Commission Urges Major Changes to Structure of N. Ireland Police Force

Northern Ireland’s controversial police force, the Royal Ulster Constabulary, should be slashed in size and radically overhauled, with a new name, new oath and new recruits, according to an independent report to be issued today.

The potentially explosive report titled “A New Beginning” contains about 200 recommendations for reforming the predominantly Protestant police force and says the changes should be overseen by an international commissioner--someone not a party to Northern Ireland’s decades-old sectarian conflict.

The 15-month review of the police force was set up under the now-faltering 1998 Good Friday peace agreement. It was conducted by an independent commission led by Chris Patten, the last British governor of Hong Kong and a former Conservative Cabinet minister.

Both Sides Likely to Object to Proposals

The future of the RUC, as the police force is known, is among the contentious issues still to be resolved in the beleaguered peace process. The proposed reforms are likely to draw fire from both pro-British Protestants and Roman Catholic nationalists.

Hard-line Protestant unionists view the RUC as a bulwark against terrorism committed by the Irish Republican Army, or IRA, and its offshoots. The unionists do not want to tamper with a force that they believe has served them well.

Catholic nationalists see the RUC as part of an occupation force that has abused their communities, and they may conclude that the report does not go far enough toward guaranteeing their rights. Sinn Fein, the political wing of the IRA, had called for disbanding of the police force.

The report was to be officially unveiled this morning, but large sections of it were leaked to the media Wednesday.

It reportedly recommends:

* Reducing the number of police officers from 13,000 to about 7,500 and phasing out a 3,000-member reserve force.

* Creating a new civilian agency to take charge of recruitment and seek out Catholic officers to redress the imbalance in a force that is still 92% Protestant in a province that is 40% Catholic.

* Requiring police officers to declare any affiliation they might have with political parties and associations.

* Increasing cooperation with Ireland’s Garda police force, particularly on cross-border issues such as drug trafficking.

But it is some of the more symbolic changes that will anger Protestants. The commission reportedly calls for the force’s name to be changed to the Northern Ireland Police Service, dropping the reference to British royalty.

It also recommends that a new oath of office be drafted, replacing the current one in which officers swear allegiance to the queen, and that the crown be removed from the RUC’s crest. The British flag would not fly over police stations and headquarters, as it does not in Scotland.

Patten delivered a copy of the report to RUC Chief Constable Ronnie Flanagan, who emerged from the briefing looking grim.

“This report clearly marks a milestone not only for policing but perhaps for the development of society,” Flanagan later told the BBC. “In this respect, it deserves to be considered coolly, rationally and professionally, and that’s what we’ll be doing over the next 24 hours.”

The Northern Ireland Police Federation, which represents the RUC rank and file officers, warned of a backlash against the proposals and the implicit criticism of the force. More than 300 RUC officers died in the 30-year conflict between Protestants and Catholics over whether Northern Ireland should remain a part of Britain or join with the Irish Republic.

Report Being Issued at Crucial Juncture

The report comes at a critical time in Northern Ireland, as U.S. mediator George J. Mitchell attempts to referee a review of the entire peace process and salvage the April 1998 accord, which sought to demilitarize the province and set up a local power-sharing government.

British Prime Minister Tony Blair urged political leaders to see the full report before reacting, but a few could not resist.

William Ross, an Ulster Unionist Party member of the British Parliament, said the recommendations were an “insult to the people of Northern Ireland.” He said the report was “carried through at the request of the terrorists” and that more Catholics did not belong to the force because they were threatened and intimidated by groups like the IRA.

Alex Maskey, Sinn Fein’s whip in the Northern Ireland Assembly, said the nationalist community had long been pressing for reform and would examine the report closely to see if it met their demands.