Thus, after a period of six years, German Police University will again host about 130 national and international participants. For the programme of the conference, renowned police scientists could be attracted, among them Professor James Sheptycki from York University (Toronto, Canada).
The EU agency CEPOL, established in 2001 as a network, presently comprises the 28 Member States of the European Union (EU) as well as Iceland, Norway and Switzerland. Germany’s representative in this network is the German Police University.
The expert speeches will focus on the impacts which the present financial crisis and the ensuing budgetary constraints will have on security and policing. Further main topics are community policing and the way of dealing with minorities. The participants will have the chance to gain an insight into present findings of police research and innovative policing concepts.
Most severely hit by these crises are people in precarious economic conditions, among them many young people. The concerns and anger of these population groups manifest themselves in protests and social upheaval. It is also under these conditions that the police have to ensure the balance between security and freedom. In this context, they are often seen as a symbol of an unloved state power and attacked accordingly.
The effects of thesedevelopments can, however, not be ignored by those countries of the Euro region not directly affected. Here, an increase in anti-Semitism, incidents of aggressions against Roma folk as well as discrimination against migrants and asylum-seekers or refugees who have been living in Europe for a long time can be observed.
Whereas up to now the quality of policing has been regarded as a touch-stone for democracy, it is nowadays increasingly being judged under the aspect of its capability to contribute to social balance and justice in society. This phenomenon has become widely known as “police accountability” – an issue on the agenda of police scientists above all in English-speaking countries, in the Dutch-Belgian region and in Scandinavia, and now a further main topic on the agenda of the conference.
Moreover, the conference will treat questions and problems of police history; here in particular the question of how police systems have adapted to changed conditions will be a priority issue to be addressed. Last, but not least, the impacts of police training and further education – keyword “Bologna Process” - will be analysed.
