DOCSLIB.ORG

GODIAC – Good Practice for Dialogue and Communication As Strategic Principles for Policing Political Manifestations in Europe

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
GODIAC – Good Practice for Dialogue and Communication As Strategic Principles for Policing Political Manifestations in Europe Recommendations for policing political manifestations in Europe GODIAC – Good practice for dialogue and communication as strategic principles for policing political manifestations in Europe With the fi nancial support from the Prevention of and Fight against Crime Programme of the European Union European Commission-Directorate- General Home Affairs. HOME/2009/ISEC/AG/182 The Booklet 2 The Booklet 3 Preface This booklet on recommendations for policing polit- The main target group for the booklet is police ical manifestations in Europe forms part of the ‘Good commanders, researchers and trainers that come in practice for dialogue and communication as strategic to contact with and police political manifestations. principles for policing political manifestations in Europe’ The project co-ordinator was the Swedish National (GODIAC) project. The booklet is one of four docu- Police Board. There were twenty partner organisa- ments produced by the GODIAC project. The other tions in twelve European countries. These consisted documents include a handbook on the the user-fo- of twelve police organisations and eight research/edu- cused peer-review evaluation method, a researcher cational organisations. anthology and ten individual fi eld study reports. The project ran between 1st August 2010 until 31st The purpose of the project was to identify and July 2013 with grateful fi nancial support provided by spread good practice in relation to dialogue and com- the Prevention and Fight against Crime Programme munication as strategic principles in managing and of the European Commission-Directorate-General preventing public disorder at political manifestations Home Affairs and the Swedish National Police Board. in order to uphold fundamental human rights and Our aim and aspiration is that the material pro- to increase public safety at these events in general. duced by the project will serve as a contribution The overall idea of the project has been to integrate towards a European approach on how to police operative police work, research and training within crowds and political manifestations through effective the fi eld and to build international and institutional dialogue and communication. networks. Stockholm in May 2013 Lena Tysk Christian Wessman Deputy Head of Department for Police Affairs Police Superintendent Chairman of the GODIAC project Manager of the GODIAC project Swedish National Police Board Swedish National Police Board The Booklet 4 Table of content Preface ............................................................................................3 The GODIAC Project ......................................................................5 Dialogue and communication ...........................................................5 Methodological approach ............................................................6 The peer review method ...................................................................6 The current report .........................................................................8 The fi eld studies ............................................................................9 1. Castor Transport, Wendland .........................................................9 2. NATO Summit, Lisbon .................................................................11 3. The WKR Ball, Vienna ................................................................. 14 4. The TUC March, London ............................................................. 16 5. Catalonian National Day, Barcelona ............................................ 19 6. Hungarian National Day, Budapest..............................................22 7. European Counter Jihad Meeting, Aarhus ...................................24 8. Rainbow Pride March, Bratislava ................................................. 26 9. Global Counter Jihad Meeting, Stockholm ..................................29 10. Cairde Na hÉireann parade, Liverpool ....................................... 32 Recommendations ......................................................................36 Knowledge and education .............................................................36 Communication.............................................................................. 37 Dialogue Unit .................................................................................40 Facilitation ...................................................................................... 41 Differentiation ................................................................................42 Strategy and tactics ........................................................................44 Command and control ....................................................................44 Planning and organising .................................................................45 References ....................................................................................46 Appendix......................................................................................47 Project management and partner organisation ...............................47 The Booklet 5 The GODIAC Project This report summarises the fi eld study results of the Dialogue and communication project ’Good practice for dialogue and communica- GODIAC’s focus on dialogue and communication tion as strategic principles for policing political man- drew upon recent, partly parallel, partly interrelated, ifestations in Europe’ (GODIAC).1 The overall idea developments in both public order research and mod- was to integrate operative police work, research and ern approaches to public order policing. It is vastly training within the fi eld and to build international recognised that crowd events are encounters between and institutional networks, ensuring and recognising groups, and the way in which the participating groups the responsibilities of the organisers. interact with one another substantially infl uences The purpose of the GODIAC project was to con- the outcome. Taking cognisance of this, a number of tribute to the development of a European approach police forces began to incorporate communication to policing political manifestations. into their strategic approach for public order events The strategic objectives of the GODIAC project and, accordingly, have developed tactics implement- were: ing this strategy. This may involve the deployment of Analyse and disseminate good practices of specifi c dialogue units up through communication applying research-based principles focusing on training of entire riot police units. The aim of the communication and dialogue as strategic prin- project was to collect such approaches in different ciples for de-escalation and prevention of public European countries and to help work towards a com- order disturbances at political manifestations in mon – communication-based – approach to public Europe. order policing of major events. Increase knowledge on the social identities of demonstrators and activists, their motivation, mobility and strategies. Stimulate the use of research-based knowledge in policing political manifestations. Promote evaluation of policing major events at a European level. Stimulate lessons to be learnt, disseminated and used nationally and internationally. Develop institutional co-operation and net- works at a European level between practitioners, researchers and trainers. Facilitate collaboration between law enforcement agencies and research networks. 1 This publication refl ects the views only of the fi eld study group, and the European Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the informa- tion contained therein. The Booklet 6 Methodological approach Examples of good practice were identifi ed through group then developed an observation and interview studies around political manifestations and demon- plan, observed the event and conducted interviews strations in nine countries and ten different locations with participants, offi cers and other interested parties between November 2010 and October 2012 in (table 2). Wendland, Lisbon, Vienna, London, Barcelona, Further information regarding the projects experi- Budapest, Aarhus, Bratislava, Stockholm and ences on conducting fi eld studies can be found in the Liverpool (table 1). For each observation, a fi eld study fi eld study handbook. team was composed from a pool of police command- ers, dialogue police offi cers, researchers, trainers Overview of the GODIAC fi eld studies and legal referents from the different partner partner Germany CASTOR 6-7 November 2010 organisations. The observers had been trained in Transport the user-focused peer-review evaluation method that Wendland explicitly draws on the involvement of intended users Portugal NATO summit 19-21 November 2010 Lisbon (below). Austria The WKR Ball 30 January 2011 Vienna UK TUC March for 26 March 2011 The peer review method the Alternative The data was collected using the peer review London approach introduced by Adang and Brown (2008). Spain Catalonian 11 September 2011 National Day Peer reviews comprise observations in real time and Barcelona a focus on the handling of events. A main feature Hungary National Day 23 October 2011 of this approach is to bring together public order Budapest researchers and police practitioners in the observa- Denmark European Counter 31 March 2012 tion of an event and – in doing so – to instigate mutu- Jihad meeting Aarhus al learning. The ‘peer aspect’ refers to fact that it is Slovakia Dúhový pochod 9 June 2012 carried out in the sense of
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Course Catalog
    UNITED STATES COAST GUARD ACADEMY NEW LONDON, CONNECTICUT CATALOG OF COURSES 2014-2015 Catalog of Courses 5 201 - UNITED STATES COAST GUARD ACADEMY 2014 NEW LONDON, CT OURSES C ALOG OF AT C U. S. Coast Guard Academy Reservation of Rights his Catalog primarily reflects information regarding the Cadet Under- Tgraduate Program for the Class of 2017. The statements set forth in this catalog are for informational purposes only and may not be construed as the basis of a contract between a cadet and the U.S. Coast Guard Academy. Any conflict between this catalog and the applica- ble statutes or regulations shall be resolved by reference to language of the statute or regulation only. The Academy reserves the right to change programs of study, academic requirements, course offerings, regulations, teaching staff, Critical Dates Cal- endar, and other matters described in the catalog without prior notice, in accor- dance with established procedures. The U.S. Coast Guard Academy endeavors to maintain the accuracy of all information provided in this catalog. However, it is the responsibility of the cadets to be aware of the current regulations, cur- riculum, and graduation requirements for their class and chosen major. Human Relations Statement The United States Coast Guard Academy is an equal opportunity employer guided by applicable Federal laws and regulations. The Academy is committed to the principles of fair treatment and equal opportunity. We recruit, educate, train and employ personnel based on merit so that each individual can excel and reach his or her maximum potential without regard to gender, race, color, religion, national origin, reprisal, sexual orientation and/or where applicable, age (over 40) and/or physical or mental disability.
    [Show full text]
  • Police Patrol Car, the William Donald Piercy
    Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology Volume 45 | Issue 6 Article 19 1955 Police Patrol Car, The William Donald Piercy Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/jclc Part of the Criminal Law Commons, Criminology Commons, and the Criminology and Criminal Justice Commons Recommended Citation William Donald Piercy, Police Patrol Car, The, 45 J. Crim. L. Criminology & Police Sci. 748 (1954-1955) This Criminology is brought to you for free and open access by Northwestern University School of Law Scholarly Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology by an authorized editor of Northwestern University School of Law Scholarly Commons. THE POLICE PATROL CAR WILLIAM DONALD PIERCY The author is a graduate of the School of Criminology of the University of California and is now enrolled as a law student at Hastings College of Law. Prior to his enroll- ment in the University of California, Mr. Piercy served two tours of duty with the United States Air Force. His article was prepared as a special project during his senior year in the School of Criminology and presents an interesting and valuable analysis of the police patrol car.-EDrroR The duties of the motorized patrolman, like the foot patrolman, are multifarious. They range from the pursuit and apprehension of criminals to the rendering of first- aid to the injured. To achieve maximum effectiveness, the car used by the motor patrolman must facilitate each of his many activities. Perfect suitability to every task may not be possible, but carefully made compromises will ensure that the patrolman's vehicle is an asset to him in every situation.
    [Show full text]
  • UNITED NATIONS COMMITTEE AGAINST TORTURE 59 Session 7 November to 7 December 2016 PARTNERSHIP for OPEN SOCIETY INITIATIVE's J
    UNITED NATIONS COMMITTEE AGAINST TORTURE 59th Session 7 November to 7 December 2016 PARTNERSHIP FOR OPEN SOCIETY INITIATIVE’S JOINT SUBMISSION TO THE COMMITTEE AGAINST TORTURE ON THE FOURTH PERIODIC REPORT OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA REGARDING THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE CONVENTION AGAINST TORTURE AND OTHER CRUEL, INHUMAN OR DEGRADING TREATMENT OF PUNISHMENT October 17, 2016, Yerevan, Armenia Hereby, the Partnership for Open Society Initiative,1 representing more than 60 civil society organizations, presents a joint submission prepared by the following civil society organizations, public monitoring groups, human rights lawyers and attorneys: 1. Coalition to Stop Violence Against Women; 2. Center for Rights Development NGO; 3. Committee to Protect Freedom of Expression; 4. Foundation Against the Violation of Law NGO; 5. Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly–Vanadzor; 6. Helsinki Committee of Armenia Human Rights Defender NGO; 7. Journalists' Club Asparez; 8. Open Society Foundations – Armenia; 9. Protection of Rights without Borders NGO; 10. Rule of Law Human Rights NGO; 11. Group of Public Monitors Implementing Supervision over the Criminal-Executive Institutions and Bodies of the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Armenia; 12. Public Monitoring Group at the Detention Facilities of the Police of the Republic of Armenia; 13. Davit Khachaturyan, Justice Group, Open Society-Foundations-Armenia, Expert, Ph.D; 14. Inessa Petrosyan, Attorney; 15. Tigran Hayrapetyan, Attorney; 16. Tigran Safaryan, Attorney; 17. Vahe Grigoryan, Attorney, Legal Consultant at EHRAC (Middlesex University). Contacts Persons David Amiryan Karine Ghazaryan Open Society Foundations-Armenia Open Society Foundations-Armenia Deputy Director for Programs Civil Society Program Coordinator E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected] 1 http://www.partnership.am/en/index 1 Contents INTRODUCTION .........................................................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Police Body-Mounted Cameras: with Right Policies in Place, a Win for All
    Police Body-Mounted Cameras: With Right Policies in Place, a Win For All By Jay Stanley, ACLU Senior Policy Analyst October, 2013 Introduction1 When a New York judge found that the NYPD’s stop and frisk tactics violated the constitutional rights of New Yorkers, one of the remedies she ordered was for the department to begin testing wearable police cameras, sparking debate and discussion of the technology there. These “on-officer recording systems” (also called “body cams” or “cop cams”) are small, pager- sized cameras that clip on to an officer’s uniform or sunglasses or are worn as a headset, and record audio and video of the officer’s interactions with the public. We have heard reports of police body cameras being deployed in numerous cities, and one prominent manufacturer told NBC that it had sold them to “hundreds of departments.” The ACLU has commented on police body cameras in the media several times over the years (and in stories surrounding the stop and frisk ruling), but the ACLU’s views on this technology are a little more complicated than can be conveyed through quotes in a news story. Although we generally take a dim view of the proliferation of surveillance cameras in American life, police on-body cameras are different because of their potential to serve as a check against the abuse of power by police officers. Historically, there was no documentary evidence of most encounters between police officers and the public, and due to the volatile nature of those encounters, this often resulted in radically divergent accounts of incidents.
    [Show full text]
  • Key Issues in the Police Use of Pedestrian Stops and Searches
    RESEARCH PAPERS Key Issues in the Police Use of Pedestrian Stops and Searches Discussion Papers from an Urban Institute Roundtable AUGUST 2012 Editors: Nancy La Vigne Pamela Lachman Andrea Matthews S. Rebecca Neusteter URBAN INSTITUTE Justice Policy Center Copyright © 2012. The Urban Institute. Permission is granted for reproduction of this file, with attribution to the Urban Institute. This project was supported by Cooperative Agreement Number 2010-CK-WX-K019 awarded by the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, U.S. Department of Justice. The opinions contained herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. References to specific agencies, companies, products, or services should not be considered an endorsement by the author(s) or the U.S. Department of Justice. Rather, the references are illustrations to supplement discussion of the issues. ii Contents Preface iv Examining Law Enforcement Use of Pedestrian Stops and Searches 1 Pamela Lachman, Nancy La Vigne, and Andrea Matthews Police Field Stops: What Do We Know, and What Does It Mean? 12 Jack R. Greene, Ph.D. What About the Other 99%? The Broader Impact of Street Stops on Minority Communities 24 Carla Shedd The Impact of Stop and Frisk Policies upon Police Legitimacy 30 Tom R. Tyler and Jeffrey Fagan Using Stop and Search Powers Responsibly: The Law Enforcement Executive’s Perspective 37 Superintendent Garry McCarthy iii Preface In the activities routinely associated with a patrol officer’s job, engaging with citizens in public spaces features prominently. One form of such engagement is the street stop, whereby an officer stops and questions a pedestrian based on reasonable suspicion that the pedestrian is—or was recently—engaged in unlawful activity.
    [Show full text]
  • Platform HD 2010: Towards a People’S Multilateralism
    Platform HD 2010: Towards a People’s Multilateralism Co-convened by UNDP and PRIA (Participatory Research in Asia) Bangkok, 30-31 August 2010: Summary Report 1 Section I. Background and Introduction The year 2010 is the 20th anniversary of the launch of the UNDP Human Development Report (HDR), the ten-year review of the Millennium Declaration and the Millennium Development Goals, as well as the Beijing+15. These reviews are taking place in the face of financial crisis, food insecurity, climate change challenges, violation of political and human rights and the failure of governance institutions to tackle persistent poverty, inequality and social exclusion. Against this background, the UNDP Civil Society Division, through the Platform HD 2010 initiative, seeks to forge multifaceted partnerships between the United Nations, civil society and other actors to address the converging food, financial and climate crises at a time when the institutions responsible for global governance are being transformed by the emergence of new actors and alliances. Platform HD2010 was launched in June 2009 by the Civil Society Division in the Partnerships Bureau of UNDP, with support from the MDG Achievement Fund. The idea behind it is two-fold: to foster and expand ongoing debates on a citizen-centred or people’s multilateralism, and revitalize UN(DP) engagement with civil society in rethinking human development and advancing the MDGs.1 Both objectives have acquired a fresh urgency in the context of the crises, now known as the four ‘Fs’-- food, finance, fuel and fiscal – which call for new forms of governance at the local, national, regional and global levels.
    [Show full text]
  • Support for Crime Victims by the Police
    Specific measures to support crime victims ① Consideration and provision of information for crime victims during the consultation and investigation process Creation and distribution of crime victim guide The victims are unfamiliar with the details of support that they can receive to recover and mitigate the damage caused by the crime and criminal proceedings, and such information needs to be provided quickly and comprehensively. Therefore, prefectural police has created “Brochure for Crime Victims” which describe the overview of criminal proceedings, request for cooperation in investigation, and systems and support organizations/desks available for crime victims. “Brochure for Crime Victims” is usually distributed to victims of physical crimes such as murder, injury, and sexual crimes, as well as victims of major traffic accidents such as hit-and-runs and accidents resulting in death, by investigators in charge of questioning, who will explain the contents then. “Brochure for Crime Victims” contain the following information: Overview of criminal proceedings and request for cooperation in investigation Support personnel system for crime victims Systems related to information on criminal proceedings and status of investigation Systems available for trials Systems for securing safety Financial support and various support and welfare systems Support for psychological trauma Various consulting organizations/desks In addition, the guides provided to traffic accident victims and surviving family members include: Information on automobile insurance systems (automobile liability insurance, etc.) and automobile compensation security programs The guides are also translated into English and other languages for foreign crime victims by each prefectural police as necessary. Brochure for Crime Victims For traffic accidents/crimes Guides in foreign languages System for contacting crime victims Information related to the status of investigation and the disposition of perpetrators is very important to the victim.
    [Show full text]
  • Police Body Worn Cameras and Privacy: Retaining Benefits While Reducing Public Concerns
    POLICE BODY WORN CAMERAS AND PRIVACY: RETAINING BENEFITS WHILE REDUCING PUBLIC CONCERNS RICHARD LIN† ABSTRACT Recent high-profile incidents of police misconduct have led to calls for increased police accountability. One proposed reform is to equip police officers with body worn cameras, which provide more reliable evidence than eyewitness accounts. However, such cameras may pose privacy concerns for individuals who are recorded, as the footage may fall under open records statutes that would require the footage to be released upon request. Furthermore, storage of video data is costly, and redaction of video for release is time-consuming. While exempting all body camera video from release would take care of privacy issues, it would also prevent the public from using body camera footage to uncover misconduct. Agencies and lawmakers can address privacy problems successfully by using data management techniques to identify and preserve critical video evidence, and allowing non-critical video to be deleted under data-retention policies. Furthermore, software redaction may be used to produce releasable video that does not threaten the privacy of recorded individuals. INTRODUCTION In the aftermath of a controversial shooting of an unarmed man by a police officer in Ferguson, Missouri,1 many police departments † Duke University School of Law, J.D. 2016; Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, UPTP-017B 2010; Rutgers College, B.A. Physics, Political Science, and History 2010. This note is dedicated in the memory of Officer Christopher Matlosz, #317, Lakewood Police Department, New Jersey, End of Watch January 14, 2011. Special thanks to Professor Lisa Griffin, whose endless patience was crucial to the development of this note, and to Stacy Jen, whose endless patience was crucial to the completion of my Juris Doctor.
    [Show full text]
  • * * * Chemical Agent * * * Instructor's Manual
    If you have issues viewing or accessing this file contact us at NCJRS.gov. · --. -----;-:-.. -----:-~------ '~~~v:~r.·t..~ ._.,.. ~Q" .._L_~ •.• ~,,,,,.'.,J-· .. f.\...('.1..-":I- f1 tn\. ~ L. " .:,"."~ .. ,. • ~ \::'J\.,;;)\ rl~ lL/{PS-'1 J National Institute of Corrections Community Corrections Division * * * CHEMICAL AGENT * * * INSTRUCTOR'S MANUAL J. RICHARD FAULKNER, JR. CORRECTIONAL PROGRAM SPECIALIST NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF CORRECTIONS WASIHNGTON, DC 20534 202-307-3106 - ext.138 , ' • 146592 U.S. Department of Justice National Institute of Justice This document has been reproduced exactly as received from the person or organization originating it. Points of view or opinions stated In tl]!::; document are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the National Institute of Justice. Permission to reproduce this "'"P 'J' ... material has been granted by Public Domain/NrC u.s. Department of Justice to the National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS). • Further reproduction outside of the NCJRS system reqllires permission of the f ._kt owner, • . : . , u.s. Deparbnent of Justice • National mstimte of Corrections Wtulringttm, DC 20534 CHEMICAL AGENTS Dangerous conditions that are present in communities have raised the level of awareness of officers. In many jurisdictions, officers have demanded more training in self protection and the authority to carry lethal weapons. This concern is a real one and administrators are having to address issues of officer safety. The problem is not a simple one that can be solved with a new policy. Because this involves safety, in fact the very lives of staff, the matter is extremely serious. Training must be adopted to fit policy and not violate the goals, scope and mission of the agency.
    [Show full text]
  • Download (348
    FIRST SECTION CASE OF JHANGIRYAN v. ARMENIA (Applications nos. 44841/08 and 63701/09) JUDGMENT Art 11 • Freedom of peaceful assembly • Arbitrary prosecution and conviction of opposition supporter, linked to his participation in a protest movement • Repetitive pattern of artificial and politically motivated arrests and prosecution of opposition activists Art 5 § 1 • Lawful arrest or detention • Delay between deprivation of liberty and drawing up of record of arrest • Police custody in excess of maximum period prescribed by domestic law and without judicial order Art 5 § 1 (c) • Lack of reasonable suspicion of the applicant having committed an offence Art 5 § 3 • Reasonableness of pre-trial detention • Failure of domestic courts to provide relevant and sufficient reasons for applicant’s continued detention Art 6 § 1 (criminal) • Impartial tribunal • Involvement of trial court judge’s son in an investigation of the protest movement STRASBOURG 8 October 2020 FINAL 08/01/2021 This judgment has become final under Article 44 § 2 of the Convention. It may be subject to editorial revision. JHANGIRYAN v. ARMENIA JUDGMENT In the case of Jhangiryan v. Armenia, The European Court of Human Rights (First Section), sitting as a Chamber composed of: Krzysztof Wojtyczek, President, Linos-Alexandre Sicilianos, Aleš Pejchal, Pauliine Koskelo, Jovan Ilievski, Raffaele Sabato, judges, Armen Mazmanyan, ad hoc judge, and Renata Degener, Deputy Section Registrar, Having regard to: the applications (nos. 44841/08 and 63701/09) against the Republic of Armenia lodged
    [Show full text]
  • Negative Effects of the Use of Militarization Methods by the Police Force
    Negative Effects of the Use of Militarization Methods by the Police Force Children and Adults Developmental Agency Programs, Inc. (CADAprograms) Commission on the Status of Women (CSW 65) United Nations Citizens to Abolish Domestic Apartheid, Inc 2901 Maryland Ave., P.O. Box 80 North Versailles, PA 15137 Phone: (412) 829-2711 Fax: (412) 829-2788 Email: [email protected] Website: www.cadaprograms.org Committee: Chemical Pollutant Eradication Council Chair: Dr. Janis C. Brooks 1 Presentation Outline Riot Control Agents Exposure to a riot control agent Health effects of exposure to riot control agents Treatment for riot control agents Protection and exposure to riot control agents Rubber Bullets The Americans With Disabilities Act And Law Enforcement Summary 2 Riot Control Agents Chloroacetophenone (CN) Chlorobenzylidenemalononitrile (CS) Other examples include: • Chloropicrin (PS), used as a fumigant (that is, a substance that uses fumes to disinfect an area); • Bromobenzylcyanide (CA); • Dibenzoxazepine (CR); and combinations of various agents. 3 Exposure to a riot control agent How you could be exposed to riot control agents. Fine droplets or particles Skin contact, Eye contact, or Breathing. How riot control agents work. The extent of poisoning Irritation of the area of contact (for example, eyes, skin, nose) The effects of exposure to a riot control agent 4 Health effects of exposure to riot control agents Symptoms immediately after exposure: Eyes: excessive tearing, burning, blurred vision, redness Nose: runny
    [Show full text]
  • Dangerous Ambiguities: Regulation of Incapacitants and Riot Control Agents Under the Chemical Weapons Convention, OPCW Open Foru
    Dangerous Ambiguities: Regulation of incapacitants and riot control agents under the Chemical Weapons Convention OPCW Open Forum Meeting, 2nd December 2009 Michael Crowley Project coordinator Bradford Nonlethal Weapon Research Project Chemical Weapons Convention • The Chemical Weapons Convention has proven to be an important defence against the horrors of chemical warfare, vitally important for protecting both military personnel and civilians alike. • Its core obligations are powerfully set out under Article 1, namely that States will never under any circumstances develop, stockpile, transfer or use chemical weapons. • However, certain ambiguities and limitations in the CWC control regime exist regarding regulation of riot control agents (RCAs) and incapacitants. If not addressed, they could endanger the stability of the Convention. Chemical Weapons Convention • Article 1: • Each State Party to this Convention undertakes never under any circumstances: •(a) To develop, produce, otherwise acquire, stockpile or retain chemical weapons, or transfer, directly or indirectly, chemical weapons to anyone; •(b) To use chemical weapons; • (c) To engage in any military preparations to use chemical weapons; •(d) To assist, encourage or induce, in any way, anyone to engage in any activity prohibited to a State Party under this Convention. [Emphasis added]. CWC: Scope of coverage • The CWC is comprehensive in the toxic chemicals it regulates. • The definition of “toxic chemicals” under Article 2.2 includes chemicals that cause “temporary incapacitation”. • Under the Convention, the use of such “toxic chemicals” would be forbidden unless employed for “purposes not prohibited” and as long as the “types and quantities” are consistent with such purposes. • Among the “purposes not prohibited” is: “law enforcement including domestic riot control”.
    [Show full text]