‘I’d be remiss if I said it didn’t exist,’ says Chief Pat Roche, after previously denying problem
CBC News: After a year of avoidance and outright denial, the chief of the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary has publicly acknowledged systemic racism exists within the force.
Chief Pat Roche has in the past said he didn’t believe the force has a problem, but during the announcement of a new Indigenous advisory committee Tuesday, he told reporters “education” had changed his position. “I’d be remiss if I said it didn’t exist. It’s existed in our society, we are part of our society, so therefore by definition it is a part of our organization,” Roche said.
Last July, a working group with St. John’s urban Indigenous coalition First Voice released the first draft of a report that argued for the installation of a civilian-led police oversight board independent of the RNC, RCMP and Department of Justice.
The group’s report followed shortly after several sexual assault allegations were made against the RNC and also found a “gaping hole” in police accountability within the province along with a lack of public trust and confidence in the police.
Two days later, Roche said there isn’t systemic racism in the police force. “I don’t believe there is and I’ll leave it at that,” Roche said at the time.
But on Tuesday, Roche said the RNC is taking steps to learn from First Voice, listening to their lived experiences and committing to training and educating its members from the top down, including Roche himself. “You have to start from the top and continue until everyone is educated in what the issues are, what people’s concerns are and how we address those concerns and how do we become better at what we’re doing,” he said.
It’s the first time Roche has pesronally commented on the matter publicly. In October, First Voice released its final report on police reform in Newfoundland and Labrador. Weeks later, the RNC released a statement declaring the police force recognized systemic racism within its ranks, but Roche declined an interview request.
Not quite an oversight board
The new Indigenous advisory committee still falls short of the civilian-led police oversight board First Voice called for in its report. Roche wouldn’t say Tuesday if he supports that call.
First Voice’s program director, Justin Campbell, said the committee does provide a new forum for Indigenous voices to be heard but there must be further-reaching change to create a police force that has the trust of the whole community it serves. “An advisory committee is no substitute for a civilian-led police oversight board — one that is empowered by law to provide comprehensive, high-level policy direction to police,” he said.
Hogan said Tuesday the provincial government is looking into the idea of an oversight committee but it isn’t an easy thing to implement.
“We have a lot of work to do within the Department of Justice and Public Safety, and I’ve always said we need to consult with numerous groups,” he said. “We need to talk to the RNC. We need to talk to their members, that group, the chief, the deputy chief to see how that would look.” Roche said there hasn’t been a discussion with the government yet.
In the meantime, the new committee will make recommendations on how to improve the relationship between the RNC and Indigenous communities while providing guidance on how to advance truth and reconciliation with Indigenous peoples in ways that are consistent with the recommendations of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls.
Some of the immediate objectives include increasing cultural awareness and sensitivity of RNC officers, promoting recruitment of Indigenous members as RNC officers and removing systemic barriers to the fair and equal treatment of members of Indigenous communities within police services.
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“The establishment of the Indigenous advisory committee formalizes the process that we’ve built together. It also expands that process to make it more fully inclusive of all Indigenous groups and organizations in the province,” he said. “We know that some members of Indigenous communities may be skeptical of today’s announcement. First Voice understands your skepticism but we assure you that our participation depends on this committee being fully transparent and accountable to Indigenous people.”
The committee’s terms of reference will be shared publicly. The committee plans to meet regularly and report on its progress semi-annually.
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With files from Mark Quinn