Transcript PowerPoint slides

The Ethics of Future Policing in
Europe
Prof. Dr Monica den Boer
Police Academy / VU University
What About “Police Ethics”?
• Ethics refers to what constitutes good and bad and can
guide human conduct.
• Ethics are the systematic reflection on values and
norms.
• Ethics are inherently normative, hence avoidance of
patriarchal debates, but room for reciprocity and critical
reflection.
• Most police ethics research is US based and not based
on field research, i.e. ethno-methodological or
discursive appreciations of police work.
• Hence, not much is known about the new generation of
(European) police professionals.
Universal Police Ethical Values
- Accountability
- Discipline
- Fairness
- Honesty
- Independence
- Social Responsibility
- Sustainability
- Transparency
- Trust
- Ethical Conduct
- Integrity
- Pursuit of excellence
- Loyalty
- Compassion
- Freedom
- Equality
Police culture
Police Styles
Law
Plural Policing
Ethics
Political
Social
Economic
Context
Technology
Criminality
Terrorism
Unrest
International
Regional
European Ethics Instruments
•
•
•
•
European Code of Police Ethics (Council of Europe)
Rulings by the European Court of Human Rights
No Code of Police Ethics in the EU (!)
Ethics tends to be “implied” in human rights,
fundamental rights and data protection
• Implementation = pivotal:
– The problem with codes of ethics is that they are often
experienced as elitist, paternalistic, ill-suited to daily practice,
too vague, inconsequential, and implemented from top to
bottom.
– Fundamental concern is why police officers (as public agents)
should behave better than other civil servants.
Global Challenges for Security Ethics
• Evolution of policing:
–
–
–
–
More room for privatization
“Extended Policing Families” -> Networked Policing
Blurring Perspectives Police / Military
Remote Control of Citizens (Electronic surveillance) ->
Cybercop
• Security climate has hardened worldwide
– Terrorism and other asymmetric security conflicts
– New security threats: coping mechanisms not always clear
• Differences in ethical climates:
– National models of policing differ (political context, human
rights)
– Styles of policing differ and may overlap
– Oversight mechanisms and accountability systems differ
Implications for Security Ethics
• On the basis of governance shifts, one would predict
security professionals to:
– Experience value dilemmas as the policies become
tougher (gap between official policy and individual
professional reflection)
– See more distance between the policy-maker and
the policy-executor, i.e. higher individual discretion
at the work floor (ethical leeway)
– Become “less ethical” due to the fact that their
organizations embrace become primarily efficiencydriven
– Work with technology that undermines professional
moral reflection (suppression of individual
discretion)
Research Security Professionals
• Security Professionals Not Less Ethical
• However, variables make the difference:
– Instrumental relationship between political agenda and ethics,
especially in context of EU as moral agent
– Leadership & moral compass matter: but risk of passing the buck
down the hierarchy
– Consistent loyalty (and idealism) vis-à-vis security policies and
organizations that execute them
– Cultural / national / organizational factors matter: ethical reflection is
not always obvious
– Security ethics is an organic reality and cannot be imposed top
down: they have to be “lived”
“As a young cop ethics is ‘knocked’ into you with training: It is not what
you do that is important, but how you do it. The policy of the
organization has standards to make sure it is ethically sound.”
Interview with Rob Wainwright, Director Europol, 30 June
Police = Special
• Collective versus Individual Level
– Police officers often recruited from traditional segments of
society
– Encourages a (semi-)monolithic police culture
• Moreover, police officers collectively tend to be
characterized by
–
–
–
–
–
–
Machismo
Bravery
Authoritarianism
Cynicism
Aggression
Distrust/suspicion
Findings on Police Ethics
- Always following the rules is deemed incompatible
with getting the job done (40%)
- Whistle-blowing is considered not wise (35%)
- ‘Police abuse and culture of silence remains problematic’
- Majority turns blind eye on misconduct of fellow officers
- Attitude of police chief matters (85%)
- Good first-line supervision very important
- Ethical training helps (82%)
From: Weisburd & Greenspan, 2000; Dean et al., 2010
What is Ethical Policing About?
•
•
•
•
•
Ethical & Effective Policing
Accountable & Democratic Policing
Evidence-Based & Informed Policing
Professional Policing & Excellence
Policing that Contributes to Justice, Safety and
Freedom for all
• Knowledge & Application of Universal Human
Rights Standards
• Development & Sharing of Good Practices
How does Oversight Contribute to
Police Ethics?
•
•
Oversight enhances public confidence
Empirically, police oversight is performed by a variety of actors:
–
–
–
–
–
•
Judicial
Parliamentary
Civil
Specific: e.g. breach of integrity, corruption, inquiries
Executive
Complaints, incidents, reports:
– Improvement mechanisms
– Sometimes leading to new legislation
•
Best Practice:
– Police Ombudsman with a wide mandate: Northern Ireland
– Independent Police Control Authorities, Hong Kong, Belgium, United Kingdom
•
Learning points:
– Frequency of contacts between e.g. ombudsman and police authorities
– Compliance monitoring (!)
•
Often more than 1 trajectory at the same time
Implementation of Good Policing
• In Relation to Key Police Powers:
– Use of Force (Monopoly of violence): UN Code & Basic Principles,
e.g. firearms
– Arrest & Detention: Cautioning, Recording and Registration
– Investigation of Crime: Fair Trial, Avoid Tunnel Vision, Systematic and
Professional Crime Analysis
– Intelligence Gathering and Surveillance: Avoid Discrimination and
Prejudice
– Street control, body searches, preventive searches: Prior
authorization, explanation, and complaint procedures are important
• “New issues”: post-conflict policing (authority void); multi-cultural
policing (ethnic and religious tensions); policing of terrorism and
organized crime
• Police enjoys more legitimacy if it only uses violence nonarbitrarily and only as a means of last resort (suspension,
proportionality, legality, subsidiarity)
Ethics of intelligence-led policing
• ILP = widely spread, particularly in the UK and
north-western European countries
• Strongly promoted by EU agencies including
Europol, Frontex and SitCen
• Core = prevention / precautionary principle
• Presumption of innocence ?
• Policing by consent ?
• Accountability = low, effectiveness hard to
measure
Practices to Encourage Police Ethics
• Indicators & Levels:
– Transparency & Accountability
– Responsiveness (tell citizens about outcome;
feedback)
– Access to Justice (e.g. complaint mechanisms)
– Leadership (considered crucial by the respondents;
moral compass; early intervention; consistency)
– Management (integrity and efficiency in all police
processes, from small to large aspects)
– Organization: cultivating diversity, reflection, open
attitude; screening & recruitment
– Training & Education: human rights and ethics are
essential features
Discussion
•
•
•
•
•
Good Policing is not just fighting corruption
Ethical ramifications of new security strategies
Ethical Policing is a Dynamic Enterprise
Towards a Global Constabulary Ethic?
Future Research Avenues:
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Gaps e.g. impact of resources (payment etc)
Entangled Hands: A Problem in Europe?
Ethics in Civil (Police) Missions
Longitudinal Approach: Ethical Shifts
Public versus Private Values
International comparison as well as cross-agency
Link with “good governance and oversight
Further Reading
• Monica den Boer & Emile Kolthoff (eds.),
Ethics & Security, The Hague, Eleven
International Publishing, 2010
• INEX: www.inexproject.eu
• ASEF: Guide on Good Policing: www.asef.org
THANK YOU
[email protected]