Racial abuse case against Newham officer PC MacFarlane dropped after second jury unable to reach verdict

Following two trial outcomes that resulted in a 'hung jury', the case against Newham police officer PC Alex MacFarlane, for racially abusing Mauro Demetrio, has been formally discharged today.

PC MacFarlane admitted it was his voice on a recording telling Mr Demetrio in the back of a police van in August 2011 that "the problem with you is you'll always be a nigger". However, he claimed in his defence that he thought Mr Demetrio had "low self-esteem" and his words were intended to help calm him down and "examine his lifestyle". He denied he was trying to demean or assert authority over Mr Demetrio.

Maria Demetrio, mother of Mauro Demetrio, who sat through both court cases spoke of her family's sadness at the verdict:

"I'm deeply disappointed with the outcome but really proud of my son for taking his complaint 'all the way'. Even though this officer was not found guilty, I hope this case will make other police officers think twice in future before using racist language or abusing their powers."

Estelle du Boulay, Director of Newham Monitoring Project, which supported Mr Demetrio, said today:

"It is extremely rare for a police officer to be prosecuted and ever rarer for juries to find officers guilty; against these odds a hung jury verdict is still a significant achievement compared to an acquittal. However, we are worried that the message this sends out to the public is that racism in the police force can be acceptable and that police officers are above the law.

We commend Mr Demetrio on his bravery in raising his complaint and highlighting an experience that reflects those frequently reported by black communities but rarely taken seriously. We hope others will not be discouraged but will continue to fight racism, as clearly there is still a long way to go.

A particularly disturbing aspect of this case, which to us as anti-racist campaigners was beyond credulity, was that an experienced police officer could argue he used racially insulting language in attempts to 'calm' a black detainee down. This kind of conduct should never be condoned and this needs to be made clear to all officers.

It is of particular irony that this case occurred in August 2011, in the wake of the shooting of Mark Duggan and uprisings across the UK. At this time, tensions between black communities and the police were at the forefront of public consciousness. It appears that rather than heed the warnings about ignoring community alienation, these valuable lessons fell on deaf ears."

NMP / Newham Bookshop Event: Still Counting the Dead

On Friday 16th November, Newham Monitoring Project has joined with Newham Bookshop to organise a literary event at the Trinity Centre near East Ham station. Former BBC foreign correspondent Frances Harrison will join us to discuss her book Still Counting the Dead - Survivors of Sri Lanka's Hidden War with the Sri Lankan born artist and writer.Roma Tearne.

Celebrating the fantastic work of our Community Legal Observers during the Olympics

Some of our CLO volunteers at Saturday's event in Canning Town

Last Saturday evening, Newham Monitoring Project celebrated the fantastic work undertaken by our Community Legal Observers (CLO) during this summer's Olympics, with an event at The Arches near Star Lane in Canning Town.

In total, 89 CLOs took part in shifts during the Games and contributed a total of 222 hours on the streets of Newham, where they handed out 6450 rights cards to local people. In a presentation of a forthcoming report on the policing of the Olympics in the borough, NMP's director Estelle du Boulay highlighted some of the early findings from the huge amount of data that was gathered by CLOs during their shifts. We found that:

The community response was overwhelmingly positive
Community Legal Observers were frequently told by members of the public that their activtities were ‘exactly what is needed’. One CLO told us: “no-one ever responded negatively, about 50% with curiosity … many with delight”.

The response from police quickly changed
The attitude of officers changed from amused to antagonistic as it because clear we were not going away and as a result of the consistent quality and commitment of CLOs. There were attempts to intimidate and insult our volunteers but thankfully no threats of arrest.

There are still problems with stop and search
In the majority of stops witnessed by CLOs, receipts were only given when police officers were aware that their actions were observed and in most cases, stop and search powers were not explained. One CLO who was stopped and searched after finishing a shift had ‘anti-police’ written on his receipt under “grounds for stop” after politely noting his rights and withholding his name and address.

There was a less than positive attitude by police towards people knowing about their rights
We received statements from people who had been arrested that our rights cards were taken from them upon arrest and they were not allowed to call NMP from custody.

There were accounts of strip searches taking place in police vans
The number of these accounts was alarming – especially as conducting a strip search in a van is illegal. One person was told: “In the van or down the station. It will be worse down the station.”

Below the surface, some police conduct was less professional than portrayed by senior officers
The high number of officers on duty, the large number of police vehicles and a visible display of firearms was designed to create a public image of complete authority and control. But below the surface, this 'total policing' approach frequently manifested itself in rude, aggressive and threatening attitudes to members of the public.

The experience of volunteering as a Community Legal Observer was itself very positive
Feedback from people who gave up their time to become CLOs for what was often a demanding role told us how much they enjoyed taking part, saying they felt “empowered … discovering there were actions they could take… and an organisation to support them”

Now that the Olympics and Paralympics are over, NMP is finalising a detailed report on community legal observing and a timeline showing the different incidents that took place during the period. The intention is to turn this into a resource for young people. On Saturday, we were also able to provide each Community Legal Observer with a memento of their incredible work over the summer – a specially designed 'gold medal' (right) that shows the iconic 'human rights salute' protest by Tommie Smith, John Carlos and Peter Norman at the 1968 Mexico Olympic Games.

The report will be available shortly and will be available here on our website.

Newham Council responds to complaint over exclusion of legal observers

Newham Monitoring Project has now received a response to the complaint we made to Newham council, regarding the behaviour of security guards at Stratford Park and the decision to ban our Community Legal Observers from entering.

Unfortunately, the council has now provided us with another, entirely different justification for the exclusion of local volunteers engaged in informing local people about their legal rights Our initial complaint was submitted because NMP’s Community Legal Observers had been stopped at the entrance on Whalebone Lane at 2pm by someone who appeared to be in charge of security at Stratford Park. He apparently accused them of distributing material that was "making it easy for criminals and giving them tips".

NMP sent an email immediately to Head of Events, Sue Meiners explaining the purpose of our project and raising a complaint about this incident. Volunteers were approached again later in the afternoon and were spoken to personally by the council’s Head of Events, Sue Meiners, who offered a second explanation: that our rights cards were causing "litter". Even when volunteers offered to stop distributing rights cards, they reported that they were still asked to leave because she wasn’t clear who NMP were, despite acknowledging to the volunteers she had received NMP’s email.

A third and new explanation comes in an e-mail from the council’s Head of Communications, Douglas Trainer. In the interests of transparency, it is published below. As well as repeating the suggestion that we might cause littering, he adds that the live-screen park areas are part of a 'corporate event' and that as a result, the council does not allow organisations “to come into the park with a branded presence - including the wearing of branded shirts or bibs.” We struggle to understand any of the reasons we have been given so far for the exclusion of our volunteers. The claim that providing civil rights information encourages criminality is clearly without substance.

Newham Council has agreed to follow up the complaint with its contractors as it “demonstrates an apparent failure to understand why we consistently refuse entry to our events for leafleters”. We believe it raises far greater concerns than this around apparent stereotyping of the local community as criminals and we hope this will be addressed robustly.

 The second justification for excluding Community Legal Observers from Stratford Park, regarding littering, is equally difficult to comprehend. We are a small community group with limited resources, so we have spent time talking to members of the public and only given them rights cards if they want them. If people later drop these (as they may do with any other items on them such a food wrappers) inside or outside the park, it seems somewhat over zealous to ban us from distributing cards at all.

As for the designation of Stratford Park’s live screenings as a ‘corporate event’ and therefore subject to restrictive controls towards providing information to the community, this will come as news to many who live and work locally. Newham Council refers to the Olympic Games within its current Corporate Plan as an opportunity to strengthen local communities so they “have the same social and economic chances as their neighbours across the rest of London”. We believe providing rights information independently contributes to this goal. There has been much debate about the rules used to protect corporate brands during the Olympics and we are genuinely surprised that the council would adopt and enforce similar rules against its own citizens, especially those who are volunteering for a local not-for-profit group with charitable aims.

 If the London Borough of Newham insists on banning Community Legal Observers from its events, then we will of course respect their wishes. We have a far more pressing task in monitoring the conduct of the police during the Olympics and, when necessary, holding them to account. It is disappointing, however, that the council has chosen to take such an unsympathetic position to volunteers who have given up their spare time to provide an important service to local communities.

Newham council’s response

From: "Douglas Trainer"
To: Estelle du Boulay
Sent: Tuesday, July 31, 2012 5:33:25 PM

Estelle,

Thank you for your email which Sue Meiners has passed to me to respond to as the head of service. Apologies for the delay in responding - it is a busy time for all of us.

We have a consistent position across all of the Council's corporate events programme - including the Live Sites - to refuse all requests to leaflet in our parks and venues other than for organisations who are a formal part of our event. In part this is to reduce the litter associated with flyering which we are responsible for clearing. We also do not allow such organisations to come into the park with a
branded presence - including the wearing of branded shirts or bibs.

This has been consistently applied when requested across a wide range of organisations including community, faith, political groups and the like.

We obviously would have no problem with NMP volunteers on the public highway outside our events handing out information to the public in a responsible manner. Similarly, we would have no problem with your volunteers enjoying the Olympics at our Live Sites when they are not working.

We will certainly be taking up your complaint below with our security contractors. The position as set out below is not acceptable and demonstrates an apparent failure to understand why we consistently refuse entry to our events for leafleters and the like.

I am happy to feed back to you the outcome of that discussion once completed.

I hope this explanation is helpful and would be happy to answer any follow up questions. Thank you for your understanding.

Regards,

Douglas

Newham council bans human rights legal observers from Olympic livescreen venue

A group of Newham Monitoring Project Community Legal Observer volunteers were today "banned" from entering Stratford Park, a site open to the general public who wish to watch the free Olympic livescreens, by security on the ground who apparently accused them of "making it easy for criminals and giving them tips" when giving out Stop and Search rights-information cards to members of the public.

Security at the park are searching people, who appear to be mainly local residents, before entering the park. NMP understands the security at this venue to be under the jurisdiction of the local council London Borough of Newham (LBN).

NMP has contacted the Head of Events and Sponsorship at LBN immediately explaining the observers' role and to raise its concerns about how security are using their powers and to challenge any attempt to block independent rights observers in their movements. As of yet no response has been received.

In a later development, legal observers on a next shift who had successfully entered the park, have reported they were approached by the Head of Events at LBN who apparently said she wanted them to leave because the rights-cards were causing "litter". The observers offered to stop handing out cards for the time being but the LBN staff member said she still wished them to leave the park. She apparently also told the observers she had been contacted by NMP earlier today. We are left wondering why LBN appear to have delayed responding to our earlier communication detailing the role of rights observers and have instead continued to ban the observers.

NMP is deeply alarmed by any attempt to curtail the movements of independent human rights observers and with it prevent members of the public being provided with rights information. We are also alarmed at any unfounded insinuation of criminality towards the local community. Our observers have simply been speaking to and providing rights cards to the public - mainly local residents - entering the park today. By alleging that our legal observers are effectively making things "easy for criminals and giving them tips" indicates a worrying mindset towards the members of the public using the park.

Launch of Community Legal Observers initiative in Stratford

Last night, some of Newham Monitoring Project's 100+ Community Legal Observers (CLOs), who will patrol the streets during this summer's Olympics to gather evidence of the misuse of police powers and provide legal rights information, met up in Stratford to launch our new initiative.

After a photo-call near Theatre Royal Stratford East, CLOs n their distinctive red tabards headed over to Stratford station to hand out NMP's new stop and search rights card.

Teams of CLOs will start patrolling this weekend, focusing on the communities close to Olympic venues  in both the north and south of the borough. Shifts have been arranged for the whole of the next six weeks.

Here are some photos  from yesterday's launch taken by NMP supporter Kevin Blowe, with more available on Flickr.

Five Reasons to Ring NMP : Countdown to the Olympics

As we enter the five day countdown before the Olympics begin here in Newham, NMP will be publishing anonymised examples of cases we have supported via our Emergency Helpline everyday. It is cases like these that show how our staff and dedicated volunteer base are able to make a difference in our community through providing 24 hour freephone emergency casework support around race hate crime and civil injustice issues. This is why we are saying if you need advice, ring us this summer.

Case 1: Mr A was approached on the street by police officers who carried out a ‘stop and account’. The police then informed him that he was in a dispersal order zone and was required to leave. Mr A, who lived locally, continued on his journey home but was approached again by police officers and arrested for “contravening a dispersal order”. He contacted NMP’s Emergency Service for support. We were immediately able to find him a solicitor who provided legal representation at the magistrates’ court and as a result, he was acquitted.

Case 2: Ms B was stopped and searched by police officers and then subjected to an immigration check. The police said they were not satisfied by her valid documents and arrested her. Ms B was then detained in custody and later released without charge, after having her finger-prints and DNA swab taken. She contacted NMP requesting support, particularly to ensure that the finger-prints and DNA swab samples were destroyed. NMP sought legal advice and Ms B was able to successfully challenge the retention of these samples.

Case 3: Mr C was arrested in Stratford late at night whilst out with his friends. The friends asked the police which station he would be taken to but did not get an answer. A friend of his rang our Emergency Service asking for help in locating him. The NMP helpline volunteer rang every custody suite in the area until they tracked him down. The volunteer was able to speak to the arrested man to check on his welfare and arrange a solicitor for him. The volunteer kept in contact with the friend overnight and called custody back every few hours to check on progress on questioning and releasing him. Mr C thanked NMP upon his release (no charges) for ensuring he wasn’t isolated and for keeping his friends informed.

Case 4: Mr D, a young Bangladeshi man, approached NMP for support because he was frequently being stopped by the police and felt he was suffering racial discrimination - during the summer, when he was in the park, he was stopped almost daily. He called the Emergency Service from the park one evening to say he could see two police officers nearby, who he thought would approach him any moment. NMP stayed on the phone with him and shortly after the officers approached him. Mr D asked the police to explain why they were stopping him to the helpline adviser, which they did. NMP was able to inform Mr D of his rights, make a note of the officers badge numbers and hear how the stop was conducted. The officers left shortly after without incident and Mr D was able to continue enjoying his time in the park. NMP successfully assisted him to pursue his longer term racial discrimination claims against the police at a later date.

Case 5: This one, we believe, speaks for itself. NMP supported this brave young man, who alleged racial abuse in the back of police van, to make his case public after the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) refused to prosecute. Following public outcry and a reviewal of the case, the CPS reversed their decision. In the two months after this a wave of cases came forward totalling 51 allegations of racism by police officers. This has now sparked a series of reviews, a number of suspensions and has resulted in senior police officers and politicians publicly renouncing racism and promising to do more to eradicate it within the force. We wait to see if anything changes, but certainly it is an example of the strength of those at a grassroots community level to have their voice heard by those in power. If you need support - call us!

NMP Publishes Submission to Home Affairs Committee

NMP has published its submission to the House of Commons Home Affairs Committee inquiry into the Independent Police Complaints Commission. It argues that "the IPCC has not resolved significant and obvious weaknesses in the process and procedure for making a complaint, resulting in a system that falls woefully short in its ability to be independent, accessible or effective."

The submission is available to read below or can be downloaded as a PDF from here.

Volunteer to become an NMP Community Legal Observer during the Olympics

This summer, the eyes of the world will be on east London during the Olympics. Communities across east London and visitors to the area will witness an extensive policing and security operation with up to 12,000 officers on the ground during peak days. A prime community concern is the impact of this on equality and human rights entitlements.

The need for Community Legal Observers has already been explored in articles both by NMP and its supporters in recent months. In short, we and many others based in east London are concerned about the impact that such high levels of policing will have on specific sections of the community, many of whom already experience disproportionate contact and often discriminatory treatment from authorities - young people, people from black, Asian, minority ethnic, refugee or white working class backgrounds - but we are also conscious that policing and security at ground level can impact on others including visitors for whom English is not a first language, students and residents. In recent times in Newham, community confidence in the police has been severely tested by the disastrous Forest Gate anti-terror raids, where two Muslim families endured a terrifying house-raid based on faulty intelligence, the inordinately high level of Section 60 searches compared to other boroughs and most recently the allegation of racial abuse by police from NMP case Mauro Demetrio. An increase in human rights abuses has been documented in cities where sport mega-events have been held in the past; it is therefore essential that communities in east London are strengthened to resist and challenge any infringements on their rights.

Community Legal Observers can play a pivotal role in addressing this by:

• Being present on the ground to listen to, observe and respond to community concerns
• Ensuring people are aware of and can utilise their rights by distributing rights information
• Monitoring, recording and reporting back any treatment by the police or security officers that appears unlawful, discriminatory or improper
• Signposting people to access independent advice, support and legal referral for arrest and detention to NMP’s 24-hour freephone emergency helpline

Newham Monitoring Project, an independent anti-racist and civil justice organisation, will be coordinating a team of trained Community Legal Observers in areas surrounding the Olympic sites for the duration of the Olympics and Paralympics.

The provision of Legal Observers / Human Rights Monitors is a long established tradition in east London dating back to the 1930’s, acting as the eyes and ears of those on the ground and providing unique support to communities during public events and protests. This summer, we need your help to do this!

How to volunteer to become an NMP Community Legal Observer

To become part of the NMP Community Legal Observer team you need to attend one of the following training sessions. Training is free and will be held on the following dates:

Saturday 9th June 2012  11am - 4pm
Friday 15th June 2012    11am - 4pm

at The Harold Road Centre, 170 Harold Road, London, E13 0SE

What the training will cover:

- The Olympic ‘landscape’ and its impact on east London
- Understanding the role of Community Legal Observers
- Overview of human rights issues and the law in relation to this: Stop & Search powers, dispersal zones, curfew powers, arrest and detention
- Overview of law specific to the Olympics and potential impact at a community level
- Details of how the Community Legal Observer Team will be coordinated and supported by NMP

The training is open to anyone over the age of 18. You do not need a background in law as you will not be providing legal advice. Volunteers should be able to offer some availability during day and evening shifts across Newham from July 27th – September 9th 2012.

To register, email spw@nmp.org.uk or use the contact form on our website providing your contact details stating which date you can attend. Alternatively you can call us on 02084708333 for further details.

NMP is supported by The Network for Police Monitoring in launching this project.

Police announce Olympic Dispersal Zone in Stratford

This article was written Kevin Blowe, a long-standing Newham Monitoring Project supporter 

Yesterday, the Metropolitan Police confirmed that a three month dispersal zone had begun in the Stratford area, which "will specifically cover Stratford Town Centre, including the Magistrates' Court, the main transport hubs in Stratford and the areas along West Ham Lane commonly known as the West Quadrant".

Powers under the Anti-Social Behaviour Act 2003 to move on groups of people congregating in the zone began on 27 April, exactly three months before the Olympics opening ceremony. The police rather coyly add that at the end of the current period, they will "review the intelligence gathered and will consider making application to Newham Council for a three month extension", but it is pretty obvious that an extension will happen automatically. Coupled with confirmation that "local residents and businesses will also notice a marked increase in police patrols" supported by the Met's specialist public order unit CO20 (the Territorial Support Group) and Newham council enforcement officers, this is clearly a clean-up operation in advance of the summer's Games.

So what does a dispersal zone involve in practice? Section 30 of the Anti-Social Behaviour Act says that police officer or Police Community Support Officer has the power to order a group of two or more people to leave the area and, if they don't live within it, to ban them from returning for up to 24 hours. Refusing to comply with an officer's direction or not following the rules of the dispersal order can lead to arrest and charge, with a conviction potentially leading to a maximum penalty of three months' imprisonment and/or a fine of £5000.

In addition, officers have 'curfew' powers: young people aged under 16 are effectively prohibited from public spaces within the dispersal zone overnight, from 9pm to 6am, unless they are accompanied by a parent or a responsible adult over 18 years of age. An officer has the power to remove anyone within this age group that they find during these hours to their place of residence, unless there are "reasonable grounds for believing that the person would, if removed to that place, be likely to suffer significant harm."

Research by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRT) has shown that dispersal orders can have an impact on levels of crime and anti-social behaviour within a designated zone, although they risk displacing crime to the immediately surrounding neighbourhoods. Dispersal powers do, however, tend to have the impact of stigmatising all young people as potential perpetrators of anti-social behaviour, although they are most likely to be its victims:

Dispersal orders potentially criminalise youthful behaviour on the basis of the anxieties that young people congregating in groups may generate among other people. As such, the power is potentially less concerned with the agency of individuals than the assumptions that are made about what they might do.

For many, meeting friends and peers in local public spaces constitutes a fundamental aspect of developing their sense of identity and control, as well as providing space in which to forge their independent capacity to manage risk and danger. 

With the Olympics fast approaching, the underlying fear of young people from Newham scaring visitors and upsetting the drive for the 'perfect Games' does seem like the major motivation for creating a dispersal zone this early. It is as much about sending what JRT describes as a 'symbolic message' - mainly to stay away from public spaces in Stratford. The reality, though, is that this message is unlikely to succeed - many young (and not so young) people are are likely to head towards the area after 27 July, whether they have tickets for Olympic events or not, out of curiosity and excitement generated by the relentless publicity for the Games if nothing else.

However, when coupled with other stop & search and anti-terrorism powers and the huge number of police and private security around Newham over the summer, the dispersal zone is clearly seen by the Met as an important element in the expected lockdown of Stratford for the duration of the Olympics - one that could lead many young people to unexpectedly find themselves in court if they don't fully understand their rights.

CPS decision to prosecute Newham officer: “I hope now to see justice” - Mauro Demetrio

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) have announced their intention to prosecute PC Alex MacFarlane, who was recorded allegedly saying “You’ll always be a nigger”, in the case raised by Mauro Demetrio of Newham.

The decision reverses an earlier announcement by the CPS that there would be no prosecution.

Mauro Demetrio said today

"I am relieved that some action is now being taken as the previous CPS decision left me feeling that racism was acceptable. I hope now to see justice"

Estelle du Boulay, a spokesperson for Newham Monitoring Project said today:

"We welcome the CPS announcement to bring a charge of a racially aggravated public order offence against PC Alex MacFarlane in the case of Mauro Demetrio. The CPS has a duty to take action at the earliest opportunity against alleged perpetrators of racist crime, whether they are police officers or anyone else in society. We hope the change of decision today reflects an improvement in practice in how the CPS consider future cases as well as sending out a message that racism will not be tolerated at any level.

All too often the real experience of black Londoners seems to be that it is one law for them and another for the police. It is rare to see prosecutions against the police and even rarer for them to result in an officer being found guilty or punished. Today's decision is a step in the right direction but ultimately it is the long-term outcome in this case that matters to the public in terms of seeing justice done or marking a concrete change to how racism and abuse of power are dealt with."

Mauro Demetrio’s lawyer, Michael Oswald issued the following statement:

"We welcome the decision of the CPS to instigate a criminal prosecution of PC Alex McFarlane of Forest Gate Police Station arising out of his conduct towards Mr Mauro Demetrio on 11 August 2011.

We regret that it required Mr Demetrio to challenge their initial refusal to prosecute before the CPS was able and willing to recognise the patently flawed nature of that original decision. However, now that they have belatedly chosen to do the right thing, we – like Mr Demetrio himself – look to the CPS to do their job properly in the conduct of the prosecution of PC McFarlane all the way through to the trial. In the process, we hope that justice may be seen to be done, so that some semblance of confidence in the criminal justice system may yet be salvaged for Mr Demetrio and those many others who tend to find themselves in his position.

Mr Demetrio’s efforts have helped to shine a light on a pattern of failures within the CPS in their handling of cases where complaints against police. In that light, we call upon the CPS and the DPP to initiate two inquiries:

First, an inquiry into the circumstances – including apparent failures of supervision and quality control – in which the original reviewing lawyer in this case was permitted to reach a decision which was so clearly and patently flawed, against the weight of all the evidence presented to him.

Secondly, and more generally, a more wide ranging inquiry into the handling of complaints against police within the CPS, to ensure that those tasked with the responsibility of upholding the rule of law and their decision making processes in relation to such complaints are fit for purpose."

Separately, Newham Monitoring Project are also calling on Metropolitan Police Commissioner Hogan-Howe to install CCTV cameras in the back of police vans in Newham before the start of the Olympics to respond to the damaged community trust arising from this case. Sign the petition here.

NMP calls for cameras to be installed in the back of police vans in Newham by the start of the Olympics

Sign the petition here

Newham Monitoring Project has launched a public campaign to have CCTV cameras installed in the back of police vans in Newham in time for the start of the Olympics.

The campaign calls on individuals and organisations to support a wider demand for the Metropolitan Commissioner Hogan-Howe to install cameras in the back of all police vehicles, but specifies that at a minimum, a pilot needs to be in place in Newham before the start of the Olympics.

Mauro Demetrio, who faced racial comments and alleges that he was assaulted by police in the back of a van in Newham last summer, spoke of his experience and why he is supporting the call:

"I thought I was going to die in the back of the police van and can never forget the racism I experienced. I don't want this to happen to anyone else. We need cameras in the back of all vans."

A spokesperson for Newham Monitoring Project said

"Communities in Newham face a massive policing operation this summer. Trust in the police is extremely low after the recent flood of race allegations and we want to see a clear commitment from the Commissioner to have, as a minimum, a first set of cameras in place in vans in Newham before the Olympics"

A young black woman from Newham, aged 16, explained her thoughts on why she and her friends will be supporting the campaign:

"I agree that there should be cameras in the police vans because we now know that there are things that happen that the public are unaware of, also most people will take the words of the police over the words of a teenager, so to stop injustice there should be cameras especially since the Olympics are coming up and the amount of police roaming around will noticeably increase.

Newham Monitoring Project also issued a longer statement explaining the importance of the campaign:

"Thanks to the courage and quick-thinking of Mauro Demetrio, who managed to record racist insults by a police officer in the back of a police van in Newham, the Crown Prosecution Service has been forced to review its initial decision to take no action against any officer involved in his alleged ill-treatment.

What Mauro's experiences highlight are long-standing concerns about the potential risk posed to the personal safety of individual members of the public who are arrested and detained by the state. In the absence of robust systems of accountability, this risk is far greater when there is inadequate monitoring of such detention, especially inside a police vehicle.

Cameras to monitor citizens are now commonplace in almost every part of public life, but the same enthusiasm for their use has never been shown where they are most needed – in the back of police vans transporting detainees. CCTV in police vehicles would provide greater protection to potentially vulnerable members of the public and, equally, to police officers themselves: cameras would provide strong evidence in disputed cases of alleged misconduct.

Following the recent public outcry over Mauro Demetrio's treatment, Metropolitan Police Commissioner Bernard Hogan-Howe indicated that he might consider support of the installation of CCTV cameras in police vans, although he has given no timeframe as to when this might be implemented.

Whilst we recognise that rolling out a nationwide scheme may take time and money, the Home Secretary must respond to public concerns and take action to rebuild public confidence at the earliest opportunity. Millions of pounds from the public purse have already been spent on preparing London for the Olympics, which includes increased levels of policing. We believe an essential part of this huge investment should be set aside to take reasonable steps to prevent potential abuses of civil liberties.

We call on the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police to prioritise this issue and take steps now so that, as an absolute minimum, there is a pilot scheme of CCTV cameras in operation in police vans in the main Olympic host borough, Newham, by the start of the Olympics on July 27th 2012"

East London police officer taped in racist bullying - CPS refuse to prosecute

Link to full article with transcribed audio in Guardian 30 March 2012

A 21 year old black male from Beckton, Newham has described how police officers assaulted and racially abused him in the back of a police van after being stopped by the police during last August's 'riots'.

With the aid of his mobile, the young man was able to make an audio recording of police officers' comments and later made an official complaint. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) eventually decided not to prosecute any officers directly involved, a decision we are now told is under review following the threat of a judicial review of that decision by the young man's legal representatives, Bhatt Murphy Solicitors.

The young man was initially stopped on 11 August 2011 on suspicion of driving under the influence of drugs, however the police could produce no evidence of this and charges were later dropped.

The young man has stated he feared for his life whilst in the police van and that on top of physical assault came racist remarks, sexually degrading comments about his mother and a prediction that he would be dead in five years.

"The problem with you is that you'll always be a nigger. That's your problem. Yeah. That's your problem."

"You'll always have black skin colour. Yeah. Don't hide behind your colour. yeah?"

"Don't hide behind your black skin."

PC MacFarlane has admitted to making comments recorded on the audio device and has been suspended pending investigation. Another officer is heard admitting that he strangled the young man.

Other officers have denied assaulting the young man and have denied hearing any abuse.

A spokesperson for Newham Monitoring Project, who are supporting the man said:

"After years of re-branding its poor reputation on racial equality, the culture of racism within the Metropolitan police is still deeply embedded. Sadly, the shocking treatment of this young man at the hands of police officers, in terms of both the physical brutality and racial abuse he describes, are by no means unusual and illustrative of other reports we have received.

The CPS’ refusal to prosecute individual officers, where such damning evidence of racism exists, is inexcusable. It is hard to think of what stronger proof could be provided and their failure to take action re-enforces the view that the police are still largely above the law.

With 12000 police officers based in Newham this summer for the Olympics, the borough’s black communities face the prospect of a regime of repressive policing. East London was awarded the Olympic Games in part, on the strength of its extraordinary diversity but it is policing of the kind seen in this case that can quickly ignite into something much wider. The police continue to make laudable claims of learning the lessons from last August’s events, but the evidence says otherwise.

Meaningful accountability to the community is essential in robustly dealing with unacceptable behaviour and placing cameras in the back of police vans would be a helpful start. Without changes of this kind, the public currently have no option but to take the risk of recording the police themselves. It's rare to capture and preserve evidence of this kind, it is highly risky and we commend the young man’s quick thinking and courage."

Benjamin Zephaniah - Put the Number in Your Phone!

Poet, writer and patron of Newham Monitoring Project Benjamin Zephaniah explains why it is important for young people in east London to know their rights on stop & search, especially during the 2012 Olympics.

That means carrying NMP's 24-hour emergency helpline number at all times - so go on, put the number [0800 169 3111] in your phone!


Publicity for our helpline during the Olympics is one part of our response to this summer's Games, when we aim to ensure that local people are aware of their civil liberties and have a way of seeking redress if they believe their rights have been ignored. We are also offering a basic rights information card, legal workshops for youth and community groups and, for the first time, trained Community Legal Observers near to event venues.

If you are interested in volunteering for NMP over the Olympic period, either as a Community Legal Observer or to help promote civil liberties in east London in other ways, please contact us.

NMP Speaking at 'This is England' Panel

NMP will be speaking at the aftershow panel for a screening of Shane meadow's excellent film 'This is England' showing at:

The Film Hub
12 Balham Station Road,
London SW12 9SG

on Sunday 19th February.

For those who haven't seen the film, it tells the story of a troubled boy growing up in England in 1983 who becomes friends with a group of skinheads after a fight on his way home from school,

Please visit The Film Hub's website for ticket details.

'Hate Crime and Institutional Racism: What's Changed?'

NMP will be speaking at a Campus Hub event organised by the Coexistence Trust on 'Hate Crime and Institutional Discrimination: What's Changed? on Thursday 16 February at the University of London Union.

Zareena Mustafa from NMP will join a panel that also includes Dr Richard Stone OBE (a panel member on the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry), Dr Edie Freidman (Executive Director of the Jewish Council for Racial Equality) and Rokhsana Fiaz, Executive Director of the Coexistence Trust, who will be chairing the discussion.

For more information see the event's Facebook Page.

Nineteen Years Fighting For Justice

T

his article appears in the current issue of Labour Briefing

Estelle du Boulay and Kevin Blowe, Newham Monitoring Project, ask if anything has changed in the way police relate to black and Asian people following the racist murder of Stephen Lawrence nearly two decades ago.

“The police can do their job properly, but only if they want to.” In an overtly angry, political and pointed statement by Doreen Lawrence outside court on the day Gary Dobson and David Norris were convicted for the racist murder of Stephen Lawrence, the public were reminded how far society remains from being just and fair for all its citizens.

Relief at the verdict came, after all, with the knowledge that the police had the names of the five suspects within 24 hours of Stephen’s murder and that a successful prosecution could have happened years ago if police racism hadn’t resulted in the original investigation being handled so disastrously. As a result of the botched investigation, Doreen and Neville devoted a significant part of their lives to fighting for justice.

In 1999, the Lawrence Inquiry concluded the investigation into Stephen’s death “was marred by a combination of professional incompetence, institutional racism and a failure of leadership by senior officers.” In the hope of shifting the ingrained culture within institutions, it laid down a series of recommendations to address racism from the most senior level down to the front line.

The post-Lawrence vision appeared radical and wide-ranging in relation to the conduct of policing on the streets, a source of acute tension particularly felt by black communities: it advocated building greater trust and dialogue between communities and the police through increased accountability and transparency, with stop and search used appropriately and applied proportionately.

Ten years later, when reviewing the impact which attempts to implement the Lawrence recommendations had made, Dr. Richard Stone, one of the original Inquiry panel, sadly reflected that the changes “had made little impact on reducing black, white and increasingly Asian disparities in stop and search.”

Despite the replacement of the widely-criticised Police Complaints Authority with a new Independent Police Complaints Commission, the introduction of receipts for stops and community monitoring panels to scrutinise stop and search, their impact seems to have been little more than bearing witness to the operation of a system that remained unfair and discriminatory.

Despite the scrapping of Section 44 powers under the Terrorism Act 2000 (which heavily targeted Asian people), Asians remain twice as likely to be stopped as white people under another police power, Section 1 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act. Figures suggest black people are up to 26 times more likely to be stopped than their white counterparts under Section 60 stops, which require no reasonable suspicion and are therefore susceptible to racial profiling.

A significant barrier to the success of the Lawrence recommendations has been the shifting face of state racism that it was trying to regulate. As early as 2001, the Institute of Race Relations was highlighting the alarming trend in the media of attacking asylum seekers and refugees and tracking the growth in racial violence cases that followed. Post 9/11 and the London bombings of 2005, the scapegoat for societal anger became Muslims, more recently shifting towards young people and gangs. Against this onslaught of criminalising different sections of society and the swathe of laws and powers it has produced, institutional racism has been able to regroup and strengthen. The ground under the feet of the original Lawrence recommendations has changed so rapidly that it has been easy for them to be pushed aside or undercut.

An insight into how this takes root at street level can be viewed through the monitoring by NMP of local stop and search operations at Tube stations across east London over the past ten years. Around 2004 it became routine to witness joint operations between the Metropolitan Police, British Transport police and immigration officers primarily targeting “illegal immigrants”. After 2005 and the London bombings these operations were commonly based around Section 44, heavily targeting Asians. In recent years we have seen a proliferation of Section 60 operations, with knife arches targeting a particular profile (by admission of officers at the scene) of young people.

It is too simplistic to say these operations provide effective remedies for existing trends in crime at the time. Stop and search remains largely ineffectual in relation to the crimes it purportedly targets – this has always been borne out by its related arrest and prosecution rates. The societal impact of operations such as these is to normalise a set of ideas and values that are the agenda of those who hold the power in society and strengthen their ability to extend them further and further. Until public pressure effectively refuses the foundations on which institutional structures operate as well as their manifestations, systems of state sanctioned accountability will do little more than pay lip-service to an ideal of the public regulating those at the top.

The most important legacy, therefore, from the Lawrence Inquiry seems to be not the recommendations it made but the lessons it taught us: that complacency breeds complicity and nothing will be gained without a fight. Not only do we owe it to the grieving family of Stephen Lawrence to continue this battle, but it is our only chance of creating lasting and progressive change.

NMP now on Twitter and Facebook

Newham Monitoring Project can now be found on Twitter at @NMPEastLondon. Please follow us for regular updates on NMP's work.

The project also has a new Facebook Page here.

Update On ‘Save Our Language Papers’ Campaign

By the end of December, a petition against the withdrawal of community language newspapers in Newham’s libraries has collected 1190 signatures from local people.

The ‘Save our Language papers’ Campaign began in June 2011, following complaints to the EKTA Project and NMP from local residents argued that the removal of non-English newspapers was discriminatory.

Newham council subsequently confirmed that it took the that the decision to remove the community language papers in April 2011 because it believes their provision created a barrier to residents learning English and integrating fully into the community.

To challenge this, the campaign launched a petition and following an initial meeting it managed to secure the endorsement of 12 local community groups.

The campaign’s supporters agreed that:

• The decision should be challenged as there had been no consultation around the impact this would have on the community
• The assumption reading language papers created a barrier to learning or speaking English was discriminatory and flawed
• The assumption around accessing language provision at libraries prevents resident from integrating and participating in their community.

It was decided that the best way forward was to launch a petition to capture theses concerns and ensure that residents had a process to challenge the decision.

The aim of the petition is to:

1. Reinstate community-language newspapers in Newham's libraries.
2. Prioritise funding and further resources to provision of English as a Second Language (ESOL).
3. To commit to the continued provision of community-language books and audio books in Newham's libraries.
4. To recognise and celebrate the unique diversity of the London Borough of Newham including recognition of the languages and cultures of its individual communities.

The paper petition can be downloaded from:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/57148540/Community-Newspapers-Petition

Or you can sign online at:

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/save-our-language-papers.html