Best neighbourhood inspectors from Bishkek and Chuy Province receive awards in OSCE-supported event
BISHKEK, 10 November 2010 - An OSCE-supported competition to mark the "Neighbourhood Inspector Day" took place today in the Chuy province Police Department.
The competition was created to encourage feedback from the population on neighbourhood inspectors' work in four Bishkek district police departments and five regions in the Chuy province.
The jury comprised senior police officials, heads of local self-government bodies and representatives of the non-governmental organizations Neighborhood Watch and HelpAge International. The winner in the main nomination "Best neighbourhood inspector" received a digital photo camera. The jury selected the most friendly and responsive inspector and the most active one. It also honoured an inspector in the category "Friend of the older people". The winners received honorary certificates and prizes.
The main selection criteria were the inspectors' style of work with people, ability to collaborate closely with local authorities and public organizations, as well as positive feedback from the public - the elderly, members of housing committees and representatives of municipal territorial governance units and village administrations.
Tarmo Viikmaa, Community Police Adviser of the OSCE Centre in Bishkek, noted: "Feedback from people and their recognition of the inspector's effort should be key criteria for evaluating the work of the law enforcement system as a whole and of each police staff member in particular. Participation of the general public in the evaluation of the police' work is a positive development that symbolizes successful promotion of community police principles in Kyrgyzstan."
Rustam Mamyrov, the Head of the Public Safety Department of the Chuy Province Police, said: "Competitions such as this one motivate our staff working in the field, improve their performance and raise their professional confidence. They help them understand the importance of their work and to look at its results through the eyes of the people."
The competition is part of the project "Improvement of public safety in collaboration with the elderly" implemented by a non-governmental organization HelpAge International and funded by the OSCE Centre in Bishkek's Police Reform Programme.