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U.K. police in fresh row

By Hasan Suroor

LONDON NOV 2. The British police face more revelations that Asian and black officers routinely suffer intimidation and discrimination, forcing many to drop out even before they complete their training or probation.

The disclosure, contained in an internal confidential report obtained by The Observer, came barely hours after the Commission for Racial Equality (CRE) ordered a full-scale investigation into alleged racist attitudes in the police force following a BBC documentary which showed young white officers openly abusing Asians and blacks.

The paper said the report quoted an officer at one of Britain's leading police training centres as telling an Asian trainee: "If one of my daughters came home with a black man, I'd probably kick him out of the house." The report listed nearly 20 cases of Asian and black officers and civilian staff who believed that they had been discriminated against and humiliated. "The confidential report by the Metropolitan Black Police Association, which has been handed to the force commissioner, Sir John Stevens, says that problems exist across the country," it said.

The report is said to allege that complaints from ethnic minority staff were treated with "apathy and misdirection". It calls for dismissal of racist police officers and criticises the practice where they are simply sent for "racial training". The police was reported to have launched an inquiry into the revelations. "The Met will not tolerate racists and is determined to ensure that people are treated fairly both internally and in its interactions with the public," a spokesperson said.

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