OSCE fosters professional development of penitentiary officers in Kyrgyzstan

BISHKEK, 17 August 2012 – A one-month training course by the OSCE Centre for officers representing all of Kyrgyzstan’s correctional colonies and remand prisons concluded in Bishkek today.

Hosted by the training centre for prison and probation staff of Kyrgyzstan’s State Penitentiary Service, it consisted of lectures and practical exercises on more than 40 subjects, including legislation, human rights standards and torture prevention, as well as security and administrative matters. Drills and physical training were also held.

Twenty-seven operational mid-ranking officers from penal colonies and prisons across Kyrgyzstan took part to improve their theoretical knowledge and receive practical training. High-ranking officers from the penitentiary system, professors from a number of Kyrgyzstan’s universities and an expert from the OSCE Centre in Bishkek delivered the training.

“The officers of Kyrgyzstan’s penitentiary establishments consistently demonstrate their enthusiasm and determination to increase their professional level, acquire new knowledge, share experiences and learn from their colleagues,” said Miroslaw Nowak, the Penitentiary Reform Adviser at the OSCE Centre in Bishkek and a trainer on the course. “Such training courses are an effective way of transmitting best international practices and standards of working in accordance with democratic principles, and they help support penitentiary officers to organize routine administrative activities in the most efficient way.” 

Mavlen Abdukul uulu, the Chief of the Unit for Analysis and Strategic Planning of the Main Headquaters of the State Penitentiary Service, said: “I am convinced that the participants took on most of what was delivered by the trainers, and that this knowledge will serve them in successfully accomplishing their every day tasks.”

Nazira Osmonova, the Director of the Training Centre, added: “We encourage you to further develop your skills and enrich your knowledge. The work of penitentiary officers is very difficult and often goes unacknowledged - if the situation is stable and secure, it means that you are doing your job well.”

This course was organized as part of a larger long-term OSCE project aimed at supporting the reform of Kyrgyzstan’s penitentiary system.