PSNI should have been 'clear and unambiguous' about accusations of sectarianism in the force says Doug Beattie
Doug Beattie has added his voice to the criticisms of the police top brass over their handling of accusations of sectarianism from a retired officer.
The former UUP leader said that the PSNI should have been “direct”, “clear,” and “unambiguous” about the matter.
The chief constable Jon Boutcher said earlier this month that he does not believe that the officer in question – known publicly only as “Sean” – suffered sectarianism.
But he also went on to stress that Sean is a “thoroughly decent” man.
This has caused Jon Burrows, a former senior officer who is representing scores of retired personnel that dispute Sean’s allegations, to wonder how the chief constable reconciles those two things.
The News Letter has repeatedly pressed the PSNI on that question, but it has declined to elaborate.
Sean made his accusations of anti-Catholic bias in March in a press interview, including the claim that he heard someone say “fenian b******s” while he was working in the Tactical Support Group, and that staff had disparaged the wearing of ash by Catholics at Lent.
Upper Bann MLA Mr Beattie said he believes the charge of sectarianism in the police “doesn’t stand up to scrutiny,” adding: “It is clear that the accusations made by ‘Sean’ were accepted as truth by some media outlets, political commentators and even politicians, before they were examined fully.
"I have no doubt the chief constable has attempted to get to the bottom of these accusations, taking these issues seriously as you would expect.
"However, I do believe that the PSNI should have been direct in what they found and ensured that a clear, unambiguous statement was released to all media outlets laying out the facts.”
He added that “I would also expect our justice minister to have made comment” on the matter too.
There was no response received from the PSNI or Department of Justice at time of writing last night.
Sean’s solicitor Kevin Winters was recently quoted as saying that the sectarianism Sean experienced was “nuanced” rather than “overt”.
He emphasised that “Sean’s narrative hasn't changed” and that he is keeping open the option of legal action against the force over the issue.