The police monitor the observance of laws in the community. The police force stands for justice, protecting the innocent and punishing lawbreakers. The police solve crimes and give confidence that the criminals will be sent to prison or punished accordingly. The police also help the victims of the crime to recover from the incident.
At least that's what the police are for. Unfortunately, this does not always work in practice. It's great when every police officer is a good person who wants to help, no matter what happens. Many people around the world join the ranks of the police in order to gain power over other people, or to have permission to do what only police officers are allowed to do. Unfortunately, in some countries, police arbitrariness is considered the norm.
Faced with police brutality, it is difficult to do anything. Those who must enforce the law are breaking it. Who can you contact in such a situation? In some countries, police officers are fired for illegal activities. In others, on the contrary, the police are endowed with practically unlimited power; it is used in conflicts within a country such as civil war. We represent 15 countries where you need to be careful when dealing with the police. Also take a look at the article 10 most dangerous cities in the world.
15 Sudan and South Sudan
Unfortunately, there is a conflict in Sudan between the two parts of the country. The history of the country has many unstable moments, and there is a problem of police brutality on the border between Sudan and South Sudan. One recent incident sparked a conflict between police and protesters. Protesters were unhappy with the rise in fuel prices. Hundreds of people were killed within days, at least 50 people were killed by the police.
The police were deliberately aiming at the necks and heads. After the Sudan split into 2 parts, the level of violence in South Sudan also increased. Among other pieces of evidence, there are videos leaked online of police officers hitting people accused of theft on the street. This is one example of police brutality recorded on video. It is becoming apparent that many people are fearful of law enforcement officials for a reason.
14. China
Police brutality is a frequent and frequent occurrence in China. In May 2016, two young people spoke of the shocking incident to the media. A member of the public security bureau pushed the man, and his friend took out his phone and began filming the incident as evidence. As a result, the police brutally beat the men until they agreed to remove the video.
This happened just shortly after the death of a man at the police station. The man was caught in a raid on a massage parlor, then severely beaten by the police and subsequently died in his cell. These incidents occurred in Lanzhou and Beijing, therefore police arbitrariness is not an isolated problem in any one city. These incidents provoked public outrage, but this does not mean that something will be done to prevent such incidents.
13. Pakistan
Police violence seems so common in Pakistan that the locals don't even see it as extraordinary. Try typing in a search engine “police brutality in Pakistan"And you will get thousands and thousands of results. Among the most famous incidents, there is a case that occurred in 2011 in the Harotabad district.
Five foreigners were shot dead by the police at a checkpoint on the border, in connection with the fact that they were suspected of preparing a terrorist attack. Under unclear circumstances, a police surgeon who opposed the official story was also attacked twice and killed a second time. In 2015, two brothers refused to stop at a checkpoint and were also killed.
Both were unarmed and just walked home from work. Afghan refugees also tell stories of police brutality that eventually forces them to leave the country. Arrests, harassment and beatings were part of their daily routine until they gave up and agreed to leave the country.
12. Myanmar
News that has been broadcast in Myanmar over the past few years can be mistaken for news from the sixties or seventies. In 2015, students, monks and journalists staged a protest over the country's lack of academic freedom. It seems incredible, but they faced police brutality.
The procession of two hundred students was stopped by five hundred police officers. More than half of them were taken into custody. The police even fired slingshots at the protesters. As a result, the president was forced to speak out in defense of the police, pointing out that the use of force was justified.
The government also used the example of the unrest in the city of Ferguson, in the United States, as an excuse to respond violently to any sign of dissent or unrest. The message was as follows: no one should share the views of the protesters from Myanmar, otherwise they will have to face aggressive measures and arrest.
11. North Korea
It is difficult to talk about what is really happening in North Korea, since the information that gets into the media is strictly controlled by the authorities. In fact, something becomes known thanks to the citizens who managed to escape to South Korea or elsewhere. Those who make such statements know that they are endangering their family members or friends who remain in the country.
The nine children who fled to Laos were beaten by Chinese border guards, eventually returned to their homeland and punished. Shocking UN report highlights life in North Korea's prisons: prisoners are deliberately starved, forced to work, tortured, raped, pregnant women are sent to forced abortions.
All this can also end in execution. The conditions on the streets are not much better, the police have given full freedom to act as they please in accordance with the wishes of the Supreme Leader. Speeches against the existing political regime can be punished by imprisonment or firing squad. Incredibly, all this is happening in the 21st century.
10. Brazil
The 2016 Rio Olympics raised many uncomfortable questions about police brutality in the country. Unfortunately Brazil is not a place where the police are on the side of the law. In fact, one fifth of all murders in Rio in 2015 were carried out by police officers. The total number of those killed is 645, three quarters of whom were black.
In an attempt to clean up the slums, police officers were awarded a license to kill those they thought should be removed from society. Almost all deaths are justified as a measure of self-defense. Whether this is actually the case remains to be seen, but banditry in the city is unlikely to subside with the presence of police officers who are always happy to pull the trigger. Police in Brazil are known to frequently threaten witnesses, plant evidence and give false testimony.
9. Afghanistan
Police brutality in Afghanistan has been reported over the past 5-10 years. Recently, more and more facts are shedding light on how the police are fighting the threat of the terrorist Islamic movement Taliban.The suspects are put on trial immediately, many are found guilty and beaten without any evidence. In early 2016, a video leaked to the media showing a man suspected of being a suicide bomber.
He was tied to a police car, his hands tied behind his back. He was then dragged behind the car for about 30 meters along the road, and he was beaten and wounded by the police officers. Unsurprisingly, this happened in the southern province of Kandahar, given that the chief of police, General Abdel Razika, has been accused of torture and murder in the past. In this particular incident, Razik's spokesman dismissed the video as fake and denied that such things were happening in their region. It is worth noting that Afghanistan is included in the ranking of the 10 most hungry countries in the world.
8.Iran
To understand the level of police violence in Iran, you must first look at the 2009 Ashura protests. The Ashura holiday, a holy day when violence is prohibited and justice prevails. The protests were met aggressively, with police officers even opening fire on the protesters. Plainclothes men shot directly at the Protestants with the intent of murder, while trucks were driving people away. This situation is constantly repeated when people are unhappy with the election results.
Police used batons, sticks, pepper gas, and firearms to quell the riots. The government claims that the official version was 36 killed during the protests, while opposition supporters believe that this figure is much higher. In 2015, the country hosted a conference on police brutality against blacks in the United States, sparking outrage among those who know the truth about the police force in their own country.
7. Haiti
Police brutality is common in Haiti, and this decade has been known for a large number of incidents that would have sparked general outrage in any country in the first world. Let's take one example to illustrate the problem as a whole. The island of Il-ha-Vash was seized by government officials who wanted to turn it into a holiday destination.
Instead of going through the appropriate procedures, or at least informing the citizens, they simply began to bulldoze houses. When residents organized peaceful marches and demanded answers, the new police chief was forced to silence them. Ultimately, a human rights organization paid a visit to Il-ha-Vash to speak with officials.
Members of the human rights organization were beaten with truncheons, trampled under heavy boots, and kicked - whether by a man, a woman or a pastor. Residents reported persistent health problems such as hearing loss or bleeding after being beaten. Senior protesters, such as local police officers, were simply arrested and removed from the community.
6. Kenya
This is not the first time the Kenyan police have come under heavy criticism. In May 2016, there was a brutal suppression of unrest. During the protests, the police used brute force. As one journalist put it: "The policeman chased the man down the street, and the pursued fell. As he lay motionless on the ground, the police officer chasing him started hitting him with a stick so that he broke it in half, and then continued to kick him half a dozen more times, while two other police officers joined him.".
He added: "The police marched through the streets and alleys, dispersing the protesters, beating them with sticks and truncheons. In nearby buildings, where protesters and bystanders took refuge, the police entered the houses, drove them to their colleagues waiting on the street, who then beat the protesters with wooden clubs, kicked them when they tried to escape."There have been protests in the country over government corruption. It is easy to see why people felt it necessary to take to the streets at the risk of their lives - because of the many difficulties in the country.
5. Russia
In Russia, police arbitrariness is so widespread that many cases are not even reported in the media. As Russian citizens themselves comment, the police will use brute force whenever they want. Prison conditions are particularly poor. Another case that recently made headlines is the case of Sergei Pestov. Sergei Pestov was a drummer in a rather successful band in the 1970s.
In September 2015, he was playing in his garage outside Moscow, where the police rushed in to arrest him. "The police started hitting him right after they entered the garage.", - said Ekaterina Shcherbina, one of his fellow musicians in the garage. "One of the officers hit him on the back of the head, so that blood began to pour from the nose.».
Then, the musician was tied with his own belt and taken into custody on suspicion of drug dealing. His wife found his lifeless body in a hospital bed the next morning. The police say they released him in the middle of the night, without causing bodily harm. Human rights defenders seem to think differently.
4. Somalia
The Somali police are known to be one of the most corrupt in the world. The country was torn apart by war, and the aftermath of the war had not yet been completely eliminated before the police were given complete freedom to act as they pleased. The police are mostly ineffective, with most police taking bribes instead of solving crimes.
The police profession is very low paid here, and as a result, law enforcement officers see citizens as a source of wages. They do not hesitate to steal during searches, as well as persecute innocent citizens for money. Police arbitrariness is rampant. As if that weren't enough, when about 1,000 Somali officers suddenly disappeared in 2009 after receiving training provided by the German government.
These officers were going to join the Islamist armed bandit formation. While efforts have been made to make a difference, the country's police are known to be corrupt and brutal, making Somalia one of the least safe places for citizens.
3. Egypt
In 2004, CIA officer Robert Bayer stated that Egypt is a place to send a person if you want him to disappear from the face of the earth. Then it began "Arab spring“and things only got worse. Police brutality increased and only increased over time. In 2015, the statistics were horrific: 1,250 people went missing, 267 were killed by the police without trial, and 40,000 people were taken as political prisoners.
These figures were quoted by human rights groups and it is believed that the true figures could be even higher. Centre "Nadeem»Documented over 600 local cases of torture in the same year. As a result, the center was under investigation for obtaining foreign funding without government approval.
Unfortunately, no solution has yet been found to stop police brutality, especially because the current government believes that the ousted Mubarak is to blame because he was too lenient with opposition and protests.
2. South Africa
Statistics show that in 2015 more people were killed by the police than in 2014. This information caused a resonance in the country. Not only killings, but other cases of police brutality have increased. These included torture and rape by police officers. This has become such a problem that if all civil lawsuits against the police are granted, the entire annual police budget will be eliminated.
In 2015, there were 224 known deaths, as well as 124 cases of rape involving police officers, 42 of them were on duty at the time of the attack.There are 145 known cases of torture involving police officers, almost 50% more than a year earlier. Protesters also regularly encounter methods such as shelling with rubber bullets. Based on the foregoing, it becomes clear that there is a problem of police arbitrariness in South Africa, a trend that dates back to the time of apartheid in the country.
1. USA
You've probably heard a lot about police brutality in the United States, especially recently. This has become a serious problem in the country, especially after the September 11 attacks. Changes to the legislation around the same time allowed police officers to act with almost impunity, shoot to kill if there was even the slightest suspicion that the suspect could be dangerous.
There have been many controversial shootings in the country, and there have been reports of police deaths that sparked riots and general condemnation. Some recent cases that the public have taken notice of included the murders of Michael Brown, Alton Sterling, Philando Castile, and Gregory Green in Ferguson in 2014. The killings sparked a nationwide protest.
An international movement of anti-black violence activists held the view that the killings were racially motivated. Even before the 9/11 attacks, there were many reported cases of police brutality, but the situation has only worsened over time.
We recommend watching:
10 cases of police brutality in Russia and the United States. In some cases, police brutality is provoked by the detainee or circumstances, but often police brutality exceeds the limits of what is permitted and even leads to murders.
