Over the last number of weeks the PSNI have been engaged in a widespread normalisation campaign, geared specifically towards children.
In a statement last week Derry 32csm highlighted the issue of crown forces entering schools and community centre’s to engage with children on a "friendly" basis while simultaneously their colleagues, with the aid of the British army and British intelligence services, disrupted children’s home lives with house raids and illegal stop and searches. They also highlighted the fact that MI5 and special branch were endangering children by using their naive age to turn them into child informers.
In Belfast, the WolfeTone/McCracken cumann 32csm voiced concern at the PSNI attending multiple community fun days in the city over the weekend. In north Belfast alone on Saturday and Sunday, armed police along with dogs were seen stopping children at Girdwood Hub and Alexandra Park to offer them stickers with the words ‘I met the police today’. Some children were noticeably frightened and distressed at this as the only interaction they have had with these people has been when they had their toys taken away, houses raided and parents/siblings taken away in the back of an armoured car or jeep.
Last week other Republicans made people aware of the PSNI’s attendance at St.Louises girls secondary school in West Belfast. A stall had been set up in the school offering “career advice” to school leavers taking part in a job fair.
These ‘community relation’ tactics are nothing new but they have to be highlighted for the facade they are. What should also be highlighted is the role of elected representatives of Britain’s Stormont assembly in bringing crown forces into contact with our children at every opportunity available and giving a false impression of the continued British occupation.
One of the main tactics of Thatcher was normalisation along with ulsterisation and criminalisation. The Good Friday Agreement was a continuation of these 3 tactics but 25 years on, as with the time of Thatcher, the Good Friday Agreement has failed, the PSNI are not a normal police service and this failed statelet of 6 counties in Ulster is still not accepted as legitimate by the vast majority of the Irish people.
