The Metropolitan Black Police Association (Met BPA) announced it would launch an advertising campaign “actively discouraging” young black and Asian people from joining the force, the Daily Telegraph reports.
The Met BPA said: "The Metropolitan Police ... have made the working environment for its existing black staff a hostile atmosphere where racism is allowed to spread and those who challenge it are either suspended, told to shut up or subtly held back in relation to career development."
A deputy chairwoman of the Metropolitan Police Authority (MPA) and head of the inquiry, Cindy Butts, accused the Met BPA of creating negative publicity which could harm the police and ethnic minorities’ relations, but crucial co-operation is needed at the moment over terrorism and knife crime, the BBC said.
She added: “I accept there are problems in the Met to do with race and faith issues and that is why we are setting up the inquiry.
“I think that the Met has moved on leaps and bounds since the Lawrence inquiry - which was 10 years ago - where it was accused of being institutional racist. It was.
“Institutional racism refers to the structures and procedures within an organisation. I believe that the structures and procedures in the Met are not perfect, but by and large they are right," she told BBC Radio 4.
Cindy said she would tell a young black person thinking of joining that “the police service is a good place to work for, with fantastic opportunities”, but accepted that some black officers do not enjoy the same opportunities as white officers.
While explaining its intention to boycott Met recruitment drives, the Met BPA addressed: “We would be failing out duty as an association if we did not share out current experiences with those who want to join with the Met.
“The boycott and our active discouragement will continue during Black History Month and beyond, until the Metropolitan Police Authority convinces us that they care about race and equality for its workforce and the people of London.
“We will not put up or shut up to racism and inequality."
Met BPA’s announcement and racism condemnation within Met police force come as Mike Fuller, Britain’s most senior black police officer told the BBC ethnic minority police have to work harder than their white peers to succeed.
He said: “We have to work twice as hard to compete, and don't feel that there is a level playing field".
Assistant Commissioner Tarique Ghaffur, Britian’s most senior Muslim officer was also suspended after going public with his claims, he said former Metropolitan Police Chief Sir Ian Blair discriminated against him because of his race and religion, he was now "temporarily relieved of his responsibilities", according to the Daily Telegraph.
Another senior officer, Commander Ali Dizaei, was suspended in September 2008 by the MPA and was facing an investigation into claims of his misconduct, the BBC said.
Showing posts with label Racism. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Racism. Show all posts
Wednesday, 8 July 2009
Tuesday, 7 July 2009
Roma fled after Northern Irish attacks
Romania’s Roma community fled their South Belfast home after a spate of racist attacks in June 2009, the BBC has learnt.
Some of the members saying they feel intimidated and very scaring after the locals throwing bricks to their window in their South Belfast home.
After temporarily sheltering in a local church hall following the attacks, they were all replaced at the O-Zone sports complex in Belfast.
Police Service of Northern Ireland spokesman said the number of racially motivated crime has increased rapidly in the course of 10 years, up to date there are nearly 1,000 compared to 41 incidents in 1996.
Part of the increase can be explained the growing number of migrants coming to Northern Ireland following the paramilitary ceasefires, and the enlargement of central and eastern European countries into the European Union.
Chief Constable Sir Hugh Orde told the BBC his officers respond to the attacks “within 10 minutes”. In some cases, police responded to calls from attacked Romania families within 1 minute.
Some of the Local Irish demonstrate to show their support to those vulnerable Roma women and children.
“This protest has sent a clear message that people do not want this going on in their area and that this has to stop right now." Protest organiser Paddy Meehan said in an interview with the BBC.
Anna Lo, from Alliance Party of Northern Ireland, told the Guardian: “We are all here to show support for the migrant workers who have been attacked and have been hounded out from one street to another street.”
Gordon Brown condemned the attacks and told the Guardian: “I hope the authorities are able to take all the action necessary to protect them.”
Belfast’s lord mayor, Naomi Long, said the attacks had brought shame on the city.
Social Development Minister Margaret Ritchie told the BBC on 17 June 2009, after the attacks, 25 members out of 100 from Roma minority group had already decided leaving to Romania, 75 were going to leave as soon as possible, 14 will stay in Northern Ireland.
However, according to Romanian media, it seems their returning home will not guarantee their certain future, as the home media reflects their fate in an unusual sympathetic manner.
Roma is reportedly a minority group who is discriminated throughout the whole Europe, even in their motherland Romania, they were called “Roma” or even “Gypsies” to distinguish them from the Romanian majority.
Only few headlines about the attacks can be found on Romanian media websites.
If Romanian reporters show their sympathy to those who fled home, some of their readers voiced prejudices against the Roma minority.
According to the BBC, Andrei Badin, a leading TV talk show host and author of a well known internet blog, said it was very unlucky compared to developed countries, civic sense in Romania is “much lower”.
He added: “Regrettably, Romanians show little solidarity towards their compatriots, irrespective of their ethnic group.”
In the meeting with Romanians in Belfast and the Northern Ireland authorities, Dr Ion Jinga, the Romanian ambassador to the UK, expressed his concern on the Romanian state still had no strategy to integrate the Roma, and many of the community members are poorly educated, the BBC reports.
Some of the members saying they feel intimidated and very scaring after the locals throwing bricks to their window in their South Belfast home.
After temporarily sheltering in a local church hall following the attacks, they were all replaced at the O-Zone sports complex in Belfast.
Police Service of Northern Ireland spokesman said the number of racially motivated crime has increased rapidly in the course of 10 years, up to date there are nearly 1,000 compared to 41 incidents in 1996.
Part of the increase can be explained the growing number of migrants coming to Northern Ireland following the paramilitary ceasefires, and the enlargement of central and eastern European countries into the European Union.
Chief Constable Sir Hugh Orde told the BBC his officers respond to the attacks “within 10 minutes”. In some cases, police responded to calls from attacked Romania families within 1 minute.
Some of the Local Irish demonstrate to show their support to those vulnerable Roma women and children.
“This protest has sent a clear message that people do not want this going on in their area and that this has to stop right now." Protest organiser Paddy Meehan said in an interview with the BBC.
Anna Lo, from Alliance Party of Northern Ireland, told the Guardian: “We are all here to show support for the migrant workers who have been attacked and have been hounded out from one street to another street.”
Gordon Brown condemned the attacks and told the Guardian: “I hope the authorities are able to take all the action necessary to protect them.”
Belfast’s lord mayor, Naomi Long, said the attacks had brought shame on the city.
Social Development Minister Margaret Ritchie told the BBC on 17 June 2009, after the attacks, 25 members out of 100 from Roma minority group had already decided leaving to Romania, 75 were going to leave as soon as possible, 14 will stay in Northern Ireland.
However, according to Romanian media, it seems their returning home will not guarantee their certain future, as the home media reflects their fate in an unusual sympathetic manner.
Roma is reportedly a minority group who is discriminated throughout the whole Europe, even in their motherland Romania, they were called “Roma” or even “Gypsies” to distinguish them from the Romanian majority.
Only few headlines about the attacks can be found on Romanian media websites.
If Romanian reporters show their sympathy to those who fled home, some of their readers voiced prejudices against the Roma minority.
According to the BBC, Andrei Badin, a leading TV talk show host and author of a well known internet blog, said it was very unlucky compared to developed countries, civic sense in Romania is “much lower”.
He added: “Regrettably, Romanians show little solidarity towards their compatriots, irrespective of their ethnic group.”
In the meeting with Romanians in Belfast and the Northern Ireland authorities, Dr Ion Jinga, the Romanian ambassador to the UK, expressed his concern on the Romanian state still had no strategy to integrate the Roma, and many of the community members are poorly educated, the BBC reports.
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