for FitWatchers
Downloads:
(From the main fitwatch site)
Info & Resource Sites:
A collar number, also known as a shoulder number, Force Identification Number (FIN) or occasionally as Force Number (although this can also refer to an ID number of a force itself) identifies uniformed officers, Police Community Support Officers (PCSO), and some police staff in UK police forces. Although now displayed on epaulettes (i.e. on the shoulder), it is still commonly referred to as a collar number.
In smaller forces it is simply a one to four digit number, but in larger forces a one- and two-letter code (also known as a Division Call Sign) is usually added to indicate the officer’s base area or unit.
freeB.E.A.G.L.E.S. is a non-profit collective run by campaigners for campaigners. The articles provided are equally applicable to human rights, animal rights and environmental activists.
Useful tips from the Animal Rights Copwatch website.
The IPCC’s job is to make sure that complaints against the police are dealt with effectively.
They claim to set standards for the way the police handle complaints and, when something has gone wrong, help the police learn lessons and improve the way they work.
The Information Commissioner’s Office is the UK’s independent authority set up to promote access to official information and to protect personal information.
If you’re filmed by the police at a demo or protest you have the right to obtain a copy of the photographs/footage they took. This is probably the best place to make your initial application.
An introduction to how the police are structured, especially for ‘public order’ situations; the command hierarchy; common tactics and police methodology.
This is intended to provide a short UK guide to the main legal restrictions on the right to take photographs and the right to publish photographs that have been taken.
The guide was written by Linda Macpherson LL.B, Dip.L.P., LL.M, who is a lecturer in law at Heriot Watt University, with particular experience in Information Technology Law, Intellectual Property Law and Media Law.
The guide is a 2 page PDF, it will print out front and back of an A4 page allowing you to make leaflets to hand out. The guide is intended as an overview of the current legal situation in the UK for photographers, it is not a definitive bible of UK law.
Media Sites:
According to my understanding, the fitwatch project is intended to fulfill two primary functions:
a) to protect lawful campaigners/protesters from unwarranted harassment by the police FIT in whatever manner is appropriate/possible/legal;
b) to expose to public scrutiny the harassment that police FIT perpetrate upon lawful campaigners/protesters.
In pursuit of the latter it seems the most viable approach is to document (by photo, video, or whatever other medium is available at the time) the identity/activities of the police FIT and then promptly render such documentation a matter of public record by publishing to various media outlets.
To this end the Web is an invaluable tool and, in addition to the sites listed on the Links page, the following media sites may also be used:
(For photographs)
(For video clips)
Social networking sites such as MySpace, SiteSpaces and Newsvine may also offer potential worth exploring.
If you know of any additional resources/info/media sites that could usefully be listed here please let us know!
Written by admin -
Visit Website
fitwatch blog