"The country's biggest force, the Metropolitan police, is to lobby the attorney general… because officers believe that large sections of the population have become increasingly politicised"
“Stop and Search Us”? The Police? Surely they don’t mean that? I wonder who will be the first to take them at their word; and likely end up getting arrested for the effort?
Well, no. They don’t actually mean that. This slogan appears on billboards that have started appearing in various places around Bedford over the past couple of weeks or so, and is in fact part of a recruiting campaign for Bedfordshire Police.
However, it strikes me it’s rather a curious choice of words. Curious? How so?
Because it follows so quickly on the heels of an announcement just about a week ago that police powers under Section 44 of the Terrorism Act 2000 are to be curtailed (see the British Journal of Photography for a report).
So I’m left pondering which scenario accounts for the choice of this particular slogan.
Is it that the Police are totally unaware of the Home Secretary’s announcement regarding the use of stop-and-search powers under Section 44? Or do not see the coincidence of wording between that announcement and this slogan? Well, nothing would surprise me where cops are concerned, though I suspect this is unlikely.
Or is it that they’re sensitive to the damage their abuses of the Section 44 powers have caused them in the eyes of the public, and this is their way of seeking to apologise and to help improve their image, cultivating a “friendlier face” for themselves? Using the slogan to deliberately emphasise the connection?
Or is it that they’re supremely uncaring of whatever the Home Secretary may have to say, and regard the outcry caused by their abuse of Section 44 powers as trivial? And this is a not-so-subtle way of their taking the piss? In other words a testament to their systemic arrogance?
Football? Let me say straight off that I have absolutely no interest in it whatsoever. Doesn’t stir the blood at all. I simply can’t understand what there is about it that people find so fascinating, or why it appears to arouse so much passion. As far as I’m concerned it’s purely opiate for the masses… and a huge money-spinner of course.
Quite bizarre then that I should find myself taking a modicum of interest in the Slovenia vs England match yesterday… Wednesday 23rd. Although I’m not sure it actually qualified as an interest in football per se.
I was in town on another mission entirely, totally oblivious of any football matches that may have been occurring, and noticed that the Bankers Draft pub, on the High Street, had placed doormen outside.
During daytime? Midweek? How very curious.
How I came to spot this strange development was because I just happened to be in The Bear pub (also on the High Street, directly opposite the Bankers Draft), a favoured haunt of mine when in town. It could almost be regarded as my town centre base. And it’s the bar manager there who informs me about the football.
Seemingly this game, the Slovenia vs England one, was quite a major event; certainly for the fans in this country. For apparently, had the game been lost, the England team would have been kicked out of the tournament or Cup or whatever series of matches it was a part of. All completely meaningless to me of course.
But not entirely meaningless. For I know full well how football fans can behave in town centres if their favoured team loses; angry, frustrated, and disappointed football fans this would be.
So, apparently, do the police. For it seems they’d approached the various licensed establishments in the town centre, some weeks earlier, with the recommendation that whichever such establishments would be screening the match should, on the day, have door staff on duty.
And, sat in The Bear pub, I’m looking out the window watching vans-full of police driving along the High Street.
As I said, I have absolutely no interest in football at all. But I do have an interest in photography. Well, I would, wouldn’t I? What with being a photographer and everything. And more specifically, a photojournalist-type photographer.
If there’s anything happening in town that’s likely to turn “eventful” shall we say, and if I just happen to be in town at the right time (a rare combination of circumstances), well, surely the opportunity is too good to miss?
But I was undecided. Did I really want to be in town when it was all “kicking off”, and run the risk of having violence visited upon my person, or my camera kit trashed or whatever?
On the other hand, mercenary instincts to the fore, did I want to bypass the chance of getting some news-worthy and saleable photos?
An hour later and I was still undecided, so thought I’d take a wander around the town. See what the atmosphere felt like; have a chat with a few police perhaps. Try to get a sense of possible outcomes.
Quite a few police deployed along the High Street. Groups of three or so outside the Bankers Draft, the Litten Tree, and Harveys. And foot patrols in teams of two.
But little else. Nothing elsewhere in the town centre at all… either in terms of police presence, pub door staff, or anything. Very relaxed atmosphere; everyone going about their normal business (just one shop on Greyfriars with a notice in the window to the effect that it would be closing at 15:00 because of the match); market traders all carrying on as normal.
With no definite decision one way or another reached, come five o’ clock and I was still in town. And by that time I believe the match was over, or possibly playing into extra time, so back onto the High Street to see what’s happening.
No longer police outside the Bankers Draft… they all appeared to have moved toward the southern end of the High Street, outside the Litten Tree and Harveys. So that’s where I stationed myself as well.
Apparently England won… Slovenia 0, England 1. Much jubilation from the patrons of the High Street pubs, and everyone completely well-behaved.
Not that I like to see violence or vandalism or whatever but, to be honest, a crowd of happy football fans dancing and cheering and obediently staying on the pavement whilst a loose line of police ensure no-one strays into the path of passing vehicles (many of which were loudly tooting their horns) doesn’t really make for terribly exciting photographs.
Hmm. Couldn’t manage to be at this one but have been keeping an eye on events there courtesy of the Climate Camp website, Twitter (#swoop), Indymedia etc.
Two interesting little snippets caught my eye, from the Notts Indymedia timeline…
October 17, 2009 19:33 – Reports arrive that, contrary to the Police’s press release, the policeman who collapsed went dizzy from overheating, fell over and hit his head on somebody’s knee on the way down. There was definitely no violence involved in that incident. The innuendo in the police press release is ridiculous.
And a bit earlier…
October 17, 2009 18:02 – Injured protester’s ambulance took about an hour, cop’s took about 3mins.
Just spotted this on Indymedia, and well worth quoting in full…
Three Police officers in court for cannabis fit-up.
Three police officers are due to appear on a week long trial at Southwark crown court started august 17th 2009 charged with perverting the course of justice.
A young man who wishes not to be named until the trial has finished, was arrested in January 2008 for possession of cannabis on the Ferrier estate in Kidbrooke, South east London. However when he later again went to court on 25th March 2008, he produced to the court a digital voice recording which contradicted the statements of the officers.
Charges for possession of cannabis were dropped and official complaints against the police were made by magistrates and the crown prosecution services (CPS) which have been reffered to the Independent Police Complaints Commision. (IPCC)
The IPCC along with police investigation have put a case to the CPS who have decided they have a strong enough case to charge Sgt Marcus Garvey, PC Wayne Campbell and PCSO Stef Loftus with perverting the course of justice.
The defending police officers have been in and out of court several times since last year in an attempt to get the case dropped. All attempts have failed and the five-day trial is set to go ahead on august 17th 2009 at Southwark crown court.
Here is the statement from the man who is due to appear as no doubt the main witness against the accused police officers.
“I’m not really allowed to talk about the case, i’v been advised to by the investigating police officers as it might effect the case. I was arrested in 2008 for possession of cannabis but it as a total fit up. I got illegally evicted from my home, and refused bail that weekend.”
The reputation of the metropolitan police hasn’t been its best at recent times, and it would seem the bridge between the police and the community is widening. We can only hope the same true spirit of justice is present in the upcoming court case as in the previous one. However it is obviously expected that the ‘legal game’ inside the courtroom is going to be played as the officers lawyers attempt to get them off by any means how.
The man went on to say – ” i never expected any of this, all i did was take the recording to defend myself. But for sure i’m really pleased whats happened. I was legal kidnapped all weekend and had months of stress not knowing what was going to happen. I’d love to work with young offnders and children in care, and although i have smoked cannabis and been arrested for cannabis in the past, this was just a pointless blow to me, totally unfair”
For those who haven’t heard of the Ferrier estate where the man was arrested, it is one of the largest and most deprived council housing developments in london. With most of its properties empty, sureley it would be a blow to the isolated community to see officers allowed to get away with it to carry on harrasing as normal.
Our wonderful British cops fitting someone up? Surely not. They’d never do such a thing… er… would they?
Mind you, it wouldn’t quite be the first occasion the cops have been caught out lying (for that’s what a fit-up is of course), now would it? See this, for example.
Superb article on the police, policing, “democracy”, and much more…
The recent, very violent policing of protests against the G20 meeting in London has become a matter of concern. The story that the authorities tell is one of disobedient police officers. The story,with a bit of imagination, could be understood as if, perhaps, there aren’t just a few bad apples in the barrel, some individuals: maybe there is a disease inside the institution, indeed it is “very worrying“:
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