What are your thoughts when you see an RCMP officer? Do you feel fear, distrust, do you sense their superiority and their arrogance at times.

Or do you feel confident and safe enough to approach a police officer when you need help or just information?

Did you know that the police are public servants? Your tax dollars pay their wages. The RCMP and the British Columbia Police Code of Ethics, with which they are required to honour states their primary responsibilities.

Police officers of British Columbia, along with their respective organizations and agencies affirm the following:

These are defined in terms of three key relationships.

First, there is the public; their basic duties are to protect lives and property, preserve peace and good order, prevent crime, detect and apprehend offenders and enforce the law, while at the same time protecting the Rights and Freedoms of all persons as guaranteed in our Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

In fulfilling these duties, they must strive for excellence. This includes the exercise of professional discretion and judgment in a manner consistent with our Fundamental Principles and Guiding values.

Recognizing, however that the ability of the police to perform their duties is dependent upon public approval and support, we must provide open responsive, impartial and, accessible service.

By safe guarding the public trust we will be responsible to the public and accountable publicly for what we do.

The people of British Columbia expect the police to serve with courage, fairness, integrity, and to apply democratic principles that honour human dignity in the pursuit of justice.

I feel the police failed very badly last week. While my husband and I were on our way to the pharmacy, I saw a native man sitting hunched over on the ground at the corner between the old Super Value store and the pharmacy, and there was another man standing over the first man. It looked like the man may have been injured. After we parked our car, I told my husband, “I am going over there to see what is happening.”

There was an ambulance there as well as the police pickup truck. People were just looking on. I sure did not expect the treatment I received from the police officer.

I must have been about fifteen feet from the scene when a police officer stopped me.

She spoke in a very load voice, so others could hear her, I am sure.

She asked, “What business do you have coming here, do you know this man, are you related to him?”

She told me, this man is not allowed to be in town when he is drunk. So, how was I to know that this man sitting on the cold pavement was drunk?

No, I replied, I just wanted to make sure he was all right. Then she said in another very load voice, in a threatening tone, “if you do not leave, I will arrest you.”

I asked her, “On what charges will you arrest me?”

“For asking about a native man and if he is all right?”

She walked towards me in a threatening manner, telling me once again, leave now, or I will arrest you ma’am. She even placed her hand on her pistol.

As an afterthought, I should have let her arrest me in front of all those people that she used to insult and humiliate me.

My human dignity was not in her consideration nor did she honour my dignity in her pursuit of justice.

Now that wouldn’t look right on the front page of the newspaper – a native elder arrested for asking questions concerning a native man sitting on the cold pavement.

I really believe the RCMP need to work on their safeguarding the public trust and equality.

The local RCMP should be busy tracking down the real criminals, the drug dealers, and not some poor drunk native man.