DDHK News, United States - The New York Police Department (NYPD) has stopped spying on Muslims in the city. The intelligence unit to spy on Muslims that was carried out since 9/11, is now unemployed.
Reported The New York Times (15/4/2014), the Muslim spy squad, known as the “Demographic Unit” which was later renamed the “Assessment Zone Unit”, had been neglected since William J. Baton served as commissioner of the NYPD in January 2014. The detectives in the unit it will be transferred to another unit.
This unit is planned to be closed soon. This decision was taken after the central government said it would review their policies after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in New York.
The Demography Unit was originally set up to identify vulnerable locations where terrorists might mix with the community. Detectives in plain clothes are usually deployed to places suspected of being radicalization points. The aim is to provide early warning to police about plans for terrorism. There are dozens of detectives in this unit doing 28 kinds of jobs.
Usually undercover police will get information from employees who work in companies owned by a Muslim. In addition, the police in this unit were given the understanding that any place in the mosque could become a "den of terrorists".
That is why, the mosque is their main target. The detectives recorded the number plates of the mosque visitors, recorded the names of the congregation and recorded the sermons with hidden recording devices.
With mapping and photos, the police can pinpoint the activities of Muslim New Yorkers, such as where Albanians used to play chess, Egyptians used to watch football or South Asians used to play cricket.
After years of gathering information, this practice turned out to be useless. The intelligence action against Muslims in New York did not provide any information about future acts of terrorism. It is proven that there are no Muslims in New York who are terrorists.
Apart from that, this unit has also drawn criticism from Muslims. At least three lawsuits have been filed for the NYPD. Last month, a judge rejected a lawsuit because this unit was not proven to have harmed Muslims. However, two more lawsuits are still being discussed.
“The Demography Unit creates a psychological burden in our community. Their documents show where we live, the cafe where we eat, where we worship, where I shop. They can see everything in the document. And it damages the community psychologically, "said Linda Sarsour of the New York Arab American Association. © VIVA.co.id
