Catholic officer's revelations spark plea for public support

One of the most senior Catholic members of the RUC has said it is critical the PSNI receives support right across society, after one officer revealed the high personal cost of policing in Northern Ireland.

Peter Sheridan was speaking after the Catholic officer in Londonderry told BBC Radio Foyle he has had to cut ties with some family members since joining the police.

Mr Sheridan, now the chief executive of Co-Operation Ireland, served 32 years in the police here, firstly as an RUC officer, before retiring in 2008 as a PSNI Assistant Chief Constable.

He said he too had to make sacrifices and his decision was difficult for his family at the time.

But he added that "in terms of job satisfaction and knowing I was helping people it was worth it".

He added: "Despite all of the difficulties and challenges, I met a lot of good people along the way, inside and outside the job.

"It was difficult for my family and it was something we talked about. I would encourage anybody to join the police - the challenges facing Catholic police officers are challenges for wider society.

"Policing is at its best when it is reflective of society, so these are challenges for wider society, for the Policing Board, the Executive when it's in place, Government agencies, public and private sector - these are not just challenges for the Chief Constable.

"We need to continue working at this, will all need to support people who join policing, because it is in all our interests."

The officer who spoke to the BBC said: "The only place I wanted to work was the city - you have to be from the city to appreciate Derry folk.

"There are lots of people here who want to do the job but they are afraid of the comeback on it with their family living in Derry.

"I have had to make sacrifices, it involves not coming home to Derry, you just have to cut off your ties with your family, not just for yourself but for them as well. My family have never been targeted, but that's always in the back of your mind and that's one of the reasons why you have to cut off ties."

Kate Carroll, whose Catholic PSNI constable husband Stephen (48) was murdered by dissident republicans in March 2009, said it's "ridiculous" that there's still a stigma attached to being a police officer in Northern Ireland.

"When Steve was here he didn't have to break ties with his family, but he had to lie," she said. "I remember the lies that we had to tell and the places that we would loved to have gone but couldn't go to for safety reasons.

"And we were always worried about something happening to his dad and grandmother, who lived near us, because Steve was in the police.

"We didn't tell anyone what Steve's job was. We always told people he was a personal trainer.

"You felt disloyal lying, but you didn't know who you could trust. You just didn't know and you had to be very careful about speaking - careless talk costs lives.

"In this day and age it should not be that way. The police force should be respected as protectors of the community, but in reality they don't really have a life."

Chief Inspector Alan Hutton said that despite the challenges, Catholic recruitment, particularly from strongly republican and nationalist areas, is increasing.

He said: "Catholic representation within the police is only part of the story - we are seeing nationalist and republican Catholics who are joining the police, which means we are more representative. What you are seeing is perhaps, not a massive shift in percentage terms, but you are seeing people from communities who would have traditionally not joined the police coming in.

"A Catholic from Portstewart or Bangor may have joined the police previously but now we are seeing Catholics from working class republican areas joining and loving it. That's when you know you are winning. In spite of all the risks we face, people are still stepping forward and doing it and they are coming from areas that 20 years ago would have been unheard of."

DUP MP Gregory Campbell called for greater support from the nationalist community for those considering signing up.

"They do not deserve to be picketed and protested against and threatened which is what has happened in the past," he said.

"Both Sinn Fein and the SDLP need to take a stand and show their tangible support to these people that they think they are doing the right thing by choosing a career in policing."

SDLP policing spokeswoman Dolores Kelly said: "It is imperative that Mr Campbell and his party colleagues engage in honest conversation around the past and the policing of the past which has hampered Catholic recruitment. If only the DUP would do the right thing by victims and give full support for the mechanisms for dealing with the past, then we would see an increase in recruitment of officers from Catholic backgrounds."

Belfast Telegraph