CHAPTER ONE
1. Introduction
1.1. Background of the Study
Crime causes economic, health, well being, psychological
effects on victims and society at larg. Crime is a serious social problem that
directly reduces the quality of the life of individuals and the community
(O‘Block et al., 1991:8). Beside, the police are the most visible
institution devoted in fighting crime twenty four hour a day and seven days a
week. In support of this idea, Morgan states, the primary function of police is
concerned with preventing crime and catching criminals (Morgan 1996:1). So the
primary function of police is to prevent and detect crime.
However, the police without the lively involvement of the
community face difficulty in tackling crime. Palmiotto (2000) further
strengthens the idea by saying, ‘the police cannot succeed in solving or
preventing crime without the assistance of the community’. Thus to prevent
crime successfully there must be community partnership and involvement.
This fact indicates the need of involving the community, the
local government and the police to work together to tackle crime. Therefore,
community policing has become a major issue for many countries in the world. As
Abebe (cited in Taye Kejia dissertation 2011) states in his paper: ‘Community
policing is the best way of policing currently; working together with the
community on the basis of partnership should be the primary concern of the
police’ (Abebe, 2000:4).
The Ethiopia government
announced the police service should be based on the participation of the
people, this was mentioned in the federal police formation no
207/92 (Ethiopian Federal police formation manual). Consequently it shows the
concern of the government in establishing community policing in Ethiopia.
There has been an attempt to implement the community
policing philosophy in the SNNPRS, Hawassa city administration and Bahil
adarash sub city. This has involved the creation of an implementation plan
regarding community policing, giving workshop training for sub city’s police
department heads and station commanders, including various parts of community
and institution and organization(Taye Kejia 2011, pp-4). Furthermore, the
establishment of community policing structure from household level often
referred as family police to city
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community policing Advisory
council has been taken as an attempt to implement community policing in Hawassa
city as a whole and Bahil Adarash sub city in particular.
The Bahil Adarash sub city is
highly prone to crime occurrence because of the availability of illegal chat
chewing houses, secret areas used for drug selling, many night clubs which
caused group and individual fighting, absence of street light and presence of
slums in some areas created suitable situation for criminals, low initiative of
the community to collaborate with the police in exposing criminals, corrupt
police officials and in fact the inadequate number of police force (BAPD and
own observation).
Aforementioned reasons created
a fertile ground for the escalation of crime in the sub city. So as to
preventing crime in the area needs the collaboration of all section of the
society, the police and sub city administration, hence, community policing.
Based on this new idea of community policing (CP), Bahil adarash police have
been trying to implement the community policing philosophy in crime prevention
schemes in order to tackle the ever-increasing crime situations in the sub
city.
2. Statement of
the Problem
According to the Hawassa city
municipal police head office and the Bahil adarash police department (BAPD)
indicate that there had been a huge number of diversified, complex and serious
crimes recorded in the previous three years. In addition, there has been an
increase in crime in both the number of crimes committed and in their
complexity. As well, the police have long lists of causes for the problems,
include a rapid urbanization rate, a high increase in street children,
unemployment and drug abuse (Hawassa city police department). It is clear that
in Hawassa as a whole and Bahil adarash in particular is facing social problems
especially occurrence of complex crime. Furthermore the continually changing
tactics of criminals made crime more complex.
The most common, serious and
repeated crimes committed are: property theft, domestic violence, abuse of
child labor, drug abuse, burglary and other social disorders like group
fighting.
The fight against crime, fear
of crime and situations of disorder in the sub city are increased compared to
2004(EC) with 61 crimes and 67 crimes in 2005(EC) through strengthening the
police-community relation and socio-economic development. However, based on the
information
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gathered from Bahil Adarash police department (BAPD) ‘the
magnitude, complexity and rate of crime were increasing’. Even though the
police are attempting to fully control crime and allay the fears of the
community, it is getting worse due to their small number. Furthermore, the bad
levels of socio-economic status of some areas like tarekegn sefer (slum area
of the sub-city) takes part in escalating crime. Some members of community
hesitation in exposing criminals and even hiding them from the police sight also
contributed for rise of crime (BAPD 2006EC).
In addition to the above, Taye Kejia tried to note that the
police lack skill in implementing community policing. As he quoted, ‘those who
are engaged in crime prevention have not been involved in to community policing
planning and implementation workshop training. Even those who have attended
training courses do not have a clear understanding of the theoretical concepts
of community policing and its practical aspects’ (Taye Kejia 2011,pp 4). As to
Shiffa (cited in Taye Kejia dissertation), ‘Most of the activities were a
”one-off” campaign and neither consistent nor supported by prior research. Most
plans of the town police regarding community policing are only a plan on paper
(Shiffa, 2005:61–62)’. Thus, Taye Kejia argues that the Hawassa police ‘lack
community policing skills’. Whereas Shiffa debate that not only lack of
community policing skills, but also ‘its ill implementation’ were manifested in
Hawassa as a whole and Bahil Adarash sub city in particular.
Hence, one may ask whether community policing has been
implemented to its full potential. The evidence shows that the strategy has to
be more researched to asses to what extent the continuing implementation of
community policing played its role in preventing crime and its prospects and
challenges. Besides, not enough research either pre or post implementation of
CP conducted in case of Bahil adarash sub city. Furthermore, since the
researcher was born and still lives in the sub city, he needs to contribute
something useful for the well being and safety of the community. This very fact
triggers one‘s desire to conduct research in order to assess the role of
community policing in preventing crime and its challenges that affect the
implementation as well as its prospect in Bahil Adarash sub city.
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1.3. Objective of the Study
1.3.1. General
Objective
The general objective of the study is to assess the role of
community policing in crime prevention through point out the challenge it faces
and its prospects in Bahil adarash sub city administration of Hawassa.
1.3.2. Specific
Objectives of the Study
The
study will have the following specific objectives;
·
Assess the role of community policing in crime prevention in
Bahil adarash sub city
·
Evaluate the success of the Bahil adarash sub city community
policing
·
Analyze the challenges of community policing
·
Illuminate the prospect of community policing in the sub
city
·
Provide comments to alleviate
obstacles for efficient implementation of community policing in Bahil Adarash
sub city.
1.4.Research
Questions to be Addressed
In the end, the
study poses the following basic questions up on which the entire research
undertakings will attempt to answer.
What are the silent features of
community policing in crime prevention?
How
far the practice of community policing in the sub city helped in preventing and
reducing crime?
What are/were the critical
challenges of community policing in Bahil adarash sub city?
How
the prospect of community policing in the Bahil adarash sub city can be
explained? What should be done to alleviate the obstacles that hinder efficient
implementation of community policing?
1.5. Significance
of the Study
The
overall findings of the study may contribute in:
·
Providing viable experience and
direction in fighting crime through community policing in Hawassa city in
general and the study area in particular.
·
Understanding the challenges of
community policing in other sub cities of Hawassa in general and the Bahil adarash
sub city in particular.
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Hence the results of the study, based on its
objectives, might become valuable for those implementers in the
community policing and police sector in general.
1.6 Scope
The scope of the study delimited to the role, challenges and
prospects of community policing implementation in Bahil adarash sub city of
Hawassa city Administration. Furthermore, it is also delimited to the
households of two purposively selected kebeles, Andinet and Adare, as well as
all polices of the Bahil Adarash sub city.
1.7 Limitation of
the Study
The study would have been sounder if it includes all sub
cities found in Hawassa city administration. However, for the sake of its
manageability and because of scarcity of financial resources, it is delimited
to Bahil adarash sub city.
1.8 Organization
of the Study
This thesis is structured as follows: Chapter one presents
the introduction part, statement of the problem, objective of the study,
Research questions and significance of the study, scope and limitation of the
study as well as definition of operational terms. The second chapter deals with
a review of related literature on community policing concepts like
characteristics, roles, principles and philosophy. In addition, crime prevention
principles and models also treated in this chapter. The third chapter explains
methodology of the research, data collection & sampling techniques. The
fourth chapter describes the results (findings) and discussion of the
descriptive statistics. The fifth and the final chapter provide summary,
conclusion and recommendations.
1.9. Definition
of Operational Terms
1.9.1. Community
Some conceive community as a geographic area and others look
community as an area of common life. The following definitions shows the
essence of community,
According to UN office on drugs and crime, “community” can
refer to small neighborhoods, areas within a city, or small villages or towns,
or in some cases groups of citizens with particular concerns (criminal justice
hand book series, 2010:2). In addition as Taye Kejia stated in his
dissertation, ‘A community is defined as any group of people which is likely to
have a number of
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characteristics in common such as, geographical area,
occupation, ethnicity, economic status, shared government and a common cultural
and historical heritage’ (Taye Kejia,2011:7). Moreover, as stated by Oliver
(2004:237), ‘community is the term that refers to a group of people who share
three things: they live in a geographically distinct area (such as a city or
town), they share cultural characteristics, attitudes and lifestyles and they
interact with one another on a sustained basis.
Thus, community could be understood as group of people
sharing the same city, similar social class, having same culture, sharing the
same objectives and have similar psychological makeup.
1.9.2. Crime
Crime is an illegal activity which causes physical or moral
injuries on others. According to the Ethiopian criminal code of 2006, Article
23, sub article 1, crime is an act which is prohibited and made punishable by
law (Ethiopia criminal code). Crime is the omission of a duty that makes the
offender liable to punishment by law or a behavior that is prohibited, as well
as behavior or an act that is required by law (Sullivan, 2002:302; Stevens,
2003:37; Crowe, 2000:15).
1.9.3. Policing
Policing is an activity directed towards the prevalence of
justice and security by the police or others. According to Wilson and Brewer
(1995:316), ‘policing is concerned with diverse collection of issues and
practices. It is also a social service created by human beings, rendered by
human beings to human beings in an environment shaped by human beings’.
Policing is a means to justice and to the security of individual liberty
(Stevens, 2003:22). Thus, policing is a service delivered by a police to the
community for their own well being. In addition the police were not the only
institution in policing activity, the community, concerned government agencies
and nongovernmental organization also have role.
1.9.4. Police
Police is a trained person in crime prevention and
investigation for the purpose of maintaining the peace and security of the
community. Beside above mentioned definition, Stevens described the police as,
‘the force that has the power to exercise reasonable control over persons and
property within its jurisdiction, in the interests of general security, health,
safety, morals and welfare, except where legally prohibited’ (Stevens,
2003:22). According to the National Crime Prevention Institute of the
University of Louisville (NCPI, 2001:33–34) the people use the police
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as a means to achieve and maintain order. Their efforts are
founded on principles of public services and ultimate responsibility to the
public. So police is a trained person in policing activities like preventing
crime, enforce the law and maintain public order to ensure community safety.
1.9.5. Community
Partnership
Community partnership is a flexible term referring to any
combination of neighbourhood residents, schools, churches, businesses,
community-based organizations, elected officials and government agencies who
are working co-operatively with the police to resolve identified problems. It
is also a state or condition of being a partner, of participation, association,
or joint interest of the relationship subsisting between partners (Taye Kejia
2010 pp 9). Thus, in light of the research community partnership could be
understood as the cooperation of any form community with the police or other
organization or institutions.
1.9.6. Community
Policing
Community policing involve the importance of active
partnership between the police, civil societies, and other agencies of
government work together in identifying and solving problems to improve the
overall quality of life as whole and crime prevention in particular.
As stated by Deluca and Stone (1994:85): ―Community policing
is the desire to bring policing closer to citizens whose lives and property are
supposed to be protected.
The Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA: 1994) states:
‘Community policing is democracy in action. It requires the active
participation of local government, civic and business leaders, public and
private agencies, residents, churches, schools and hospitals. All who share a
concern for the welfare of the neighbourhood should work together with police
officers. The above-mentioned bodies must take a unified stand against crime,
violence and disregard for the law and must make a commitment to increasing
crime prevention and intervention activities (BJA 1994:4).
1.9.7. Crime
Prevention
Crime prevention is an attempt to eliminate crime either
prior to the initial occurrence or before further activity (Lab, 1997:19).
According to the NCPI, crime prevention is a practical method for the direct
control of crime. It involves analyzing criminal attack methods and designing
specific actions within the environments of potential victims to reduce
criminal opportunities and manage the crime risk (NCPI, 2001:7).
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By and large purpose of community policing is to prevent
crime effectively through the full involvement of citizens. This may lead to a
situation where the citizens of a country feel free to live and reduce fear of
crime.