Croatian representatives study Portuguese community policing methods

ZAGREB, 1 July 2003 - A central Croatian police chief and a Croatian journalist have just returned from a two-weeks' training course in Portugal focused on that country's well-developed community policing programmes and the way media and police interact.

Korenica 's Police Chief, Drazen Zivcic met Portuguese Police officials and saw first-hand how Portuguese community policing works in action.

"I have come back with a number of ideas related to promoting and implementing the Croatian Community Policing model that I will be proposing to my superiors," he said, shortly after returning home Saturday.

Globus journalist Nelija Vrzina accompanied the Korenica Police Chief to Portugal so as to gain an insight into how local media interacted with the police forces and vice versa and which issues pertaining to community policing were effectively reported.

"The Portuguese Police recognise the important role media plays in a democratic society. I feel I understand better now the way police communicate with media" the Globus reporter stated.

Now that he has returned to Croatia, the Korenica Police Chief plans to share the knowledge and experiences he brought back from Portugal with his colleagues throughout the country.

He has been particularly interested in the "Safe Schools" programme, aimed at ensuring a secure school environment and preventing drug and alcohol abuse, and the "Safe Elderly" program that trains police to be specifically sensitive to the most vulnerable residents in any community, particularly in Croatia where the elderly constitute a majority population.

The visit, hosted by the Portuguese Interior Ministry and National Police, was organised by the OSCE Mission to Croatia, the Croatian Ministry of the Interior and the Portuguese Government.