Bahrain’s police force will undergo a major revamp in order
to prevent future abuses, it was reported.
Among the changes that will be implemented in the Gulf state
include the construction of a state-of-the-art forensic laboratory in order to
reduce the frequency of confession-based convictions, according to local paper
Gulf Daily News.
Among the other police reforms to be introduced include a ‘crime
academy’ to train officers and 500 additional community officers, which will be
deployed by the end of this year.
Bahrain is the Gulf nation that has been worst affected by
the Arab Spring unrest that has swept through the region, witnessing near daily
demonstrations for more than a year.
The changes have been spearheaded by former assistant commissioner
of London’s Metropolitan police, John Yates, who has been advising Bahraini
authorities on security matters in the wake of violent political unrest.
In March, security officials announced that they would
introduce CCTV during police interviews in order to prevent abuse.
The government has also setup an independent police
ombudsman to investigate reports of brutality during the unrest.
Reports say 85 Bahraini civilians have been killed since uprisings started in February 2011.
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