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Reducing Ethnic Profiling in the European Union - Open Society ...

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Prior to <strong>the</strong> ride-alongs, many Hungarian officers had little contact with Roma. Theride-alongs provided <strong>the</strong> opportunity for a frank discussion with Roma communitymembers about patterns of offend<strong>in</strong>g, cultural traditions, and related matters. Thisled police to recognize <strong>the</strong> need for more tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g and <strong>in</strong> one pilot site a civilianmonitor led a series of tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g sessions for police. The civilian monitors also developeda new perspective on <strong>the</strong> challenges police face and one monitor has s<strong>in</strong>cejo<strong>in</strong>ed <strong>the</strong> police force.Initially, officers voiced safety concerns about <strong>the</strong> presence of civilians <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir vehicles,and reluctance to have an external civilian control. In one pilot site, <strong>the</strong> monitorswere often kept wait<strong>in</strong>g for several hours before officers would take <strong>the</strong>m on patrol,and when <strong>the</strong>y did go on patrol officers would not conduct ID checks, so <strong>the</strong>re wasnoth<strong>in</strong>g to observe. The problem was corrected after an official compla<strong>in</strong>t to <strong>the</strong>area commander. Generally, <strong>the</strong> quality of stops was improved by <strong>the</strong> presence ofmonitors.Similar measures, designed to provide community representatives with an <strong>in</strong>sidelook at police work, have been used with Muslim communities disproportionatelyaffected by counter-terrorism measures. In <strong>the</strong> United K<strong>in</strong>gdom, <strong>the</strong> Greater ManchesterPolice Airport Division took representatives from <strong>the</strong> local mosque on a tour through<strong>the</strong> security procedures at <strong>the</strong> airport after concerns were raised about treatment ofMuslims. They also developed a leaflet expla<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g counter-terrorism stop powers andrights if stopped <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> airport.Civilian monitor<strong>in</strong>g of law enforcement has been undertaken at borders andpo<strong>in</strong>ts of entry by NGOs <strong>in</strong> a number of countries. In Austria, Germany, Hungary, Italy,Poland, and Slovakia, NGOs conduct ad hoc monitor<strong>in</strong>g at airport and land borders tocheck that those stopped and deta<strong>in</strong>ed have been treated fairly and <strong>in</strong> compliance with<strong>the</strong> law. Monitor<strong>in</strong>g programs have been put <strong>in</strong> place <strong>in</strong> airports <strong>in</strong> France, Italy, and atFrankfurt airport <strong>in</strong> Germany. It is unclear what impact <strong>the</strong>se programs have had. In<strong>the</strong> case of France, authorities ended <strong>the</strong> program and fur<strong>the</strong>r restricted NGOs’ access.REDUCING ETHNIC PROFILING IN THE EUROPEAN UNION 117

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