Review recommends transformation of policing in south Armagh

The closure of a highly fortified police station and a proposal to relocate memorials to fallen officers are among recommendations in a report to transform policing in south Armagh.

Nationalist politicians welcomed the report which followed a detailed review of how the PSNI operate in the area, while the Police Federation expressed concern and called for the safety of officers to be prioritised.

Ulster Unionist MLA Mike Nesbitt said the report needs consideration, adding his party is opposed to any movement of memorials that “suggests disrespect for the sacrifice of those who laid down their lives for the community”.

Crossmaglen and the wider South Armagh area witnessed widespread republican activity during the Troubles and was regarded as one of the most dangerous areas in the region to police.

The 172-page review, published on Tuesday, was sparked by a controversial photo of Northern Ireland’s police chief posing alongside officers with rifles.

Simon Byrne posted the tweet outside Crossmaglen police station in South Armagh on Christmas Day 2019.

Mr Byrne apologised but criticism of the photo led him to announce a review of policing in the South Armagh area.

That review makes wide-ranging recommendations in how the region is policed over the next five years.

These include considering using Irish in messages and signs, “exploring” the relocation of memorials to murdered police officers in stations, and joint rather than parallel policing with the Garda Siochana to enable “hot pursuit between policing jurisdictions”.

Mr Byrne met representatives of the local community in South Armagh on Tuesday morning to brief them on the findings.

He described many of the proposed changes as tactical in how officers patrol and police the community.

“There are wider questions, of course, about policing style contained within the report but our determination now is to learn the lessons from the insight from the public and communities here and build a really good blueprint for the future based on neighbourhood policing teams here,” he said.

The chief constable described Crossmaglen police station, which the report recommends closing, as like a relic from the Cold War.

The report also calls says that G36 assault rifles should no longer be routinely carried in South Armagh.

Mr Byrne said that some of the findings made for “challenging” reading.

“They reflect that we have not made the progress in South Armagh that we have in other areas and that our approach to policing does not currently reflect the needs and priorities of the local community,” the chief constable said in a statement.

“A lot of work is already under way by local officers to make progress against these findings.”

More broadly, the report found that the culture within the PSNI, locally and more broadly, is one of the key problems with policing in South Armagh.

“South Armagh is consistently referred to as a ‘unique’ policing environment that justifies a security-laden policing response. The review suggests that it is not the environment that is unique but the policing model. This model and outlook is limiting progress towards a community-focused policing service,” the report found.

The review found that policing in South Armagh can be seen as “unapproachable and intimidating” and calls “depressingly stark” the contrasting perspectives of the community and police officers on the area.

One section of the report was critical of the lack of engagement with community organisations and elected representatives.

In the future, it recommends that neighbourhood policing be placed “front and centre” in South Armagh, backed by “increased investment” in the area.

The review also recommends exploring relocating police memorials to “an agreed space in the station away from public locations and main thoroughfares”.

While it notes that this is a sensitive issue, the review points out that such memorials are viewed differently by various communities.

“Memorials commemorating the past continue to have a profound impact on the police culture of today.

“This is particularly relevant for South Armagh where the level of police loss was great.

“This review suggests that the station working environment in South Armagh has a negative impact on the mindset of police officers who work there, extending to those who have no lived experience of conflict,” the review says.

Elsewhere, the report notes that hi-vis police uniforms should be routinely worn for visibility and reassurance.

The report noted: “The predominant officer perspective was… risk-averse and demonstrated considerable resistance to the concept of wearing hi-visibility patrol uniform or visible patrolling methods.”

It quotes one local officer as saying: “It’s just the way it has always been in South Armagh.

“(We) don’t see the value.

“The public don’t care – they are more interested in the job you do.

“Bosses think hi-vis is more important than it is.

“There is more to service delivery than what you wear/look like.”

Another constable said: “It is very controversial to be in hi-vis, to go out on foot, even in Newtownhamilton.

“It is very RUC with full tactical patrols down the street hunkering down behind walls.

“Why?”