www.lsnmedia.co.uk/luton/

Are cops so sensative when dealing with non-Muslims?





COPS MUST KEEP THE FAITH


- Zafar Khan, chairman of Luton Council of Faiths


Abdul Malik, chairman of Luton Race Advisory Forum


 
POLICE have been told to take their shoes off and not use sniffer dogs when raiding Muslim homes.

An 18-point guide issued by Bedfordshire Police lists dos and don'ts when dealing with Muslims who are suspected of terrorist or drugs offences.

The guidelines state that 'the Muslim community feels victimised and suspicious of counter terrorist police operations and in the current climate a search at a British Muslim household has the potential to become a critical incident and come under intense scrutiny'.

It then lists 18 points police officers should note.

These include:

• Rapid entry needs to be the last resort and raids into Muslim houses are discouraged for a number of religious dignity reasons.

• Police should seek to avoid looking at unclad Muslim women and allow them an opportunity to dress and cover their heads.

• For reasons of dignity officers should seek to avoid entering occupied bedrooms and bathrooms even before dawn.

• Use of police dogs will be considered serious desecration of the premises and may necessitate extensive cleaning of the house and disposal of household items.

• Advice should be sought before considering the use of cameras and camcorders due to the risk of capturing individuals, especially women, in inappropriate dress.

• Muslim prisoners should be allowed to take additional clothing to the station.

• If people are praying at home officers should stand aside and not disrupt the prayer. They should be allowed the opportunity to finish.

• Officers should not take shoes into the houses, especially in areas that might be kept pure for prayer purposes.

• In the current climate the justification for pre-dawn raids on Muslim houses needs to be clear and transparent.

• Non-Muslims are not allowed to touch holy books, Qurans or religious artefacts without permission. Where possible, Muslim officers in a state of 'Wudhu' (preparation before prayer) should be used for this purpose.

Chairman of Luton Council of Faiths, Zafar Khan, welcomed the guidelines but said the police should deal with all faiths sensitively.

He said: "Guidelines on how to deal and interact with the community in all faiths should be welcomed.

"It's a question of being sensitive and informed and if that makes the policing more effective and more sensitive that has to be a good thing."

Abdul Malik, chairman of Luton Race Advisory Forum, said it had been in discussions with the police about how to raid houses before the London bombing campaign.

He said: "The police need to be sensitive when they are going into the homes of everybody - not just Muslims.

"They should keep respect. Some Hindus and Sikhs have a place or a room devoted to prayer and that should be respected too."

A Bedfordshire Police spokesman said: "The guidelines are regularly issued to all staff as a reminder of the force protocol when entering a Muslim household.

"We take very seriously the culture surrounding all faiths and feel it is important to respect those beliefs, even while carrying out police business. We would like to reassure all communities that any current or perceived tensions, which might be heightened as a result of recent events, will not affect how police deal with Muslims or anyone else."

Don't want to upset the Muslims in Luton, they are very volatile when roused, some even spontaneously explode when angry!

Bedford police are the ones who put in a request for 'dum-dum' bullets, a round the Geneva Convention deemed too horrific for use in war. Now who were they gonna use that on.

No problem with any of that

Mark

I hope they will be as considerate with non-muslim prisoners as well.

Quoted: I hope they will be as considerate with non-muslim prisoners as well.

+1

It's an equality thing, otherwise the majority become the oppressed.

I not sure there is equality in this

They have more rights than we do in our own country according to those Guidelines

I gotta sit on the fence on this one

Taffy

Quoted: The operative word here  is 'should'… It's advice that can be ignored if operational requirements dictate, it's not a  set of mandatory regulatons. ANdy

true but if it is ignored during the heat of battle I think the media feeding frenzy will be worse than the "piss splashed koran" fiasco at GITMO.

Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: The operative word here  is 'should'… It's advice that can be ignored if operational requirements dictate, it's not a  set of mandatory regulatons. ANdy true but if it is ignored during the heat of battle I think the media feeding frenzy will be worse than the "piss splashed koran" fiasco at GITMO. Nope, when the media tried to make a fuss about the 'shoot to kill' policy and the shot Brazilian, the Commisioner basically told them to bugger off and they did… last weeks news now. We are not a 'sensitive' to ctiticism here as the US tends to be. The "Pee Splash' handwringing the US went into was just laughed at over here.  And as for the US Media hysteria over Abu Graib!… ANdy

oh good, maybe there's hope for western civilization.