OSCE Office awards community policing certificates to Armenian police officers

YEREVAN, 30 March 2012 – Fifteen police officers were awarded certificates of completion for an OSCE-supported train–the-trainers course on community policing that ended today in Yerevan.

The three-week training course aimed to prepare police trainers on community policing. The Head of the OSCE Office in Yerevan, Ambassador Andrey Sorokin, and the Head of the Armenian Police, Lieutenant-General Vladimir Gasparyan, awarded the certificates to the participants, who included five trainers from the Police Educational Complex and ten operational officers in command positions.

“Community policing training is one of the imperatives for the Armenian police today, especially in view of the fact that it is envisaged to deploy the community policing model throughout Yerevan from 1 June this year. It is our belief that after this training, participants will be able to cascade the acquired knowledge among their staff and students,” said Sorokin.

The first weeks of the course focused on introducing the general concept of community policing, the difference between community and traditional policing, and citizen engagement methodologies. Participants also discussed barriers to the introduction of community policing in Armenia from police and citizen perspectives, as well as ways to overcome them. During the last week, participants delivered their own presentations on assigned topics to demonstrate their acquired knowledge and training skills.

“Community policing is a different approach to policing communities. I am pleased to see that participants are those who could further disseminate this important message around community policing. They all have displayed all the skills to undertake that role and I would encourage managers and senior members of the Armenian police to actively support them in this transition,” added David I’Anson, a community policing expert from the United Kingdom who led the course.

The OSCE Office has been assisting the Armenian Police in introducing community policing since 2006. It is part of a major police reform project aimed at promoting democratic policing practices in Armenia.