Officers out of order...

What's that pretty logo I hear you ask...deafening silence...well, it's green, has a crescent moon ...and is that a UK "Bobbie's" helmet?...yes it is; it's the logo of the Association of Muslim Police. Yesterday's Times Online (Yard quizzes three Muslim officers in hunt for terrorist sleepers) told us: "SCOTLAND YARD has placed one of its Muslim officers on restricted duties while it investigates intelligence that he may have attended a terror camp linked to Al-Qaeda in Pakistan."

That may seem all well and good: the Met police checking up and investigating anything suspicious...funny then that this is what the representative said:

Tahir Butt, secretary of the AMP [The Association of Muslim Police], has raised the cases with senior management. He said that a policy which targeted Muslims and not other religions would be “wholly inappropriate”. This is where I'd put the "Doh!/ hand slapping forehead" smilie. I suppose as the representative he has to come out with that sort of ridiculous bunkum - he gets paid for it.

Now, another well paid fool (IMHO!) is Trevor Phillips but I agree with him when last month he said "UK needs more Muslim police." Britain's police and security services should recruit more Muslims, according to the chairman of the Commission for Racial Equality (CRE). However, even though I agree with the thought I find it difficult to come up with a solution; it should be remembered that he said what he did the week after this story about corruption and Muslim Police hit the headlines.

"One Muslim officer with the Met said: "It is like saying black officers are more likely to be muggers. Today it is Muslim officers who are treated as the Uncle Toms. How can they say to the Muslim community 'trust us', when they don't even trust their own Muslim officers" and "Superintendent Dal Babu, chairman of the Association of Muslim Officers, said the report had racist undertones. "We are gravely concerned about its contents and the message it sends to recruits and potential recruits," he said."...all well and good and the sort of response you'd expect, especially when you consider that "The document was written as an attempt to investigate why complaints of misconduct and corruption against Asian officers are 10 times higher than against their white colleagues."...10...ten times!!??

So, they are more likely to be corrupt and should be investigated only if everyone else is...does that seem right, especially considering the dangerous times we find ourselves living in?

Out of order isn't just about the Muslim/terrorist concerns. Follow the link through the AWP logo and you'll see all the associations in the righthand column: Black, Gay, Hindu, Sikh, Jewish, Chinese, Italian, Greek, Turkish (and Cypriot Turk), Christian, Catholic (aren't they Christian?), Women, Senior Women...(most have there own logo too...the gay rainbow one is nice, projects stern, law-enforcement images...NOT!) nobody it seems wants to be just A Police Officer; the funniest thing though, and I quote:
Definition of 'black': The term 'black' does not refer to skin colour but is used to describe all people of African, African Caribbean or Asian origin.
...so those Chinese, Sikhs, Hindus etc are "black"? Really? Whatever. I believe that any police service should be checked and rechecked and checked again as much as any situation warrants; so if that means the Muslims in the UK are in the spotlight, they must learn to live with it.

S.O.