Policing - new material (77)
01 May 2006
Ethnic Profiling in the Moscow Metro. Open Society Justice Initiative and Jurix 2006, pp70. This survey set out to determine whether and to what extent ethnic profiling by police occurs on the Moscow metro. The report "documents the highest odds ratio proving the disproportionate targeting of ethnic minorities by police ever detected through similar studies. While non-Slavs make up only 4.6% of the riders on the Metro system they are on average 21.8 times more likely to be stopped by the police than Slavs. This discrepancy is so high that it is unlikely that it can be explained on non-discriminatory, legitimate law enforcement grounds." For more information: Open Society Justice Initiative, 400 West 59th Street, New York NY 10019, USA, www.justiceinitiative.org or Jurix, 12564 PO 64, Moscow, Russia, www.jurix.ru
"Perfil racial en España: Investigaciones y recomendaciones", Dani Wagman, Grupo de Estudios y Alternativas 21, pp.68, July 2006. A report that was presented in Madrid on 17 July 2006 on racial profiling and the treatment of members of ethnic minorities by the Spanish police forces. It highlights the fact that members of these collectives (including the Roma) are disproportionately stopped, identified and searched by police officers, as well as questioning the validity of this practice, and noting that their treatment during these encounters with the police, or when they are arrested, is "less respectful" than when Spanish nationals are stopped. Other concerns expressed in the report focus on the fact that ethnic profiling becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy, as greater police activity targeting minority groups results in statistics in the field of criminal justice that indicate high percentages of criminal activity by these groups, and that data collection, evaluation, supervision and indicators of effectiveness of police practices are underdeveloped and sometimes non-existent. Extracts from interviews with police officers and from ten discussion groups composed of migrants and Roma are also included in the report, which is a pioneer study in this field in Spain.
50,000 volts for five seconds... Just News June 2006, p.3. This article came out of a seminar organised by the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission following the announcement by the Police Service of Northern Ireland that they are considering the introduction of Tasers to the Six Counties. It contains factual information about the operation of the "stun gun" before considering the many "horrendous stories of abuse of the weapon [by police forces] in situations in the US" and the danger of "mission creep". It notes that the weapon "can all too easily become used as a "pain compliance" tool and expresses concern at its potential use on pregnant women, people with heart problems and vulnerable people. Just News, 45/47 Donegall Street, Belfast BT1 2BR, Telephone (028) 9096 1122