ANNEX

HANDBOOK FOR POLICE AND SECURITY AUTHORITIES CONCERNING COOPERATION AT MAJOR EVENTS WITH AN INTERNATIONAL DIMENSION

I. INTRODUCTION

I.1 Purpose

I.2 Basic principles

II. INFORMATION MANAGEMENT

II.1 Contact points

II.1.1 Permanent contact points

II.1.2 Event-related contact points

II.2 Exchange of information

II.3 Threat assessment and risk analysis

III. EVENT MANAGEMENT

III.1 Responsibilities of involved authorities and services in the organising Member State

III.2 Maintaining public order and security

III.2.1 Public order and security

III.2.2 Dealing with criminal offences

III.2.3 Terrorist threats

III.3 Operational cooperation with other Member States

III 3.1 Cross-border cooperation

III.3.2 Operational support

III.3.3 Liaison officers

III.3.4 Observers

III.3.5 Financial arrangements and equipment

III.3.6 Communication plan

III.4 Media strategy

III.5 Instruction, training and exercise

IV. EVALUATION

IV.1 Event-related evaluation

IV.2 Strategic evaluation

ANNEX A Standard form for the request for liaison officers or officers to provide other types of operational support

ANNEX B Risk analysis on potential demonstrators and other groupings

ANNEX C Standard form for exchanging information regarding individuals posing a terrorist threat

ANNEX D Standard form for exchanging information regarding groups posing a terrorist threat

ANNEX E Reference documents

ANNEX F Permanent contact points concerning public order

I. INTRODUCTION

I.1. Purpose

The purpose of this handbook is to serve as a practical instrument providing guidelines and inspiration for law enforcement authorities in Europe undertaking responsibility for security at major events with an international dimension (such as the Olympic Games or other major sporting events (1), major social events or high-level political meetings e.g. the G8-summit). Accordingly, the principles set out in this handbook should only be applied where appropriate and useful as well as in full compliance with national legislation. They also should not prejudge any arrangements set out in bilateral Agreements or Memorandums of Understanding.

This handbook is a living document to be amended and adjusted in accordance with future experience and the development of best practices (see IV.2 Strategic Evaluation).

The Security Handbook for the use of police authorities and services at international events such as meetings of the European Council and the Handbook for the cooperation between Member States to avoid terrorist acts at the Olympic Games and comparable sporting events have been integrated into the current version of this handbook. Law enforcement authorities dealing with a major event with an international dimension need to ensure the security of the event both from a public order perspective and from a counter-terrorism perspective. Depending on the nature of the event (political, sporting, social, cultural or other) one perspective may be more relevant than the other and may be dealt with by other authorities but both perspectives need to be considered.

I.2. Basic principles

The enforcement of law and order should be guided by the principles of legality and proportionality and moderation, giving preference to the less intrusive approach. Whenever possible, a de-escalating police approach should be chosen based on dialogue, negotiated management of public space and partnership.

The law enforcement authorities of the Member States responsible for security at major events with an international dimension, in particular at political events, must seek to ensure that human rights, in particular the right freely to express opinions and to assemble in a peaceful manner in accordance with the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, are fully respected. Interference from persons or groups whose objectives or actions involve violence or other acts of a criminal nature should be prevented to the furthest possible extent.

Although the host Member State is primarily responsible for providing security for the event, given its international character all other Member States and European Union (EU) competent bodies have a responsibility to assist and support the provision of such security.

II. INFORMATION MANAGEMENT

II.1. Contact points

II.1.1. Permanent contact points

According to Council Joint Action 97/339/JHA of 26 May 1997 with regard to cooperation on law and order and security (2), at least one permanent contact point must be established by each Member State.

Contact details and other relevant information on the permanent contact point(s) should be provided to the General Secretariat of the Council (whose e-mail address can be found in Annex F) for distribution to the Member States. Any relevant changes regarding the permanent contact point(s) of a Member State should be reported in the same way.

Every permanent contact point should be able to meet the following standards:

— 24-hour availability (to the necessary extent before, during and after an event),

— staff with sufficient language skills in at least one other language of the EU institutions,

— permanently operational lines of communication and information structure including phone, fax and e-mail, where relevant secured via encryption, and access to the Internet,

— sufficient translation capacities for the exchange of information.

II.1.2. Event-related contact points

For each major event with an international dimension, each Member State should designate one or more event-related contact points. Depending on national legislation or structures, this may be the same as the permanent contact point(s). Every event-related contact point should be able to meet the above-mentioned standards.

The organising Member State informs the permanent contact points of the other Member States (see Annex F) of the details of the event-related contact point(s). Each Member State then informs the organising Member State of its own contact point(s) for that event.

The tasks of the event-related contact point(s) could include facilitating:

— the collection and analysis of information nationally as well as from other Member States, third countries, relevant EU bodies and other sources of information,

— quality control relating to form and content,

— the establishment of reliable and efficient lines of communication to relevant key players —nationally and internationally — secured lines being preferred,

— the exchange of information through existing secure communication lines,

— the exchange of information in cooperation with other Member States, third countries, relevant EU bodies and other international institutions,

— the dissemination of processed information to their respective security services, police authorities and other services, such services of the organising State, as well as authorities and services in other Member States and relevant EU bodies, as appropriate,

— the provision of threat assessment and risk analysis on potential demonstrators and other groupings for the organising Member State,

— the observation and evaluation of the event and follow-up to it.

II.2. Exchange of information

A Member State should without delay forward information which its national authority considers to be relevant for the security of an event in another Member State to its counterpart in that Member State. When forwarding information Member States should be conscious of their obligations in terms of its confidentiality.

The exchange of information should be carried out through existing communication channels and structures. The exchange of information, including personal data, should be conducted in strict compliance with the provisions of national and international law and treaties applicable in each case (3).

It should be facilitated by the contact points of the Member States involved.

After being processed, the collected information should be distributed to relevant authorities and services. Contacts between security services, police authorities and services in different Member States may be coordinated and organised by their respective contact points.

The contact point(s) in the organising Member State should facilitate the collection, analysis and exchange of relevant information on the event with other Member States, third countries and relevant EU bodies or other international institutions. The information could, inter alia, include:

— information and intelligence obtained prior to the event that can potentially affect the course of the event or the maintenance of law and order and security in general,

— persons involved in terrorist organisations, terrorist actions or other major criminal activities, which might be indirectly related to terrorism,

— the level of threat against officials (heads of states and governments, members of parliament, other VIPs, etc.), athletes, visitors/spectators and venues. In addition to the host Member State, which has primary responsibility, all other Member States should independently contribute relevant information in respect of these persons,

— other information on targets and interests of EU Member States or of third countries in the organising country with a view to their better protection,

— information and intelligence related to potential demonstrators and other groupings,

— information obtained or requested during the event relating to persons suspected of having committed a criminal offence, including their names, dates of birth, places of residence, background, the circumstances of arrest and/or an exact description of the committed offence,

— information on applicable legislation and police policy on law-enforcement (in other Member States or third countries),

— incident and evaluation reports and contributions to these.

II.3. Threat assessment and risk analysis

An appropriate and timely assessment of the threats (related to terrorism, public order, organised crime and others) posed to the international event is of central importance in security terms. Alongside the specific assessment of the relevant threat, an analysis covering the collection, evaluation and dissemination of security-relevant information referring to a given specific situation should be made.

Apart from the intelligence available to the organising State itself, information and evaluations provided by other Member States will be the basis for the analysis. At the earliest possible stage prior to the international event, each contact point should provide to its counterpart in the organising State a permanent threat assessment, i.e. on individuals or groups expected to travel to the event and deemed to pose a potential threat to the maintenance of public law and order and/or security (such as known potential demonstrators and other groupings). The assessment should be forwarded to the organising Member State as well as other affected countries — i.e. transit or neighbouring countries.

This analysis can be structured in accordance with the framework analysis set out in Annexes B, C and D. If no such information is available, the organising State should be informed accordingly. The Member States should send it to the organising State as soon as possible by appropriate means using existing secure communication lines.

Europol can, in accordance with its mandate and the Convention on the establishment of a European Police Office (Europol Convention) (4), provide relevant information and analysis as well as draw up general threat assessments on the basis of contributions by Member States. This information should be available at the earliest possible stage. If no such information is available, the organising State may be informed accordingly.

The selection of suitable, necessary and appropriate security measures should be based on the threat assessment, covering the probability of potential harm, and on risk analysis.

For this reason, the responsible organising State, supported where appropriate by other Member States and EU competent bodies, should draw up an updated threat assessment and risk analysis six months before the relevant event at the latest. As the event approaches, the information should be updated on a regular basis. A monthly analysis should be forwarded in each of the last three months before the event and, if necessary, on a weekly basis before the event. Such assessments and analyses should be shared among contributing States and bodies.

During the event, daily situation reports should be issued. The reports should be based on information provided by the organising State, other Member States and EU competent bodies. The assessment of the level of risk posed should be based on the most up-to-date information provided by visiting police or event contact points. The information should be as comprehensive as the available information allows.

III. EVENT MANAGEMENT

III.1. Responsibilities of involved authorities and services in the organising State

The competent authority of the organising Member State should draft an overall operational plan on the basis of which all further detailed plans are made. It should also establish a set of plans covering the policy level (strategic) as well as the overall operational level (operational) and the actual level of deployment on the ground (tactical). The planning procedure should commence at the earliest possible stage.

Prior to an event, the organising Member State should ensure that the roles of all involved authorities and services are clearly defined and that their respective responsibilities are communicated to all relevant parties.

The organising Member State could produce an overall matrix to reflect all involved processes and key players (e.g. organisation of the meeting, security provision, maintenance of law and order, judicial services, social and preventive services, health services, public transport and other infrastructure matters). This ‘blueprint’ could be a useful tool to visualise the planning framework as well as ensure that all necessary processes are covered.

A coordinating project group for the event could be set up comprising representatives of all authorities and services involved. The group should meet regularly prior to, during and after the actual event in order to ensure that decisions are made in a coherent and coordinated way. A prime responsibility of the group should be to ensure efficient lines of communication between all authorities and services.

The responsible authorities and services should ensure the presence of material, technical and personnel resources that are required to perform the assigned duties with the necessary efficiency, quality and swiftness. A database on all available resources and corresponding contact points would be a very useful tool for the organising Member States.

The police authorities of the organising Member States should ensure that all necessary agreements and arrangements regarding policing efforts are made with the practical organiser of the event. The organiser has the primary responsibility for the event and according to the nature of the event a list of requirements to be met should be drawn up. The arrangements could, inter alia, include:

— locations of the event where no public disturbances should occur (meeting facilities, hotels),

— entrance control and possibly perimeter security and responsibility for each of these,

— security measures to be undertaken by the organiser, i.e. internal video surveillance,

— complete and constantly updated exchange of information on delegates and other participants in the event (name, function, length of stay, accommodation, transport, etc.),

— arrangements with regard to VIPs and hotel security.

III.2. Maintaining public order and security

III.2.1. Public order and security

Adhering to the basic principles set out under Section I.2, the competent authorities of the organising Member State should establish a clear overall policy for the police approach at international events. This overall policy could include policies such as:

— police actions are characterised by guaranteeing the protection of peaceful demonstrations,

— the police should, through dialogue and a credible state of preparedness, maintain the initiative, thereby limiting or preventing riots or larger disturbances,

— the police should, at its discretion and when appropriate, demonstrate a low level of police visibility and a high level of tolerance regarding peaceful gathering and demonstrations,

— arrests should be made for purposes of criminal prosecution or temporary detention, etc. in accordance with national legislation,

— police efforts should, in general, be concentrated on groupings that are planning to instigate disturbances or demonstrate the desire to do so,

— cooperation with other Member States, third countries, EU bodies and international institutions on relevant areas such as borders should be promoted.

The organising Member State of more than one event on its territory should ensure that the police policy on law enforcement is, to the furthest possible extent, harmonised for the different events. Where appropriate, the policy may also be coordinated with other Member States.

The competent authorities in the organising Member State should at an early stage initiate a dialogue with individuals and groups (including activist groups and demonstrators), local authorities, relevant infrastructural services, the local population and other key players in order to ensure that gatherings and legitimate demonstrations are carried out in a peaceful manner. The dialogue should be based on shared responsibility. It should commence at an early preparatory stage and be utilised as a tool before, during and after an event.

The establishment of a constructive and mutually respectful network will serve to prevent potential disturbances as well as serve as an instrument for mediation in a confrontational situation.

Dialogue structures or teams should be established at the national level and take into account the different cultures in the different Member States in the preparation and implementation of their task (5).

Channels of communication between the competent authorities and the various organisations, civil associations and representatives of demonstrators should be set up. The organisers of demonstrations and all relevant parties may be advised on:

— practical matters (i.e. accommodation and logistics),

— relevant applicable legislation regarding demonstration, freedom of speech, civil disobedience, etc.,

— police policy on law enforcement in matters where discretion can be exercised, and instructions on the use of force by the police,

— contact points within the police and other relevant authorities.

Distribution of the above information in different languages is a measure to be considered (e.g. through folders, websites). The information may be supplied to foreign visitors through the respective contact points.

III.2.2. Dealing with criminal offences

The Member States' law enforcement agencies should — in accordance with the applicable legislation and the stated policies — aim at a systematic criminal investigation process towards offences committed in connection with violent demonstrations or other disturbances during the major event.

All defined and sustainable criminal offences should, in principle and in full accordance with national law, lead to criminal prosecution in the organising country or by competent legal authorities in another country. If an immediate law enforcement action in the organising Member State is not possible, the other Member States should make every effort to identify and prosecute their own nationals in accordance with national legislation, the present evidence and the circumstances of each case.

The organising Member State should make arrangements to ensure that sufficient resources are available for arrests and investigation of criminal offences, and that sufficient facilities are available for custody and pre-trial detention. It is advisable to plan for a worst-case scenario with larger numbers of perpetrators.

Accordingly, the law enforcement authorities should be geared to tackling a larger quantity of work and have the appropriate capacity to:

— make speedy decisions on the use of pre-trial detention,

— make speedy decisions on investigation measures requiring a decision by a court of law,

— try a larger number of criminal cases,

— respond to legal requests from other Member States.

III.2.3. Terrorist threats

Due to the fact that the EU and some of its Member States are important players in international politics, the EU and its Member States are likely to be targets of politically or religiously motivated international terrorists. Apart from international terrorists attacking the EU or its Member States at major events, there is a possibility of attacks by terrorist groups or organisations located within the EU or its Member States.

The aims of such terrorist attacks could be the event itself, VIPs, politicians of the EU, national delegations of Member States or the public taking part in the event. The presence of the international media is an important point from the perpetrators' perspective, since this offers a platform for the presentation of the group's or organisation's ideology.

For the prevention of terrorist attacks, information and intelligence about terrorist groups and organisations is essential and should be available at all times. Therefore it is important for the organising Member State and its law enforcement agencies to share information and intelligence in general and as appropriate to the event. The law enforcement agencies should decide which terrorist groups, organisations and individuals could be relevant, and check their own data base according to the event. In addition, all other Member States should independently contribute relevant information with respect to those groups, organisations and individuals.

The selection of suitable, necessary and appropriate security measures should be based on threat assessment and risk analysis.

III.3. Operational cooperation with other Member States

III.3.1. Cross-border cooperation

Cross-border cooperation will be necessary when the organising Member State and involved countries implement a flexible, joint border regime to intensify police efforts in the border regions adapted to the concrete situation or threat. If appropriate, joint or coordinated preventive patrols and controls should be carried out.

For Member States applying the relevant parts of the Schengen acquis, Articles 23 to 31 of the Schengen Border Code (6) on temporary reintroduction of border control at internal borders can be a useful instrument to prevent individuals or groups who are considered to pose a potential threat to the maintenance of public law and order and/or security from travelling to the location of the event.

The necessary arrangements for a quick and efficient implementation of the potential expulsion measures should therefore be prepared.

III.3.2. Operational support

The organising Member State may, in accordance with national legislation (7), request the deployment of police or intelligence officers for operational support from another Member State for a specific event. A detailed request for operational support, including an account of the reasons for the request, should be made at the earliest possible stage. To this end a standard form is set out in Annex A.

Depending on the type of requested support, the appointed officer(s) should have the necessary knowledge and experience relevant to the designated tasks.

Any operational support provided by foreign officers should be included in the operational plans of the competent authorities of the organising State. Accordingly, foreign officers should:

— be included to the furthest possible extent in the operational information structure,

— be briefed on the operational plans and relevant policies, including instructions on the use of force, etc., in one of their working languages,

— be offered the opportunity to acquaint themselves with the venue and deployed police forces, etc., prior to the event,

— attend all relevant briefing sessions (i.e. relevant to their task and where the briefing is in a language they understand), and

— where appropriate, be actively included in the police deployment on the ground.

The organising competent authorities are responsible for the physical security of the foreign officers. It is the responsibility of the foreign officers to ensure that their actions do not cause unnecessary conflict, danger or unjustified risks.

When deployed on the ground, foreign officers should at all times refer to and, as a rule, be under the supervision of members of the host country's competent authorities who are properly briefed on the operational plan and able to communicate in a language that the foreign officers understand. The communication lines between foreign officers, the host contact(s), the management of the police forces deployed and other key players should be efficient and fully functional during the event and, to the necessary extent, also before and after the event.

III.3.3. Liaison officers (8)

At the request of the organising Member State, each Member State or EU/other competent organisation may appoint liaison officers for an event, where relevant. A request for liaison officers should be made at the earliest possible stage and no later than six weeks prior to the event. To this end a standard form is set out in Annex A.

Interested Member States may request an invitation to send a liaison officer to the organising Member State.

Liaison officers may be exchanged in accordance with bilateral arrangements between the organising Member State and other Member States involved.

The liaison officer should be appointed no later than two weeks before an event, at which point the cooperation should commence. The organising State should, in close collaboration with the other Member States, decide upon the appointment and tasks of the liaison officers through their respective contact points.

The liaison officer, according to his/her skills, can be assigned to (any of) the host contact point(s) to take charge of communication with the home State, in which case the appropriate means of communication should be provided by the organising Member State.

Liaison officers should play an advisory and assisting role. The foreign liaison officers should be unarmed and have no official police authority in the host country (9). Depending on their specific task, liaison officers should have appropriate experience in the maintenance of law and order or the field of counter-terrorism and, in particular, should have:

— a thorough knowledge of their national organisation and authorities,

— experience in maintaining public law and order at high profile events,

— access to all useful information sources in their home State, including information on extremism and other relevant groupings from police as well as other relevant sources,

— the ability to organise intelligence efforts nationally prior to and during the event and analyse relevant information,

— good knowledge of the working language(s) chosen by the organising Member State.

Liaison officers should immediately upon their arrival report to their assigned contact point in order to clarify their designated tasks and mandate. The organising Member State will organise this accreditation process.

II.3.4. Observers

Member States may, with the consent of the organising Member State, send observers to gather experience in security and the maintenance of law and order at international events for future events in their home countries. If so requested, the observer may provide an input for the evaluation undertaken by the organising Member State.

Observers should, to the fullest possible extent, be permitted to attend planning sessions, briefings, coordination meetings, operational deployments and other activities in order to maximise the benefit of the visit. Observers should immediately upon their arrival report to the assigned contact point. The organising Member State will organise the accreditation process.

III.3.5. Financial arrangements and equipment

The organising Member State should usually cover the accommodation and subsistence costs of invited foreign officers travelling to its territory. Travelling costs are usually covered by the home country.

All costs related to observers sent to the organising Member State should be borne by the sending State. The organising Member State could, if possible, provide the necessary means of communication and other facilities for the observers.

The organising Member State may arrange for support from other Member States with regard to temporary provision of equipment or other resources when possible, through bilateral/multilateral Agreements.

III.3.6. Communication plan

An adequate flow of information between police authorities and other services should be secured by means of a detailed communication plan. All involved parties within the organising Member State should develop a joint communication strategy to avoid overlaps or the dissemination of incomplete information.

In order to avoid gaps in knowledge (e.g. language) there should be integration of liaison officers or other personnel within the communication plan.

Other forces (e.g. fire brigade, rescue services) should also be integrated into the communication plan.

III.4. Media strategy

In order to ensure an accurate and timely media coverage of international events, a pre-defined strategy for relations with the media should be in place before, during and after an event.

The media should be given the fullest possible degree of freedom to cover the event, thus safeguarding the right to free expression of opinions in accordance with the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. The media strategy should be geared towards openness and transparency.

It is recommended that a single point of contact be appointed for the media to ensure a coordinated media coverage. Well in advance of the event, the organising Member State should establish an overall media strategy to include, inter alia:

— designation of a point of contact for the media which will direct the media to the relevant spokespersons,

— designation of the area of competence of each spokesperson, and

— the information to be given to the public on police measures and the steps which will be taken in the event of disturbances.

III.5. Instruction, training and exercise

The development of the European instruction, training and exercise (ITE) programme is based on international strategic agreements and jointly-developed procedures and working methods. By participating in ITE activities, officials, teams, organisations and countries can prepare for events such as those described in this handbook (10).

Major events as defined in this handbook involve international and cross-border aspects and require:

— exchange of information between the Member States regarding the event (information management),

— knowledge of police organisation in the organising Member State,

— acquisition of experience of major events and exchanges of information thus gained: seminars on lessons learned and case studies.

The above elements can then be used as input allowing this handbook to be continually updated and improved.

European Police College (CEPOL) has a role to play in the development, design and practice of ITE. Where possible, ITE activities should be integrated into existing CEPOL processes and products.

IV. EVALUATION

IV.1. Event-related evaluation

The organising Member State should initiate an evaluation of security activities during the event and other relevant factors. All key personnel should be invited to contribute to the evaluation, which should be based on the prior planning of the event. In the evaluation process, the organising Member State may make use of evaluations from other Member States, but this should be agreed in advance.

The organising State should assemble an evaluation report as soon as possible once the event has ended. Where incidents of any kind have arisen, the evaluation report should also include an incident report.

Following the event, a debriefing should be held and a general evaluation report regarding relevant security aspects drawn up. The report should make special reference to public order disturbances (or absence thereof), terrorist threats and incidents, criminal offences, groups involved and lessons learned.

The report and/or lessons learned should form the basis for the ITE process (see III.5). CEPOL should ensure the implementation of international lessons learned in the ITE programme. The individual Member States are responsible for their implementation at national level. The report will be distributed by CEPOL to national police academies.

The report should be distributed through the event-related contact point(s) to the relevant EU bodies and other involved or otherwise interested countries or bodies in order to ensure that lessons learned or recommendations are made available for future organisers of a major event with an international dimension.

IV.2. Strategic evaluation

In order to share experience and best practices an expert meeting should be held whenever needed, to be organized by the competent Council working party.

The participants should be senior police officers with experience in maintaining public law and order at major events with an international dimension. One of the topics of this expert meeting should be the further development and adjustment of this handbook in the light of experience from recent events.