4 November 1999 Edition
Police Federation in anti Patten campaign
Sinn Féin spokesperson on policing, Bairbre de Brún, has described attempts to involve schools in an anti-Patten campaign by the Police Federation as ``yet another attempt to block the process of change''.
``What is most worrying about this is that the RUC are using their access to schools to prevent the emergence of a new policing service. Under the guise of so called `Police Education Programme' the RUC are cynically using parents concerns to bolster support for their force and its record of human rights abuse,'' said de Brún.
Commenting on a letter sent by Les Rodgers of the Police Federation, de Brún said it was ``outrageous'' to suggest that traffic safety and other education programmes would suffer without the involement of the RUC. ``It is precisely because of their abuse of such access to schools that parents consistently express concern over their presence to our party,'' she said.
Sinn Féin is urging parents and schools to oppose this campaign, said the Assembly member.
``What is most worrying about this is that the RUC are using their access to schools to prevent the emergence of a new policing service. Under the guise of so called `Police Education Programme' the RUC are cynically using parents concerns to bolster support for their force and its record of human rights abuse,'' said de Brún.
Commenting on a letter sent by Les Rodgers of the Police Federation, de Brún said it was ``outrageous'' to suggest that traffic safety and other education programmes would suffer without the involement of the RUC. ``It is precisely because of their abuse of such access to schools that parents consistently express concern over their presence to our party,'' she said.
Sinn Féin is urging parents and schools to oppose this campaign, said the Assembly member.