Since yesterday, the new Police Service of Northern Ireland has become a reality and the Royal Ulster Constabulary ceases to be. The significance of the change, in the process of constructing a new society in Northern Ireland, cannot be overstated.
On a day-to-day level, the members of any police service are the visible and tangible representation of the State. They reflect, in their composition, in their operational policies, in their ethos, the political reality from which they draw their mandate and authority.
Notwithstanding the commitment, professionalism and courage of so many of its members, the Royal Ulster Constabulary was the product of a political and social order which has been consigned to history. The Police Service of Northern Ireland which now replaces it is a crucial part of the new order, no less essential to the peace process than the assembly, the executive and the inter-parliamentary and crossborder bodies.
The RUC historically was the strong right hand of permanent unionist government. Since the onset of the troubles it has struggled, with mixed success, to present itself impartially to both communities. But the reality, as the members of the Patten commission recognised and made clear, is that nothing less than a completely fresh start could yield the necessary result, the establishment of a police service viewed by the community as belonging to it as a whole.
The SDLP and the unionists have committed their support to the PSNI. Sinn FΘin has so far withheld its support and is pressing for further changes which, it argues, are necessary to ensure the degree of accountability it requires. It remains to be seen what can be done to meet these requirements. But in time, it is probable that Sinn FΘin too will endorse the new service.
The fundamental aim behind the creation of the PSNI is policing by consent of the broad community. Elaborate mechanisms have been created to ensure local accountability and impartial supervision. Membership will be drawn in equal proportion from both traditions. Any disinterested observer would concede that the PSNI has been designed as a model of a people's police service. As it becomes a reality on the streets it must have the fervent good wishes and the best hopes of all who live on this island.