Human Rights Violations by the Police.

In some parts of the world, police forces are known for the brutality with which they operate. In Kosovo, for instance, the Serbian police functioned as a kind of paramilitary organization, responsible for numerous atrocities. In countries such as Brazil and Mexico, the police are known for all kinds of gross human rights violations: endemic brutality, torture, extrajudicial killings, and "disappearances." [1] The Palestinian police who have taken over from Israelis in the formerly occupied territories have a well-known reputation, especially where the torture of (political) suspects is concerned. This, however, elicits much less concern and derision from the Palestinian population than similar actions on the part of the Israeli police. [2]

In this article we shall be concerned with the question of police human rights violations as part of normal or routine policing, rather than in the context of violent internal political conflicts or civil war. Repression and gross violations of human rights in the latter situations are normally perpetrated by the military rather than the police. The police tend to play no role in the political domain or are subordinated to the military. [3] The question we shall address here is why police forces are involved in certain excesses as part of routine policing in some countries and not, or to a far smaller extent, in others. Are there generally applicable processes or causes which can explain certain excesses? Which violations are characteristic for different types of societies? These questions will be addressed here in the first instance by looking at the relevant research literature concerning the causes of police violations of human rights. This will be followed by a discussion of variations in "context" and " complexity" of gross violations of human rights in different situations. Subsequently, we outline the specific characteristics of developing and more developed western societies that influence the nature and degree of police brutality. In this context, policing in "divided societies" will be discussed in the light of the democratization processes of a number of such traditionally divided societies in recent years.

1. Existing Knowledge about the Causes of Police Violations of Human Rights

An inventory of relevant studies indicates the scarcity of empirical research available and the paucity of theory formulated specifically on the causes of police violations of human rights. In view of the broad range of police actions which fall under the concept of police violations of human rights, available theory is inherently either of a fairly general nature or relates to a certain types of rights violations. Few if any comparable research data concerning both developing and more developed western societies exist. Most relevant research has been carded out in the field of police brutality and the lethal use of force, especially in the United States. [4] Studies have also been conducted by human rights organizations, especially Human Rights Watch (HRW). For instance, HRW's recent report" Systemic Injustice: Torture, 'Disappearance' and Extrajudicial Execution in Mexico" looks into a number of cases of police violations of human rights and analyzes their occurrence in the context of the government's appr oach to such violations and the functioning of the criminal justice system. Useful insights also emerge from HRW's study of state responsibility for rural violence in Mexico and its study on police brutality in urban Brazil. These studies provide valuable data and insights which can be used in a theoretical analysis of the causes of police violations of human rights. [5]

Some European studies exist on the police in wartime, such as the study of Hamburg police officers during World War II, who were sent to the Eastern front in Russia, and were involved in gross violations of human rights on a massive scale. In a study of the role of the Amsterdam police during the Second World War, an analysis was made of the support given by the police to the German transportation of Jews to German concentration camps. [6] Based on his experiences in charge of an inspection team of the Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) from 1989 to 1993, Antonio Cassese uncovered the occurrence of police torture among the then 23 member states of the Council of Europe, including some countries in Asia, Cyprus and Turkey. [7] In a recent report, HRW examined police torture in Russia and suggested that possibly half of all suspects arrested are tortured, irrespective of the severity of the suspected offense. [8]

Most relevant research with respect to the causes of police violations of human rights, however, is to be found in American research on police brutality and the use of excessive force. [9] Such research has focused on situational, individual, and environmental variables. With regard to individual variables, research has been carried out on the influence of personality traits of police officers, particularly with respect to their readiness to switch to aggressive solutions in conflict situations. A general conclusion which can be drawn is that different types of police officers have a different propensity for violence. Other personal characteristics that have been looked into are number of years of service and sex. [10] Whereas a psychological perspective may in itself be of value in connection with the broader area of police violations of human rights, a sociological and organizational theoretical approach is more appropriate for outlining a macrolevel perspective on why such violations occur.

1. 1 Sociological theory