Memoranda submitted by Disabled Police
Officers' Association Northern Ireland
I am sorry that this submission has passed the
deadline of 31 December due to office closing over the Christmas
period your letter was not opened until 4 January. I would like
to have had more time to compile this reply, I notice that the
press notice was issued on 4 November; I must have missed the
announcement somehow?
I am slightly puzzled about one thing however, is
this inquiry running simultaneously with the programme announced
by the Secretary of State in May or collectively with his initiative?
Perhaps you could let me know.
On the following pages I will outline this Association
and the work that it does for its members. We are a unique organisation
as we are the only organisation that represents the needs of individual
police and ex-police officers and their families who have been
injured and traumatised by the "Troubles".
I do not know whether or not the full submission
will be read or if anyone will take on board or even understand
what we at the DPOA are trying to do. I look forward to hearing
back from the committee in the near future.
DISABLED
POLICE OFFICERS
ASSOCIATION NI
Established May 1983
Membership criteria
Members must have received Serious Permanent
Injuries while carrying out policing duties.
Membership data
Current membership 198/550 includes spouses,
carers and dependent children. 80% of members injured as a direct
result of Terrorism both Republican and Loyalist
Injuries range from:
— Double/single amputees.
— Loss/impaired vision including loss
of one or both eyes.
— Severe mental breakdown.
Services provided or organised by the Association
— Psychological/Trauma management.
— Training and education.
— Members visiting service.
Extract from Survey carried out August/September
2004
SECTION FIVE—PEACE
AND RECONCILLIATION
| Disagree | Agree
|
| Would you support a Truth and Reconciliation Commission?
| 70% | 30% |
| Would you agree to an Amnesty for perpetrators of the troubles?
| 98% | 2% |
| Do you see the full implementation of Good Friday Agreement as asolution?
| 87% | 13% |
| If you voted in favour of Good Friday Agreement would you still do?[1]
| 23% | 7% |
| Do you believe the Government is doing enough for victims?
| 93% | 7% |
| | |
COMMENTS MADE
BY INDIVIDUALS
"A truth commission would be a witch hunt set up to appease
Nationalists"
"The only people who would be asked to tell the truth
would be the Government and the Security Forces"
"The release of the prisoners was tantamount to an Amnesty".
The majority of the members did not vote to accept the agreement
in the first place.
"The recommendations implemented in the agreement where
all in favour of one community"
"The Disbandment of the RUC, the prisoners release, Sinn
Fein in government, and still no decommissioning"
"50/50 recruitment does not encourage young Catholics
to join the PSNI, but hinders young Protestants whose ambition
was to become a police officer".
Victims of the Security Forces have been treated deplorably,
first the hurt and the pain of losing and later the tarnishing
of the good name of the RUC.
To many this appeared to be a "hatchet job" by
Chris Patton, a lot of people also believed rightly or wrongly
that the George Cross was awarded as a sweetener to soften the
blow that Patton was to inflict.
At first the members out of loyalty to the force that they
had risked their lives in the service of, resisted the changes
to the police service, some have came to accept the change as
inevitable and now support the officers of the PSNI and the governance
of the Chief Constable who has a very difficult job to perform.
The Government, however, has done nothing to support our
victims.
On recommendation from Patten, John Steel was commissioned
to carry out a consultation with the widows of murdered police
officers and officers injured in the Troubles.
On paper this looked to be a genuine effort to assist those
who suffered emotionally and financially through their service
in the RUC. This fund known as the Northern Ireland Police Fund
was set up but turned out to be a farce.
Within one year of operating the Chief Executive and the
Senior Assessment Officer were arrested, some 13 months later
the investigation into the case is still on going, our members
who were clients of the fund have never been told what happened,
nor have the Directors of the Association who represent the disabled
clients.
Having appointed their third Chief Executive in as many years,
a Civil Servant with no experience of working with victims or
the disabled, the fund is underachieving, it is not operating
as per the guidelines recommended by Steele in his original report,
nor has it started to implement the recommendations made by Steele
in his review issued in October 2004.
Means testing was introduced in the second year of the fund;
many officers felt that they were "begging for charity."
Officers confined to wheelchairs and blind, with no family
support are expected to obtain quotes for work before they can
be considered.
Recently a man who lost both eyes at age 20 and who lives
alone contacted the fund through the DPOA and assistance was required
for among other things Dental Re-construction as he had suffered
the force of the blast which killed two of his colleagues 20 years
previous, injuries which left him suffering pain in his face ever
since.
An employee at the fund sourced a Dental Surgeon who could
carry out the work and an appointment was made for him. His elderly
mother took him to visit the dentist. He had to pay £200
consultancy fees, and was given a cost for the work. His application
to the Fund has been set back until he obtains two additional
quotes.
This man cannot read the yellow pages, nor can he afford
the consultancy fees of £200 that he has to pay "upfront".
Assistance for a cleaning lady was also turned down.
This fund has no set criteria for grants, has published no
Annual Accounts or Annual Report. Everything is kept under wraps
and recently one member was told after being denied a grant. "You
can appeal" he asked what if it was rejected? He was then
told that he would have no redress, as it was a private fund.
How can this be so when it was a government initiative funded
by the NIO?
The DPOA is for some the only means by which they can receive
help and advice with everything from pension queries to referrals
for Trauma Therapy.
We have two staff and no government funding, with the exception
of 80% of the salaries funded by the police fund, with no guarantee
of continuity.
We have to generate our own income, which entails hours and
hours of additional work for the staff, as well as devoting the
time needed to our members. Yet the Government have done nothing
to assist us.
Members of the Police Family feel totally betrayed by this
government. How can our members who were cut down, many in the
prime of their lives, be expected to look forward and consider
Peace and Reconciliation when they are being treated so shabbily
by a government who does not give recognition to the sacrifices
that the men and women of the RUC made and also to that of their
families who bore the wrath of "both" communities in
this province?
The members of the policing family realise that for many
details of the circumstances in which they lost family, friends
and colleagues or who were permanently maimed will never be known.
Many of the widows and parents are pleased with the PSNI
response to the Police Federations' call to re-examine the unsolved
murders, others ask the question what will it achieve, under the
Good Friday Agreement those brought to justice will serve only
a minimum sentence and will be soon be free to join their families
again.
THE NEW
INQUIRY
We have over the past year looked at ways at which we can
encourage our members to move on and look to the future.
The following is a list of issues that need to be addressed
by us with the support of government:
Exclusion
The current security situation does nothing to reassure our
members of the safety of themselves or their families. This is
borne out by the security breaches in Castlereagh, Stormont and
the Royal Victoria Hospital and indeed the Northern Ireland Police
fund.
Severing and ex-members of the police are restricted to where
they can live, often ostracised by the other perceived communities,
that is republican and loyalist in the province.
Trust
Children who for some many years had to lie about their parents'
professions are still today afraid to disclose this information
especially in higher level education.
Former and serving police officers must be vigilant about
home security, tradesmen that they use, hospitals that they attend,
even places of entertainment for fear of evidence-gathering for
future use.
Hardship
When addressing the needs of the widows and injured officers
within the Patton Report, adequate provision was made for the
pre-1982 widows, and indeed additional funds were awarded to them.
This money was deducted from the allowance made to the Police
Fund. Other organisations also received funding from the Fund,
that is the RUC Benevolent Fund, The Retired Police Officers Association
and the GC Parents Association. While I wholeheartedly support
these excellent organisations, the funding of these diluted the
funds made available to the disabled.
One category, which Patton's Report seems to have overlooked,
is that of the Reserve and P/T Reserve. Any member of the Reserve
who was injured pre-1988 and retired on medical grounds was not
entitled to a Police Pension.
Also any member who was injured whilst off duty was not entitled
to an lnjury on Duty Pension, even though they were targeted because
they were members of RUC. Many received injuries so severe that
they were unable to continue with their normal employment.
Those who were injured off duty would not be entitled to
Industrial Injuries Benefit or to assistance from the Police Dependants
Trust, who assist only those who are injured carrying out policing
duties.
This has contributed to great hardship for many, to ask for
help from the Police Fund is demeaning as it is now means tested
and intrusive, and members have in the past had photographs taken
in their homes by Fund staff to prove that the work was carried
out, when the fund could not find the invoices submitted by the
disabled officer.
If the government addressed the issue of the widows surely
it could now address the issue of the Reserve.
Also those who lives were irrevocably changed at an early
age, who had only several years service and for whom compensation
has long since dissipated, many of these now survive on meagre
pensions due to that short service.
We strongly agree that there should be a form of means testing,
it should be based on length of service, rank and pension and
retirement packages.
Why should an officer who has earned 25-30 year's salary,
retired with a wholesome pension and severance package, who applies
for a retrospective Injury on Duty Pension and applies to the
Police Fund, receive that same assistance as someone living on
the breadline?
Of course there should be a form of financial assessment,
but it should be carried out in such a way that proud people don't
feel that they are begging.
If government addressed hardship it would give the victims
encouragement and would also be a form of recognition for their
sacrifices.
RECOGNITION
There are two issues around this very sensitive area.
1. Recognition by the government of the integrity, devotion
to duty, and the sacrifices made by the members of the RUC and
their families.
2. Recognition by the people who they served.
Government could address the first issue by reviewing the
assistance provided to the disabled. This would include a skills
and managerial audit of the Police Fund and the pledge to assist
and support the most disabled for the future.
Also many believe a medal could have been presented to those
who had been injured, a form of recognition that could be worn
with pride.
These two suggestions would go a long way to easing the physical
and psychological pain suffered by our victims.
In as far as recognition by the communities, this will prove
to be a greater challenge and one we at the DPOA have already
began to address.
EXTERNAL PARTNERSHIPS/PROJECTS
INCLUDING PEACE
AND RECONCILIATION
One Small Step
This organisation aims to bring together victims from all
communities to tell their stories and to listen to the stories
of others. At a conference held in May Street Presbyterian Church
on 19 May Mr Sean Hughes told his moving story to an assembly
of invited guests. Other stories told on the evening were that
of Michael McGoldrick, murdered in Lurgan by loyalists, a brother
of a young man shot dead by the army many years ago, Alan McBride,
whose wife died in the Shankill Bomb. We hope to continue the
connection with this group in the future.
Gaslight Productions
This film company based in the Bogside have been working
on a programme known as "Epilogues" the purpose of this
project is to compile a DVD of victims and their stories, encompassing
every community and circumstance. Interviews with victims and
perpetrators were filmed for what would hopefully be a tool used
in Schools and Communities to illustrate the suffering experienced
by all "victims". Three disabled members of the DPOA
contributed to this enterprise. This pilot for the programme was
launched in October 2004.
Mint Productions
This company were researching the effects on policing of
the UWC strike, unable to source any information through the PSNI
we were able to provide information and arrange a former Chief
Superintendent to be interviewed.
Towards Healing and Understanding
The Secretary (a disabled ex-police woman) and I attended
a three-day residential entitled "After the fighting stops".
Among the 90+ delegates were representatives from almost every
community in our province and the Republic, these included former
loyalist and republican prisoners, British Army representatives,
serving PSNI officers, Community groups, and also representatives
from Columbia, Palestine, South Africa and Native American Indians
from the USA. It was very challenging but we believe a worthy
exercise.
Our group comprised the widow of a police officer who eventually
died as a result of his injuries, the wife of a ex-police officer
severely injured in 1981, the wife of a serving police officer,
a former policewoman who is confined to a wheelchair (injured
during PEACE). I also attended as the daughter of a disabled officer
and sister of a serving officer and someone who has lost many
friends to the trouble.
We met with women from the Republic and from Londonderry
and others who had been affected by the troubles. The dynamic
of the group was Catholics, Protestants, Police families and Victims
of Terrorism.
So successful was this project that we hope to follow on
in February with another residential.
To date we had 19 attendances at cross community projects.
This number may be comparatively small to onlookers but it is
a major achievement for our organisation. We hope that as the
work continues that more and more of our members will participate.
However for some this will never be possible until they have reconciled
themselves to what happened to them and this will take time, therapy
and financial aid.
My job is to source opportunities for serving and ex-police
officers within our membership to talk about themselves, to tell
their stories to other communities, to show the person that many
people in working class areas do not recognise behind the uniform,
and for our members to listen to others who have suffered and
who like them want an end to the violence.
CONCLUSION
Immediate ways to help our victims move on
— Additional financial aid to those who were traumatised
and injured in the troubles.
— Recognition of those who suffered financially
by having their careers cut short.
— The Northern Ireland Police Fund to be replaced
or managed professionally by qualified staff.
— Funding made available for medical and psychological
treatment without means testing.
— Presentation of a medal in recognition of their
service to the Community.
— Government Support to this and other police support
associations, therefore freeing up valuable time for the staff
to help the members and to work more in the community rather than
be tied to a desk completing endless funding applications, doing
never-ending returns to produce statistics and spending evenings
and weekends manning stalls to sell memorabilia to raise funds.
By providing this support we will continue to endeavour to
meet with other communities, hoping that one day we will try to
reach some form of mutual understanding. We believe that story
telling and not a truth commission is a way for all victims to
have their say, carried out without fear of recrimination or retribution.
However this will apply only to those who truly wish to move on
and not keep looking back.
6 January 2005
1
70% did not vote in favour of the Good Friday Agreement. Back
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