There was widespread condemnation over the weekend of the PSNI's decision to include the controversial Taser stun gun in the force's arsenal of weapons.
The PSNI this weekend embarked on what it called a pilot scheme where it can use the Tasers when deemed necessary. The weapon can now be used as a "tactical option" by specialist firearms officers in "pre-planned operations and to support officers in dangerous and difficult situations", the police said. They will not be issued to officers generally, the PSNI added.
The PSNI said that hitherto it was the only force in Britain and Ireland that did not have access to Tasers. Assistant Chief Constable Roy Toner, who is in charge of the pilot scheme, said officers had been trained to the highest national standards, which included adherence to human rights procedures.
"I believe Taser will save lives - it gives the police service a greater range of tactical options and actually advances human rights. In situations where there is a real risk to life or serious injury to officers, members of the public or the criminal, Taser remains a much more preferable alternative to shooting someone with live ammunition," said Mr Toner.
However, Sinn Féin and SDLP members of the Policing Board, Martina Anderson and Dolores Kelly respectively, deplored the decision to purchase the weapons.
Ms Anderson accused Chief Constable Sir Hugh Orde of ignoring a "wealth of evidence" about the "deadly nature" of Tasers. "He has ignored the concerns of the Policing Board. He has ignored the views of the Equality Commission and respected human rights organisations and he has ignored the evidence which shows that Tasers have been involved in the deaths of hundreds of people internationally," she said.
Ms Kelly accused Sir Hugh Orde of "flouting" the views of the Policing Board. "The chief constable's argument about Tasers already being deployed in Britain and the Republic is quite simply irrelevant," she said.
"For very good reasons we have a higher standard of accountability here, and it is not acceptable that those standards should be subject to any operational considerations. This decision is premature, but more importantly, it goes against the very principles of our accountability mechanisms," added Ms Kelly.
Amnesty International said it was deeply disappointed at the decision while the Relatives for Justice group said it was a "black day" for human rights.