4th of June 2009

This post is being posted by Dan.

Today I visited the Northern Ireland police academy, where the Northern Irish police force is recruited and trained. The group and I were led by a older officer who was the deputy gave presented a brief power point about the work being conducted at the academy. He emphasized the new thinking and training that has been taken away from the lessons learned from the troubles of Norther Ireland. The presentation was to show our group that the Northern Ireland police force is improving its image in being more compassionate and understanding in the various communities around the country.

After the presentation I was able to sit down and talk with a group of six recruits who looked no older than their early twenties. While we sat I was able to ask them questions that dealt with subjects from what they have experienced first hand with the police, to how they would work within the community to better enforce the law as well as improve trust of the police and the communities. The police for a vast majority of Northern Irish, have a very negative view over them because of their cold tactics towards preventing violence, and because the old police force was seen by many to be the arm of the loyalists, although both sides of the conflicts cared nothing for the police.

The young recruits seemed eager to get out onto the streets and make a difference in whichever community they would be placed. Our group was able to get a lot of insight as to what these recruits were being taught, but there is still high tensions among the populace and the police force. It is still a little too early to tell whether or not the new Northern Irish police force will create a positive image of itself, or whether the negative views that have been dominate will still continue to be the norm.