IMPLMENTING COMMUNITY POLICING : UGANDA

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IMPLMENTING COMMUNITY POLICING UGANDAS
EXPERIENCE

• ASAN KASINGYE
• COMMISSIONER OF POLICE FOR COMMUNITY AFFAIRS
  UGANDA POLICE FORCE
• A PAPER PRESENTED AT THE INTERNATIONAL POLICE
  EXECUTIVE SYMPOSIUM, TENTH ANNUAL MEETING, OCT,
  11 16, 2003,
• KINGDOM OF BAHRAIN.

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I.1. INTRODUCTION

• Brief analysis of the historical background of
  the police.
• State of police relations.
• The rationale for introduction of the community
  policing approach in the countrys policing
  system.
• Highlight of challenges of implementation of
  community policing approach in Uganda.
• Suggestion of remedial action.

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• Paper is based on the findings of my study
  entitled Implementation of community policing in
  Uganda A case study of Kampala and Luwero
  districts.
• Experience gained as head of the department
  responsible for community policing in Uganda
  police.

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1.2 Brief Background of Uganda Police Force

• Department in the Ministry of Internal affairs
  headed by the Inspector General of Police (IGP).
  
• It is established under Article 212 of the
  Constitution of Uganda.
• Its major functions include protection of life
  and property and prevention and detection of
  crime.
• The police force in Uganda was introduced by the
  colonial government in 1906.

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• To ensure maximum expropriation of the colonys
  resources for the benefit of the British, the
  police was used as an instrument of oppression
  and not as a service to the public.
• The post colonial police force has largely
  remained accountable and answerable to the state
  rather than to the public.
• Trend of events in Uganda since 1966 1986.
• Political turmoil and illegitimate or unpopular
  governments.
• The political and civil stife crippled
  governments ability to combat crime and
  maintain law and order.
• Poor economic prospects and massive unemployment
  provided motivation for the people to commit
  crimes.

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• The decay of government machinery and
  degeneration of public morals crippled the
  institutions and process of social control.
• The capacity of the Uganda police to deal
  decisvely with this level of crime has been
  inadequate in terms of logistics and trained
  manpower.
• In 1986 the need to involve communities in
  combating crime became more prominent.
• To win back the trust and confidence of the
  members of the public in their police force and
  forge a partnership with them to fight crime, a
  more pro active approach to pocing known as
  çommunity policingwas initiated in 1989.

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• The programme was then re invigorated in 1993
  on a national scale with the following
  objectives-
• To establish an effective and efficient policing
  system with the assistance of the public to
  prevent crime.
• To sensitise the communities on crime and its
  control.
• To promote open and honest relations between the
  police and the public.
• To enhance greater accountability in policing to
  members of the public.
• To ensure that policing priorities tally with
  community or local security needs

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1. To help promote and foster respect for human
   rights by the police.
2. To improve the quality of police services and
   integrate them into community life.

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1.3 Statement of the problem

• There seems to be little impact on the ground.
• The public, local communities and police seem to
  be relactant in embracing the policy.
• The crime rate has remained high or even growing.
  
• Big outcry of corruption by the public against
  the police.
• Problem with the image of the police.

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1.4 Concept of community policing

• In terms of elimination, suppression, and
  prevention of crime in society, the two are
  synonymous and reinforcing .
• Singh, J. (2000 127) crime is a community
  problem created by societal issues, dynamics and
  failures, and not just a police issue or an
  indication of its effectiveness. Police
  effectiveness and public order can not be greatly
  enhanced unless the community can be persuaded to
  do more for itself.

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• It creates new roles for residents to become
  involved in securing safe neighbourhoods.
  (Skogan, et. Al. 2000 7).
• Malcolm, (1998 1) the concept of community
  policing envisages a police department striving
  for an absence of crime and disorder and
  concerned with, and sensitive to, the quality of
  life in the community. It perceives the communty
  as an agent and partner in promoting security
  rather than as a passive audience.

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• Bayley (1994 a) and cited in (Gianakis and Davis,
  1998 486) identified the basic elements of
  community policing as
• Consultation with community groups regarding
  their security needs command devolution so that
  those closest to the community can determine how
  best to respond to those needs mobilisation of
  agencies other than the police to assist in
  addressing those needs and remedying the
  conditions that generate crime and insecurity
  through focused problem solving.

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• Way of policing, whereby the people in an area
  and the local police act together to prevent
  crime and disorder, Collin (199246).
• Community policing therefore, focuses attention
  on police partnership with the communities it
  serves. Its intention is to produce a cooperate
  process of identifying police priorities and to
  provide a more efficient method of chieving
  results by a joint effort of the police and the
  communities it serves. The community should
  however, be at the center of this process.

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• 1.5 Special challenges to the implementation
  of community policing in Uganda
• 1.5.1 Conceptualisation of community policing
  in Uganda Danger of mis understanding the
  concept.
• 1.5.2 Design of community Policing Wrong
  options
• 1.5.3 Management of Community Policing
  Programme.

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• 1.5.4 General Training and Involvement of the
  Police personnel in Community Policing
  Challenge of changing a culture of resistance
  and sabotage
• 1.5.5 Recruitment and Trainng of CLOs A
  challenge to sustainability.
• 1.5.6 Deployment / Placement of CLOs
• 1.5.7 Status of CLOs A sure morale booster

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• 1.5.8 The Role of Government and Volunteers in
  the Community Policing Programme A case of
  persistent mistrust.
• 1.5.9 Image of the Police and Nature of
  Relations that exist between the Police and
  Public A case of resistance and suspicion.
• 1.5 Conclusion
• While community policing is a very important
  programme in law enforcement and restoration of
  order in society, its impact is slow.

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1.6 Recommendations

• The community policing model should not only be
  viewed from a police centered approach but also
  from that of the community.
• The police must integrate community policing
  training in its general training programme
• The police service must find ways of improving
  its image and customer care through aggressive
  marketing of its programmes

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• Clos should be carefully selected in skills of
  how to handle people.
• Trained CLOs should not be frequently transfered.
  
• There is need to recruit carefully selected
  community policng volunteers from the communities
  and train them in community policing.
• While community policing involves greater
  partnerships between police and communities they
  serve, there is definitely need for political
  support

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• Management and good policies such as human
  resource management and development are vital for
  proper implementation of community policing.
• .....................END.....................