Officers have attitude problems: Police chief

Dicky Christanto ,  The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Thu, 07/02/2009 1:15 PM  |  Headlines

The National Police chief Gen. Bambang Hendarso Danuri on Wednesday admitted that his officers had attitude problems, such as displaying arrogance while handling cases.

He was speaking before some 5,000 officers attending a ceremony to commemorate the National Police's 63rd anniversary at its headquarters in South Jakarta.

"I have noticed that many people have reported police arrogance in their handling of cases and dealings with people on a day-to-day basis," Bambang told journalists on the sidelines of the event on Wednesday.

"I realize this has been a big issue for us," he said.

The National Police used to be part of the Indonesian Armed Forces (ABRI), but became independent in 1999 following its reform agenda.

Bambang said a set of rules had been deliberated to prevent police officers from using unnecessary repressive force.

Among the new rules were Police Academy policies that would enable police cadets to develop their empathy when dealing with people.

"We need to nurture the need to be genuine in our officers' hearts, from a student level, so that hopefully they will be *better qualified to deal with people* later on," Bambang said.

"And I must admit, this is the hardest part."

"Reports of people being beaten by police during questioning sessions are too numerous to mention," Bambang said.

"Let alone the fact police have often been accused of using repressive approaches when dealing with demonstrations.

"Many people have suffered serious injuries as a result of police violence," he said.

Almost 250 police officers have been punished for violating regulations and misusing their authority in the past year, including several who were discharged.

"The figure shows that the police means business in getting more discipline into the force," Bambang said.

Separately, National Police Commission member Novel Ali said he often received reports of police officers being punished for minor violations.

"Apparently no one is interested in making a story out of it," he said.

"This is why stories on officers getting punished are rarely heard."

Commenting on the issue, Bambang Widodo Umar, a police observer from the University of Indonesia said police were not only having difficultly with attitudes but also with neutrality.

"Neutrality not only refers to the general elections but also police bias in their handling of day-to-day cases," he said.

"We often hear that police officers are more likely to defend somebody with power and wealth than poor people.

"Thus, eradicating this kind of mentality should also become the police leadership's concern."

Besides the need to improve police attitudes, the establishment of a monitoring body to oversee the police is also much needed, he said.

"The monitoring body *would need to be* different to the tooth-less National Police Commission, which is not allowed to conduct investigations of alleged violations involving police officers," the observer said.

"This new monitoring body should be able to initiate investigations of any allegations involving police officers."

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