February 2006 include codes for the conduct of operational practices, such as the use of police powers to stop and search people on the street and in other public places. As has already been noted, the police in a democracy are usually the most visible of the public authorities, as well as being those with the most immediate powers over the everyday lives of citizens. It is therefore essential that the police, as representatives of the state, are seen to exercise their powers in an exemplary manner. This requires that the police always act professionally and in accordance with human rights, and apply the law in an impartial and non-discriminatory manner. Police officers are recruited from the wider society, and may vary greatly in their knowledge about and prejudices relating to different minorities. Such prejudices may be shared and expressed openly, or they may be concealed. In either form, they may influence a police officer's behaviour towards particular ethnic groups. There may always be a danger, therefore, that police officers treat members of particular ethnic groups in different ways, whether in a direct or indirect manner, unless active steps are taken to prevent this. Special attention needs to be given to the practice of 'racial profiling'. This is the inclusion of data about race or ethnicity in the profile of persons whom the police consider are more likely to commit a particular crime. Persons fitting the resulting profiles are specifically targeted by law enforcement officials and subjected to measures such as 'stop and search', vehicle inspection, identity checks, etc. Racial profiling involves the use of racial or ethnic stereotypes, rather than individual behaviour, as a basis for making decisions about who is likely to be involved in criminal activity. There is extensive evidence that racial profiling is widely practised on an informal basis across the OSCE region by law enforcement agencies, even though officially it is condemned. The groups subject to racial profiling tend to differ between States, although racial profiling of Roma and Traveller groups tends to be Europe-wide. Whatever the particular ethnic composition of their populations, all States are advised to work towards introducing ethnic monitoring of the outcomes of police operations in order to identify whether or not discrimination is taking place. Such monitoring involves measuring statistically whether or not police operations such as 'stop and search' impact fairly and proportionately on different ethnic groups. Use of monitoring will assist States to ensure compliance with their international obligations (e.g. under the European Convention on Human Rights and the International Convention on the 32