Already in 2015, a report was prepared on behalf of the Ministry of the Interior and Administration explaining why policemen abuse violence. As a formation, the police are not willing to self-cleanse - this is how Piotr Kubaszewski, an expert of the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights, comments on recent deaths after the intervention of officers.
Staszow. Police intervention against Andrzej Złotnik. An investigation is underway to clarify the background of this man's death, shortly after his arrest Source: wp.pl, photo: wpl.plThe case of Andrzej Złotnik's death revealed by the WP after a street police intervention is the seventh such case in Poland. We described in WP that the brothers of the deceased did not agree with the discontinuation of the investigation and the explanation that the wounds and bruises on the detainee's body were caused when he writhed on the pavement. They blame the police for intervening too brutally, as a result of which the man was strangled. After a complaint from the family, the investigation was reopened.
We are talking to Piotr Kubaszewski, an expert at the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights. He has been dealing with the problem of police violence for several years.
What can be done to prevent similar incidents?
Two issues are the most important: equipping police officers with cameras that record their service and guaranteeing access to a lawyer for people detained before the first interrogation.
