The right step

A Special Police Unit is to be set up to deal with incidents that has a religious or communal tinge, it was reported yesterday. This follows the recent tension wrought by attacks on Muslim shops and a mosque in Kurunegala. The President and Prime Minister have taken serious note of these incidents and has ordered the police for speedy action to arrest the situation. It was noted that attempts were being made to spark racial and religious conflagration by defeated political elements to stage a comeback. This was based on the identity of the nationalist organisations and groups which have recently stepped up their incendiary rhetoric targeting minority religions. Yesterday in this space we called on the government to nip this phenomenon in the bud lest it escalates into another Aluthgama. It is matter for gratification that some solid action has been taken by the authorities in this connection. The country has just come out of a long drawn out ethnic war. It certainly can do without a war brought on by religion.

According to the report the unit will be set up under the Law and Order and Southern Development Ministry on the instructions of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe. Special handpicked officers will be selected to man this unit which will be tasked with promptly deploying police personnel in the stations where trouble erupts to quell such incidents and apprehend those responsible. In addition intelligence reports on plans by organised communal and religious groups to attack religious events by using communalism as a tool is to be handed over to the President and the Prime Minister next week. A list of such groups established to fan communal and religious friction too is to be handed over to the President and PM.

While the move to a set up a Special Police Unit to combat ethnic and religious violence is to be commended it should be ensured that it (unit) moves with caution. We say this because there will be Opposition politicians who will make the allegation that the government was using the police to target the majority Sinhalese.The special unit should therefore not plunge into any precipitate action - particularly in the case of Bikkhus, who can be counted on to be in the forefront of any planned incident. There will also be an element of lukewarmness among some of the policemen deployed to deal with incidents with a religious or communal flavour.

There no doubt will be misgivings among some if this whole exercise will be effective. One recalls the incidents where Muslim shops and businesses came under attack by stone throwing mobs led by some Bikkhus. On that occasion the police were mere bystanders, reluctant to take action against the mob. The presence of the Buddhist clergy may well have been a disincentive for the police to act although it was also known that the attacks had the blessings of the powers that be. This was the same scenario that was witnessed even during the Black July mayhem. Will there be a replay of the same given that almost all men in the police service belong to the majority community, though it must be said they are professionals first and foremost.

Hence, the officers for this special unit should be carefully selected to ensure an even handed implementation of the law. In a way one wonders if a special unit of this nature is needed at all if the police carry out its duties independently. It was Law and Order Minister Sagala Ratnayaka's complaint that foot dragging by the police had resulted in the wrong picture going to the public, referring to two recent incidents where damage caused to two Muslim businesses had nothing to do with religion but the result of accidents and theft which however went down as communal attacks due to the delay by the police to submit their reports.

The police as a whole are also guilty of procrastination in moving in certain cases, particularly where politicians are involved and wait for ‘instructions from the top'. This is unbecoming conduct of police officers and a slur on the Khaki uniform. True, Sri Lanka's political culture is unique and politicians are treated as sacred cows. But the law has to be applied equally, however hackneyed this may sound, if the police are to regain the public confidence which had suffered over the years. The police need not to be told their job and should get about their duties without anybody's prompting. It also need not disclose its inner workings. We say this because today we read of ‘special teams’ being deployed to probe a particular crime or apprehend a particular suspect, which the public are not interested in. How the police get about its business or how many teams deployed to arrest suspects is of no concern to the public. The police need not have to be given a push by the President, Prime Minister or the IGP to go after criminals as is the case today. It should strive to erase this negative impression from the minds of the public.