Letter: Only when young people participate can policing normalise
A letter from Ross Hussey:
Once again the headlines scream out 'only one in five police recruits are from the Roman Catholic Community', and again I ask what can be done to resolve this?
We have those who believe a 50/50 recruiting campaign is the answer. If that were to be implemented we would never achieve the number of officers we need to police the province. Clearly there is a reluctance from those in the Roman Catholic community to join the PSNI and there are many reasons for this including intimidation from republican paramilitaries (they haven't gone away you know), fear within the family that their loved one or indeed their own home may become a target, and finally they may just not have an interest in policing.
How many young Roman Catholics join the gards or British police forces? I don't know but has this ever been investigated as a reason why the young RCs do not join the PSNI?
Policing in Northern Ireland is not just a vocation, there is an element of risk that all recruits and serving members face. This has been a fact since the creation of the state. Many brave RC men and women served with distinction in the Royal Ulster Constabulary and the Police Service of Northern Ireland. I salute them all for their courage and for their service.
You cannot conscript people into the police you can only seek volunteers and any attempt to correct an imbalance by amending standard practices will only create a 'them and us' scenario which will destroy the service.
I would encourage any young person to join the police as it is only by participation that normalisation can happen within policing.
Ross Hussey, former MLA and member of the Policing Board