The Garda Síochána said today it would be implementing the recommendations of a human rights 'audit', which says among other things that the force needs to identify "institutional" racism and to further protect the rights of those subject to police powers.
The Garda said the plan, which follows a report by an independent management consultancy, will commence tomorrow.
Recommendations in the report include one urging the Garda to strengthen and enhance the roles of the Garda Human Rights Office and the Racial and Intercultural Office.
It also recommends that the force "protect the human rights of its staff", that it encourage the recruitment, retention and progression of a more diverse policing service and that it provide human rights and race and diversity training for all staff. More support should also be provided to staff to report human rights abuses, the report says.
The recommendations also say the Garda should undertake a "human rights impact assessment" of all existing and forthcoming policy and operational procedures, including the Garda Code.
The Garda Commissioner Noel Conroy said he "fully accepts" the 15 individual recommendations in the report and that he intended acting on them. "To this end, a five point action plan has been devised and will commence on the 1st April 2005, with conclusion dates fixed for each of the 15 specific objectives," a statement from the Garda press office said.
The recommendations will be introduced on a phased basis, with all of them in place by December 31st 2007. Mr Conroy has given Assistant Garda Commissioner Nacie Rice specific responsibility for monitoring, overseeing and implementing the objectives of the management report.
The Irish Council for Civil Liberties welcomed the report, describing it as an "important step" for the Garda.
Aisling Reidy, Director of the ICCL said the audit shows that there is a lot of work to be done within the Garda, "but we are glad to see commitment to that work is apparent".
"The audit certainly offers an opportunity, which we look forward to sharing, to ensure that there is greater embedding of a human rights culture in policing and how a police service is delivered in Ireland," Ms Reidy added.
The report is based on research of Garda policy documents and reports from external sources such as Amnesty International and the ICCL. Ionann also conducted interviews with 17 senior Garda staff, including the Commissioner. A questionnaire was completed by 1,242 staff, including gardai and civilian support staff.
The body also conducted focus groups with 203 staff in Dublin, Cork, Portlaoise and Galway and held two community meetings involving 40 people from 25 community and voluntary groups.
Ionann Management Consultants delivered the report in June last year. Its aims were to examine the Garda's policies and assess the extent to which they comply with international standards.