African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights \17 PART 4 POLICING DURING ASSEMBLIES 13. Communication 13.1. Law enforcement agencies should engage in continuous dialogue and negotiation with assembly organisers and participants to proactively address any issues that may arise during the conduct of an assembly operation. Law enforcement agencies should deploy specially trained negotiators to assembly operations for this purpose, based on any need identified during risk assessment and contingency planning. 13.2. Law enforcement officials should maintain open communication with all relevant stakeholders, including assembly organisers and participants, other essential services providers and stewards. Law enforcement officials must proactively and continually communicate the intention of the assembly operation, any limitations or restrictions imposed on the assembly and contingency planning in place with stakeholders, and should consider the appointment of a specially trained communication liaison as a focal point for communication with stakeholders. 13.3. All communication to assembly participants should be clearly audible and made in a language understood by the intended audience, providing the intended audience with sufficient time to follow the instructions of law enforcement officials of their own accord, including any warnings or directions provided. 14. Deployment 14.1. Law enforcement agencies must ensure the visible identification of all law enforcement officials deployed overtly in an assembly operation on an individual basis such as their name or service number. 14.2. In the deployment of officials to an assembly, law enforcement agencies must take into account the potential adverse influence that the visible appearance of law enforcement officials, deployment tactics and equipping of officials at an assembly can have on the way in which an assembly develops. APCOF Guidelines on policing assemblies TEXT.indd 17 12/04/2017 17:07:44