OSCE STARTS COMMUNITY POLICING PROJECT IN ARMENIA
Panorama.am
20:02 30/10/06
As part of its Police Assistance Programme for Armenia, the OSCE
today kicked off a community policing project in Yerevan, which aims
at improving the co-operation between the country’s police forces
and the public.
"Strengthening the understanding for democratic policing is an
important aspect of Armenia’s development and goes hand in hand with
promoting the respect for human rights", said Ambassador Vladimir
Pryakhin, Head of the OSCE Office in Yerevan, at the opening of a
seminar that introduced the community policing concept to Armenian
police officers.
The OSCE’s Senior Police Adviser, Kevin Carty, said: "Partnership
between the police and citizens is a fundamental basis of democratic
policing, which is why the OSCE pays particular attention to this
element".
Colonel-General Haik Harutunyan, Head of the Armenian Police, welcomed
the participants and the OSCE’s close co-operation with the police and
noted that this co-operation is not only strengthening and increasing
day by day, but also gives tangible, effective and useful results,
the evidence of which is elaboration and introduction of community
policing.
The project is one of four components of the OSCE’s Police Assistance
Programme for Armenia, which also includes refurbishing and improving
the standards of the country’s Centre for Induction Training, where
non-commissioned officers of the Armenian police receive their
initial training.
A key goal of the initiative is to increase public confidence in the
police and to improve the exchange of information between the police
and the community.
The project will involve the community in the prevention and solving
of crimes, increasing the knowledge among Armenian police officers of
European policing ethics and human rights standards, and providing
practical on-the-job advice for officers working in the Arabkir
police district.
For the coming year, two international police experts – Charles Riordan
from the United Kingdom and Rita Korotenko from Ukraine – will conduct
training seminars and workshops in Arabkir district. They will also
give advice on a daily basis to the police officers working there.
The project is implemented by the OSCE Office in Yerevan together
with the Armenian Police.