PNG Police trained to deal with Human rights cases

The roll-out of human rights training for police officers around the country was launched last week by Chief Training Instructor at Bomana Police Training College, Edwin Maritua, at the closing ceremony of a four-day training workshop on “Human Rights and Law Enforcement” on Friday, 3 March 2017 in Vanimo, West Sepik Province.

Twenty-two police officers, including the only two female police officers operating in Vanimo, West Sepik Province, were the first in 2017 to complete the 4-day training package.
The training modules are designed to strengthen understanding within the Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary (RPNGC) on the obligation to respect, protect, and fulfil human rights while conducting their duties.

The training was held on 28 February to 3 March 2017 and was facilitated by the Bomana Police Training College in partnership with the United Nations (UN) Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), with support from the Ombudsman Commission.
Also speaking at the conclusion of the training, UN Human Rights Adviser, Mr. Kedar Poudyal, commended the twenty-two police officers for bringing “a lot of experiences to the table on practical issues from the field to try to apply human rights” and encouraged the participants to take this knowledge further by sharing with colleagues.

Mr. Maritua commented that “This was one of the first human rights training for Police ever conducted in Vanimo.” Police officers in other provinces in the country will also undergo the same training package, as it is rolled-out across the country this year. He also noted that this training was in line with the new approach to move away from the traditional point of view of only conducting training in Bomana, and the Government’s plans to upgrade the Bomana Police Training College to a National Centre of Excellence.

The training modules were jointly developed by the Bomana Police Training College and OHCHR in 2016, with funding from the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, as part of a project to strengthen rule of law and respect for human rights in PNG.