Why are our police so dogged by political correctness?

FOLLOWING news that Tayside Police were forced into full repentance mode after issuing an information card featuring a puppy, comes a report that police sniffer dogs are to be kitted out with bootees to be worn when entering Muslim enclaves.

According to the Times:

Police sniffer dogs will have to wear bootees when searching the homes of Muslims so as not to cause offence.

The report reveals that guidelines are being drawn up by the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) to raise awareness of religious sensitivities when dogs are used to search for drugs and explosives. The guidelines, to be published this year, were originally designed to cover mosques but have been extended to include other buildings.

Mosques? Really? And there was us thinking that footwear had to be REMOVED when entering these monuments to Islamic superstition. Brace yourselves for more outrage.

The report says that where Muslims object, officers will be obliged to use sniffer dogs only in exceptional cases – and they will have to wear bootees with rubber soles.

ACPO said.

We are trying to ensure that police forces are aware of sensitivities that people can have with the dogs to make sure they are not going against any religious or cultural element within people’s homes. It is being addressed and forces are working towards doing it.

Problems faced by the use of sniffer dogs were highlighted last week when Tayside police were forced to apologise for a crime prevention poster featuring a German shepherd puppy, in response to a complaint by a Muslim councillor.

That this is just another example of the authorities falling over themselves in a bid to take offence on behalf of Muslims was made clear by Imam Ibrahim Mogra, who – in a refreshing display of good sense – dismissed the measures as unnecessary:

In Islamic law the dog is not regarded as impure, only its saliva is. Most Islamic schools of law agree on that. If security measures require to send a dog into a house, then it has to be done. I think ACPO needs to consult better and more widely.

I know in the Muslim community there is a hang-up against dogs, but this is cultural. Also, we know the British like dogs; we Muslims should do our bit to change our attitudes.

And John Midgley, co-founder of the Campaign Against Political Correctness, said:

The police are in effect being overly sensitive to potential criminals and not being sensitive enough to the public at large who need to be protected. These sort of things have a counter-productive effect because they cause huge friction between different communities.

Caroline Kisko, of the Kennel Club, added:

We would not condone any attempt to make search dogs wear special clothing, which could cause them distress.

NOTE: The picture above shows a German police dog in Dusseldorf wearing special protective footwear. The city’s entire dog unit was being fitted out with the blue plastic fibre shoes to prevent injuries caused mainly by broken glass.

Said a police spokesman:

All 20 of our police dogs – German and Belgian shepherds – are currently being trained to walk in these shoes. I’m not sure they like it, but they’ll have to get used to it.

See full report here.