The first police officers to be equipped were on Monday, the cameras to be "provided gradually to all police officers", the Spanish Interior Ministry told AFP without further details, in particular on the duration of the stay. process.
These cameras will be worn on uniforms and can be activated manually or automatically, depending on the situation, according to Spanish public television (TVE).
They will be used to "know everything that happened in the event of an incident during an operation and always keeping the citizens informed" of the presence of these cameras, explained the Minister of the Interior on Friday, Fernando Grande Marlaska, in an interview with TVE.
"If they are activated, it is to be able to be really transparent (...) It is a security for the policeman and a security for the citizens", he added.
The main police union, Jupol, welcomed a measure it had requested.
"This will guarantee security, both ours, to avoid any type of erroneous description of our interventions, and that of citizens, who will be able to see our professionalism," said Jupol spokesman Pablo Pérez.
France experimented with "pedestrian cameras" in 2013, before starting to deploy them very gradually from 2015. The measure was welcomed by the police, but received with skepticism by certain associations fighting against discrimination, according to which there is no guarantee of permanent activation of these cameras.
Elsewhere in Europe, cities like London, but also Mechelen, in Belgium, have also equipped their police force with such devices.
In the United States, New York police officers are also equipped with on-board cameras.
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