Building Stable Governments in Post-Ethnic Civil War Societies: The Importance of Community Policing
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Date
2019-01-11
Authors
Meechan, Shawna
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of Oregon
Abstract
States recovering from violent ethnic conflict face many challenges in trying to rebuild. Primary among these challenges is how to best provide for the security of the people. In states that choose democratic regimes, security must be provided by a civilian police force. One major challenge in the process of post-ethnic conflict rebuilding is addressing any conceptions within the community that the police are biased against marginalized groups in society. This is often particularly difficult in post-ethnic conflict states where the police have been associated, fairly or not, with one side of the conflict. In such situations, how do the police gain the confidence of the community so that policing is seen as legitimate and fair?
This dissertation combines the literature on post-ethnic conflict rebuilding with the considerable literature on community policing to argue that implementing community policing may be the solution to this problem. Broadly speaking, community policing embraces the concept that the work of the police is not separate from the community but should be approached as a collaborative partnership between the police and the community they serve. This requires community input and active participation in policing at every stage from problem identification to idea formation and implementation to evaluation and reform. This style of policing builds relationships between the police and the community and works to develop community confidence in the police.
This argument is evaluated through one in-depth study and one initial assessment of states that have attempted to implement a form of community policing after ethnic conflict: Northern Ireland following their ‘Troubles’ and Kenya after their 2007 post-election violence respectively. Two specific conclusions arise from this study. First, the adaptive nature of community policing enables the police to build community confidence through policing practice that is responsive to the needs of the specific communities being served. Second, the symbolism surrounding the police has a strong effect on individuals’ abilities to acknowledge or accept police reform in post-ethnic conflict states.
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Keywords
community policing, Ethnic conflct, Policing