PFNI Launch Assaults on Police Campaign
This week saw launch of our latest public campaign - ‘Let them Protect’ at the Long Gallery in Stormont where members of the policing family gathered to offer support to our campaign and be a united voice in condemning the deplorable level of assaults on our officers.
To be clear this campaign is not happening specifically because of the public disorder and attacks on the PSNI in the last few weeks. Over the last number of years the PFNI have been highlighting both internally and externally the unacceptable and high number of assaults and attacks on our officers.
In addition to the attacks on our officers last week during the public disorder, every day we are having officers assaulted – kicked, punched, headbutted, spat at, rammed by vehicles, attacked with weapons. No person doing their job should have to face such violence on an all too regular basis. Attacks on police officers need to stop. It is abhorrent and completely unacceptable that police officers have borne the brunt of vicious assaults and attacks whilst carrying out their duties. These assaults have a detrimental impact not only on the officer and their family but have knock on consequences on the community and the policing service they receive when those officers are off duty recovering from their injuries.
We want our communities to “Let Them Protect” – to condemn the perpetrators, show empathy with our officers and understand the real consequences for themselves and their families when a police officer is unable to be at work and perform their duties due to being assaulted. In an under resourced police service every person counts and we want to ensure that our officers are available to respond effectively to all calls for service.
We also want the public to get behind us and support this Federation’s call for our courts to take a much tougher approach against those who assault and attack our officers. Decisive and tough sentences need to be handed down by Magistrates and Judges to effectively punish offenders. Sentencing guidelines must be strengthened to empower the Courts and implement effective deterrents.
The campaign will feature in advertisements on television, newspapers, billboards, bus stops and on various social media platforms.
