Opposition: Case of Kosice Police Officer Reveals Systemic Problem (2)

Bratislava, November 14 (TASR) - Opposition lawmakers of PS and SaS are convinced that the case of Kosice-based police officer, charged with killing a suspect in custody, was not an individual failure but rather a systemic problem, according to statements made at a session of the House Committee for Defence and Security held on Thursday. PS caucus chair Martin Dubeci urged Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) to start addressing the issue, adding that PS would like to hold a no-confidence motion in the Interior Minister. MP Juraj Krupa (SaS) also disagrees with the notion that the tragedy was an individual failure of the police officer, seeing as cases of police brutality have reoccurred recently. MP Maria Kolikova (SaS) doesn't understand the behaviour of the second police officer who was present when the suspect was beaten up fatally and believes that this man should be suspended as well. In KDH's view, the police are understaffed and frustrated, in sore need of systemic changes. KDH lawmakers voiced their appreciation over the fact that the session was attended by the minister, head of the Internal Affairs Inspectorate and police chief Lubomir Solak, who tried to inform them about the case and the course of investigation in detail. KDH legislators proposed to revisit the psychological evaluations of officers on duty, as that would help prevent the police brutality. "A police officer is not a machine, he or she is a human who bears an enormous amount of stress and negative emotions. The police work is mentally and physically challenging because police officers deal with conflicts on a daily basis, under extreme pressure that has an impact in their psyche and it's natural that their mental state can vary. That's why we propose to have police officers take personality psychotests, in addition to the general psychological evaluation, which is more transport-oriented anyway," said Frantisek Majersky (KDH). MP Roman Mikulec (Slovakia-For the People-KU) pointed out that it's difficult to predict the behaviour of any police officer in the future and agrees that the tragedy was an individual mistake. What he finds more alarming is the fact that the whole beating was witnessed by the police officer's colleague, who has been allowed to stay on duty. According to Mikulec, the other man should be held responsible as well. On November 5, the police officer in Kosice beat up a suspect apprehended over a theft in a grocery store so severely that the victim died the next day in hospital. The police officer is being prosecuted in custody and might face 12-15 years in jail if found guilty. mf/mcs