Police in Northern Ireland are working on a “more robust approach” to dealing with racist posters and graffiti.
Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) Chief Constable Jon Boutcher said he wants an “incredibly clear message sent about these issues”.
Belfast was rocked with disorder following an anti-immigration protest on August 3rd with rioting and businesses owned by members of the minority ethnic communities were attacked.
While the scale of the disturbances have not been seen since, there have been a series of incidents including assaults, graffiti and attacks on homes and businesses.
Earlier this week, police removed an anti-immigration sign from a roadside in the Co Tyrone village of Moygashel.
On Thursday morning, police said they were investigating reports of ongoing racial abuse directed at children in south Belfast. They appealed for information around reports in the Teutonic Gardens area of verbal racial abuse and antisocial behaviour by a group of young people directed at a woman and two young children, over the last two months.
Meanwhile, it also emerged this week that provisional police figures indicate that race hate incidents have risen by a third over the last year.
Speaking a meeting of the Northern Ireland Policing Board on Thursday, Mr Boutcher said the PSNI was working on a “more robust response” to removing racist posters and graffiti quickly.
He described recent disorder as having been a “watershed moment”.
“There is sufficient legislation to deal with these issues that allow us to quite meaningfully deal with this,” he said.
“You will see a more positive response ... I am conscious of freedom of speech issues, which are often rightfully put in front of me, but where things reach a threshold of engaging criminal offences, we should deal with them quickly and send a very clear message about these issues.”
To date, there have been 48 arrests around the disorder, including three in Derry on Thursday morning, with 35 people charged to court
Mr Boutcher told the board: “The violence and intimidation subsequently suffered by our diverse communities here in Northern Ireland was a disgrace. Everyone needs to call this out. This is criminality, and this violence will not be tolerated.
“I witnessed first-hand the fear and the despair these criminals – during those nights of disorder – brought to our Muslim and diverse communities. This will not be tolerated.
“There is no place for it and we will police it as strongly as the law permits me to.”
Also on Thursday, Mr Boutcher said he is aiming to boost his force to 7,000 officers.
The PSNI currently has about 6,300 officers, well below the 7,500 level recommended in the Patten Review.
Mr Boutcher said that when taking into account sickness absence and duty restrictions, they have in the region of 4,500 deployable officers.
He said he is preparing a recovery plan to address officer numbers and that “we cannot lower our numbers any further”.
The PSNI was recently bolstered by 80 officers from Police Scotland after a mutual aid request over the August disorder. – PA