Aristotle)
• ETHICS (????) as fundament of any p???te?a

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What means Police?

• This original (and etymological) closeness of
  politics and police does today not
  mean that the police is the mere instrument of
  policies and politicians

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Prerequisites for Democratic Policing
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What means democratic ?

• Democracy (old Greek ??µ???at?a)
• People (d?µ??) and to rule / to control /
  to govern (??at?a)
• Democracy is more than a formal set-up of state
  structures, such as e.g.
• elections every so many years
• mere formal separation of powers
• formal issuing laws

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What means democratic ?

• Democracy addresses the substance of governing by
  the people
• Whats all bout?
• Knowledge, transparency, comprehension, opinion
  building
• Influencing, decision shaping and making
• Election of individual people, not just parties
• Freedom of speech, media, right to petition
• Referenda on crucial issues

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What means democratic ?

• Democracy addresses the substance of governing by
  the people (II)
• Full independence of all 3 powers
• e.g. ban of voting instructions for
  parliamentarians
• e.g. parliamentary instruments to challenge the
  government
• e.g. real independence of the judiciary (inc.
  prosecution)

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What means democratic ?

• Democracy addresses the substance of governing by
  the people (III)
• Rule of law
• (Parliamentary) procedure allowing to get
  informed and to build opinions
• Preciseness of wording (transparency)
• Open/transparent participative decision
  shaping/taking
• Allowing public debate before passing laws
• Public sessions of parliament, competent
  reporting through media

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Why all that?

• Policing enforcement of these laws
• Democratic Policing To enforce only laws which
  have been adopted democratically
• i.e. understood and accepted by he majority of
  the people (sovereign?!)
• following principles of the rule of law

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What are the Principles of
the Rule of Law?

• Protection of the human and fundamental rights
• Principle of legality
• Principle of proportionality
• All state actions only if in public interest
• All in good faith (bona fide)
• Conformity with international law, esp. European
  Convention on Human Rights
• For police only principle to focus on
  perpetrator in the first place

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Protection of Human Rights
The Bearing of Art. 2 and 3 ECHR
Duty of the State to Protect Against Violation of
these Fundamental Rights also if perpetration by
Third Parties (Positive or
Protection- Obligation)
Prohibition for the State to Violate these
Fundamental Rights (Negative Obligation)
In case of Violation Duty of the State to
Investigate and Establish the Cause/the
Responsibles
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• Principle of legality
• the laws are bases and limits of all policing
• active principle the police has to act if
  conditions are given
• passive principle actions only based on the law

Limits
Basis
Limits
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• Principle of proportionality (protection of
  rights) 2 sides
• Intervention necessary?
• Methods and means suitable, effective?
• gt achieving the legitimate goal with the least
  intrusion into fundamental rights
• Intervention reasonable/acceptable as compared to
  the goal of the intervention?
• Public interest
• In the interest of the society as a whole
• Impartiality, no partisan favours
• Efficiency, economic

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• Good faith
• Credibility, Trustworthiness
• Sticking to the legal tasks (e.g. data
  management, protection)
• Transparency
• International Law
• ECHR, UN Pact II
• Implementation of international conventions
• Application and enforcement of intl. conventions
• Quality standards re international co-operation

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• Principle to focus on perpetrator (or danger) in
  the first place
• Law and public interest require police to focus
  on perpetrator (or danger) in the first place and
  not on victim, if at all possible

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Concept of Democratic Policing

• Overall objectives
• to serve the people, the society
• to behave and perform ethically, always
• to adhere to the principles without exceptions
• to ensure best quality of performance
• to strive for utmost transparency where- and
  whenever possible
• to ensure accountability

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Requirements

• All organisational criteria follow objectives
• Human resources management (selection, training,
  leadership, enforcement of rules)
• Procedures
• Structures
• Infrastructure
• Equipment
• Monitoring
• Internal
• External

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Human Resources

• Selection criteria
• Quality requirements and non-discrimination
• Categories of employees/civil servants
• Permanent review of accuracy of criteria
• Transparent regulations and procedures for all
• Negative decisions subject to review

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Human Resources

• Training
• Sufficient initial/basic training
• Secure excellent internal and external trainers
• Emphasis on humanities, ethics in policing
• Tactics and techniques as basis/support for best
  possible human approach
• Contribution to positive organisational culture
  (internal and external human relations)
• Clarity on consequences for unethical behaviour
• Regular in-service/continued training
• Set-up scheme (frequency, selection of topics /
  trainees)

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Human Resources

• Training
• Promotional training, promotion
• Selection for promotional training based on
  professional merits only banning any
  discrimination
• Avoid any favouritism
• Promotion only after passing final exam of
  promotional training
• Emphasis on (human resources) management and
  participative leadership/decision shaping and
  taking procedures
• Specialists training

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Procedures

• Establish, introduce, stick to and enforce
• Standard operational procedures (SOPs)
• Standards of performance (StOPs)
• gt breaking down all combined legal rquirements in
  feasible manuals
• to ensure best quality of overall police service
• Review standards regularly for optimisation if
  necessary

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Structures, Infrastructure, Equipment

• Structures follow procedures and procedures
  follow objectives
• Avoid divide and rule!
• Structures as flat, transparent and open as
  possible supporting co-operation in all
  directions
• Equipment and infrastructure need to allow the
  service with required quality

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Monitoring

• Importance cannot be overemphasised
• Watertight system controlling necessary
• Internal
• Checks of police reports
• Field observation
• Checks of quality of training
• quality circles
• External
• Exchange with prosecution, courts, NGOs
• Court cases, complaints service
• Media review
• If installed ombudsperson

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Monitoring (II)

• Watertight system controlling necessary
• Establish priority of criteria for controlling
• Human rights
• Legality in all respects (anti-corruption
  strategy!)
• Other aspects of performance quality (other
  principles) and strategies, strategic means
• Economic organisation and performance (taxpayers
  money!)
• Organisational culture
• Dont search for mistakes, find solutions for
  improvements

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Monitoring (III)

• Watertight system controlling necessary
• Establish scheme of follow-up /reactions to
  findings
• Identify reasons for shortcomings (procedure!)
• Organisational or individual or both?
• Resistance against SOPs/StOPs, changes/reasons
  for?
• Establish possible consequences / sanctions for
  individual shortcomings / mistakes or worse
  (accountability!)
• Check effectiveness and efficiency of monitoring

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Strategy and Strategic Means

• Strategy
• Community Policing (CP)
• Interaction with citizens
• Established interagency co-operation locally,
  nationally, regionally, farther internationally
  (inc. NGOs)
• Strategic means
• Intelligence Led Policing (ILP)

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Objectives, Principles
Plan, obtain resources
Prepare all elements, test
Gap analysis
Society, community
Evaluate performance
Implement
Service performance
Prepare monitoring
Monitor service