The tragic taser related death of Polish immigrant Robert Dziekanski at Vancouver airport, seems to have unleashed an avalanche of opinion on the state of Canada’s National Police Force, the RCMP.
The long fabled police department, made famous through film and print, has suffered some serious image problems of late, as high profile incidents seem to roll into each other in a frequent rotation. From a growing list of taser incidents, to controversial death in custody cases, through to questions of training and placement of recruits, the force seems to be under the microscope like never before.
There are now at least four separate investigations into the Vancouver Airport death of Mr. Dziekanski, and the call for an independent review board for all police involved deaths has once again been made.
The prospect of the police investigating the police in matters of such high emotion, seem to have less and less proponents with each passing day.
In fact, there are a few that suggest that the time of the RCMP as a national police force may have come and gone, instead suggesting a number of provincial and regional police forces be formed to take their place.
It’s a theory that veteran British Columbia reporter Crawford Killian examined, posting his thoughts on the Tyee website on Monday. Killian pulls no punches in his examination of the Mounties, in the end suggesting that the only recourse is that of dismantling one of Canada’s iconic organizations.
I’m not sure that the nation needs to go as far as that, but the need for reform has never seemed clearer. However, there does seem to be a definite need to review and revise the way that the RCMP is run across the country. There have been far too many controversies surrounding the Force in recent years, as policies and procedures do not seem to be serving the members of the Force or the public as well as they should.
But to banish one of the founding lynch pins of Canadian history seems like a rather drastic step. There surely must be measures that can be taken to gain more accountability, while at the same time preserving one of the longest running images and institutions that Canada has.
Killian’s article is an interesting read and he certainly seems to echo the beliefs of many in British Columbia these days. It remains to be seen if his suggestions can be reconciled with the current mission of the RCMP.
The long fabled police department, made famous through film and print, has suffered some serious image problems of late, as high profile incidents seem to roll into each other in a frequent rotation. From a growing list of taser incidents, to controversial death in custody cases, through to questions of training and placement of recruits, the force seems to be under the microscope like never before.
There are now at least four separate investigations into the Vancouver Airport death of Mr. Dziekanski, and the call for an independent review board for all police involved deaths has once again been made.
The prospect of the police investigating the police in matters of such high emotion, seem to have less and less proponents with each passing day.
In fact, there are a few that suggest that the time of the RCMP as a national police force may have come and gone, instead suggesting a number of provincial and regional police forces be formed to take their place.
It’s a theory that veteran British Columbia reporter Crawford Killian examined, posting his thoughts on the Tyee website on Monday. Killian pulls no punches in his examination of the Mounties, in the end suggesting that the only recourse is that of dismantling one of Canada’s iconic organizations.
I’m not sure that the nation needs to go as far as that, but the need for reform has never seemed clearer. However, there does seem to be a definite need to review and revise the way that the RCMP is run across the country. There have been far too many controversies surrounding the Force in recent years, as policies and procedures do not seem to be serving the members of the Force or the public as well as they should.
But to banish one of the founding lynch pins of Canadian history seems like a rather drastic step. There surely must be measures that can be taken to gain more accountability, while at the same time preserving one of the longest running images and institutions that Canada has.
Killian’s article is an interesting read and he certainly seems to echo the beliefs of many in British Columbia these days. It remains to be seen if his suggestions can be reconciled with the current mission of the RCMP.
But the fact that his ideas have a certain currency in the province and perhaps across the country, should be an indication to the Government and its Police agency, that the national police force is out of step with the views of many of the people that they serve.
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