ACTING PSNI Chief Constable Judith Gillespie has insisted that there are no “no go areas” for the police in Northern Ireland.
She told the policing board in Belfast yesterday that her officers had acted responsibly and correctly in not confronting dissident republican paramilitaries in south Armagh two weeks ago.
Ms Gillespie and fellow police commanders insisted at the board meeting that police were operating in every part of Northern Ireland, notwithstanding that dissidents were able to mount an illegal checkpoint in the village of Meigh in south Armagh two weeks ago.
“I can say categorically there are no no-go areas,” said Ms Gillespie. “We patrol every part of Northern Ireland and provide a service to every citizen of Northern Ireland and that will continue in the future,” she added.
Ms Gillespie became the first woman to speak to the board as head of the police in Northern Ireland, even if it was in a temporary capacity. She is the recently appointed Deputy Chief Constable and is standing in for the new Chief Constable Matt Baggott, who is to take over the force later this month in succession to Sir Hugh Orde. Sir Hugh is now head of the London-based Association of Chief Police Officers of England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The fact that the police patrol that came across the illegal checkpoint did not tackle the armed and masked republican paramilitaries triggered controversy and debate over the past two weeks. But Ms Gillespie was adamant that her officers had taken the correct course of action in not directly challenging the gang.
She said that the checkpoint was staged beside an open shop, chip shop and pub in Meigh and had the officers engaged in armed action with the dissidents there “undoubtedly would have been civilian casualties and the board would quite rightly have held me to account on that outcome”.
“I just want to make our position absolutely crystal clear. Those officers involved . . . took completely the right course of action and we will defend that decision to all-comers,” added Ms Gillespie.
AssistantChief Constable Dave Jones said a cross-Border inquiry was taking place into the incident.
Mr Jones said people in south Armagh were working with the police. Only this week a hundred people voted with their feet and went to the DPP (district policing partnership meeting) in Crossmaglen where they engaged with local officers about policing in that area, he said.
