Changes needed in police after beating incident, says MP

The recent police operation in Vrbnica (Košice region) that allegedly resulted in the beating up of 19 Roma, of which 15 later underwent medical treatment, points to the need for systematic changes in the police, Opposition Most-Hid party vice-chair Lucia Žitňanská told TASR on Tuesday. "The incident from two years ago in Moldava nad Bodvou [Košice region] needn't have been repeated if Interior Minister Robert Kaliňák had carried out two simple things - introducing the mandatory use of video recordings in police operations and the setting up of an independent police inspection", said Žitňanská, adding that the police inspectorate currently comes under the remit of the Interior Ministry. "Human failure can be understood, but the minister's unwillingness to learn a lesson and act accordingly can neither be understood nor excused", she said. Police from the Košice Regional Police Directorate on April 2 carried out a region-wide operation involving 139 officers. Vrbnica was one of the villages where the police were supposed to look for wanted individuals. Kosice Regional Police Directorate head Juraj Leško maintains that no coercive measures were applied in the operation, but mayor of Vrbnica Jaroslav Tokár, who is of Roma origin, told the media that the police beat up some 19 people, of which 15 needed to seek medical help afterwards.