SCOTLAND YARD’S firearms command has hit the rocks with their police gunmen refusing to do their duty and carry their firearms against ‘enemies of the state’ unless they get immunity from any prosecution.
The gunmen of the SCO19, the specialist firearms unit, have handed back their weapons after a fellow Met officer appeared in court charged with the murder of Chris Kaba, an unarmed black man who was shot dead in South London, with police expecting to be able to get away with murder.
Armed police officers are now saying that they are not prepared to go to work if they run the risk of being charged with murder after a killing. They are demanding that they have the right to stand above the law and have the right to kill.
Last Thursday, an armed officer known only as NX121 appeared at Westminster Magistrates Court and also at the Old Bailey where he was charged with the murder of Chris Kaba on September 5th last year.
He was granted Conditional Bail and is expected to stand trial for murder next year.
Sir Mark Rowley, the Metropolitan Police Commissioner, just hours after NXI21 appeared in court held a meeting with around 70 firearms officers who were concerned about the development.
Now, these officers have handed back their weapons to the Metropolitan Police and are refusing to carry out their duty. Their strike action comes as the London Mayor Sadiq Khan has warned that the Metropolitan Police may be broken up if the force does not clean itself up in the next three years.
Khan said that a policing board should be set up to oversee and scrutinise the force’s review of culture and standards.
The Labour Mayor said that the board must help the Met ‘get its act together’ and did not rule out ‘breaking up the Metropolitan Police force if that did not happen.’
However, the truth is that the Met Police cannot be reformed. Its job is to use all the necessary violence to maintain the rule of the ruling class over the working class.
This it has done with extreme brutality, in line with its method of rule. Since 1990, there have been 1,870 deaths in or following police custody or contact in England and Wales, as recorded by INQUEST. In that time, there has only been one successful prosecution of a police officer for manslaughter in 2021, and none for murder.
There have been ten other murder and manslaughter charges following deaths, which did not result in successful prosecutions.
Both successful and unsuccessful prosecutions have also been brought following deaths in police contact under Health and Safety legislation. Other criminal charges against officers, such as perjury and misconduct in public office, have been brought following deaths in custody but most have led to acquittals or not guilty verdicts.
Meanwhile, Home Secretary Braverman has given her full support to the Met saying Met officers ‘have to make split second decisions’ and ‘must not fear ending up in the dock for carrying out their duties.’
However, in a joint statement, Kaba’s family said: ‘Chris was so very loved by our family and all his friends. He had a bright future ahead of him, but his life was cut short. Our family and our wider community must see justice for Chris.
‘We welcome this charging decision, which could not have come too soon. Now we await the trial of the firearms officer without delay and hope and pray that justice will be served.’
However, the reality is that the ruling class have the police force that they want, ready and able to attack workers to maintain the rule of capital.
Everybody can see that a general strike is developing rapidly in the UK. Everybody can see that the state requires a police force ready for any desperate measure to smash a general strike and maintain capitalism. It has the police force that it wants, and aims to strengthen it further so as to be able to work with the army against mass strikes and the prospect of a general strike.
There is only one way forward in the UK for the working class. This is to build the WRP and organise a revolutionary leadership to lead a socialist revolution to smash capitalism and bring in socialism.
Only the WRP and its YS youth movement fights for this perspective and policy. Join today to organise the British socialist revolution!
