RCMP Gazette Human Rights and Policing - Alberta Hate Crimes ...

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huMAN RiGhTS AND POliCiNGhuMAN RiGhTS AND POliCiNGHow the RCMP prepares membersto police bias-freeby Caroline RossWhen new members of the RCMP beginfield training, one of their first assignmentsis to identify a particular communitygroup — cultural, religious, demographicor other — and work with it to address anissue of concern.The exercise is just one example ofhow the RCMP is striving to build a biasfreepolice force — one in which membersinstinctively provide equitable, respectfulservice to every individual, regardless ofthat person’s age, race, religion, gender,mental or physical capacity, or otherpotentially “defining” characteristic.“Canada is going through big changesin internal diversity,” says Insp ShellyDuPont, who helped pen the RCMP’spolicy on bias-free policing in 2005. Policeofficers must be able to integrate into thecommunities they serve, she says, andintegration requires a constantly evolvingunderstanding of various populations andtheir unique needs.“With bias-free policing, it’s really apersonal growth of each and every officer,”says DuPont.building foundationsThe growth process begins at the outsetof the 24-week RCMP Cadet TrainingProgram (CTP). The very first trainingmodule includes 18.5 hours of in- andout-of-class learning on concepts such asdiversity, prejudice, discrimination, ethics,Canadian human rights history, and relevantlegislation. Cadets also have opportunitiesto explore their own personal biases.“The time that we spend on theseconcepts is comparable to the time we spendon other key concepts such as the powersof arrest and release, risk assessment andstatement-taking,” says Christine Hudy,lead educational methodologist at the RCMPtraining depot. “It’s really a significant timeblock in the CTP.”From there, cadets learn to apply theconcepts of bias-free policing during severalrealistic training scenarios thatalso teach the “nuts and bolts”of police work. Cadets tacklevandalism in a Vietnamesecommunity, investigate a caseof fraud involving seniors,and more — learning how toexercise their policing dutiesin a climate of tolerance andrespect.“By the time cadets leave[training], they’re very solidcritical thinkers,” says Hudy.“They [understand] that publicinterest is best served bylearning about and workingwith your clients.”Continuous learningAfter basic training, every officer isresponsible for enhancing his or her ownknowledge of Canadian diversity. Differentpostings will require different levels ofawareness and integration, and the forceprovides several resources to help membersprepare accordingly.RCMP National Crime PreventionServices hosts an internal Bias-FreePolicing website, where officers can accessmore than 100 cultural profiles createdby Citizenship and Immigration Canada,browse dozens of religious summariesBias-free policing is crucial ina diverse country like Canada,where Islam is the fastestgrowing religion, seniors arethe fastest growing age group,and the visible minoritypopulation could reach 20 percent by 2017.written by the Department of NationalDefence, and connect with regionally basedRCMP diversity co-ordinators who canadvise on local resources.Bias-free policing requires an understanding of the unique perspectives andneeds of Canada’s diverse communities.The RCMP Learning and Developmentbranch offers self-directed online courseson topics such as the Canadian Charter ofRights and Freedoms, Aboriginal cultureand Alzheimer’s disease.And divisions across the force aredeveloping more ground-level resources toaddress local policing needs — a list of Inuitelders who can advise on cultural issues inNunavut, for example, or a workshop onAfrican-Canadian and Mi’kmaq culturalsensitivities in Nova Scotia.Officers also learn from experience,says Sgt Greg Ericson of the Brooks,Alberta, RCMP detachment. Ericson nowprovides new detachment members withinformation sheets on the Islam faith, owingto Brooks’ growing Somali and Sudaneseimmigrant population.Local officers are also reaching out toeducate the immigrant community aboutCanadian laws.Such community engagement is trulythe heart of bias-free policing, says DuPont.But well-informed police officers are onlypart of the bias-free picture.“It’s equally important for the RCMPto educate our communities about what wedo,” says DuPont.“A lot of new Canadians may not haveaccess to that [information].” ▪RCMP8Gazette Vol. 72, No. 3, 2010
Mission criticalTeaching human rights overseashuMAN RiGhTS AND POliCiNGRCMP COVERby Caroline RossPolice officers in conflict-riddled countriesmight not think twice about abusingor neglecting the rights of prisoners orcitizens, but police officers deployed tothose countries on international peacemissions certainly do.In fact, a handful of Canadian civilianpolice officers are directly involved inefforts to educate foreign police forcesabout the principles of human rights.The profiles below are just two examplesof this work in action.Palestinian territories:basic training and beyondWhen RCMP Insp Jeff Dowling arrivedin the Palestinian-occupied West Bankin August 2009, the term “human rights”wasn’t part of the local police vocabulary.Over the course of Dowling’s one-yearposting with the European Union PoliceCo-ordinating Office for PalestinianPolice Support (EUPOL COPPS), thingsbegan to change.Dowling and Det/Cst Darrell Longleyof the Halifax Regional Police served asthe mission’s two police training advisors,providing the Palestinian Civil Police(PCP) with guidance on how to improvepolice training mechanisms. As part ofthat work, the two officers helped the PCPdevelop its first basic training module onhuman rights concepts.The module, which covers topics suchas non-discrimination, the prohibitionof torture, and the rights of women andchildren, was written by the PCP inconsultation with Dowling, Longley andDiane Halley, the mission’s Irish humanrights expert. The module will be taughtby PCP instructors when the new JerichoPolice Training School opens in early 2011.“This will be the first time that humanrights training will be given out to newpolice officers,” says Dowling. “It’s a PCPproduct, but we had every topic checked tomake sure it fit with modern law.”Beyond this foundation-buildinginitiative, Dowling and Longley have alsotrained PCP leaders on the particularsof policing democratic elections,accompanied officers to communitypresentations on human rights topics, andsupported PCP officials in the creationof a multi-jurisdictional committee toinvestigate allegations of police tortureand mistreatment — most of which wereignored in the past.Afghanistan:Decisions for tomorrowIn Kandahar, Afghanistan, human rightsconcepts are already incorporated into basictraining for general-duty officers, but it canbe difficult to make those concepts stick.“Most of those officers are noteducated,” says RCMP Sgt Derek Ayers,The police are changing, and they’re getting better.“They want to learn.Canadian civilian police officers stationed in Kandahar City have developed a six-week leadership and management coursefor senior members of the Afghan National Police. The course includes a full day of instruction on human rights concepts.“who was posted to Kandahar in March2010. “We need to take it to the next level[and target] officers who will be the leadersin the organization and [can] push thoseideas down the chain.”To reach these future decision-makers,Canadian civilian police officers stationedin Kandahar City have developed a sixweekleadership and management coursefor senior members of the Afghan NationalPolice — most of whom account for theforce’s 35-per-cent literacy rate.The course includes a full day ofinstruction on human rights concepts, withcontent based on principles establishedin the United Nations Charter and theUniversal Declaration of Human Rights.“We explain the three categories ofhuman rights as defined under the Charter,provide examples, and discuss how to handleallegations of human rights abuses in theforce,” says Ayers, who instructs the humanrights component. “You expect certainthings when you come to this country, butto stand in front of the classroom and talkto these local men, it’s really enlighteningto hear that they have the same generalopinions that we do.”Sgt Andre Wyatt, who is deployed fromthe Durham Regional Police Service and coordinatesthe course at ground-level, sayshe’s impressed by how quickly his studentscan identify scenarios that involve violationsof human rights, and how often they indicatethey would respond to such situations byreporting or firing the officers involved.But, Wyatt says, “I always stress withthem [that] doing the right thing is muchharder than saying you’ll do the right thing.” ▪Courtesy Insp Jeff DowlingGazette Vol. 72, No. 3, 2010 9
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