OSCE Mission organizes diversity training for Serbian police

BELGRADE, 8 October 2007 - A two-week course for police trainers on working in diverse communities begins today in the OSCE Mission to Serbia's Advanced Police Training Centre in Zemun.

Over 30 police officers from the Interior Ministry will take part in the course, designed to develop a corps of national police trainers on diversity and minority issues. The course graduates will go on to provide training for all members of the Serbian police.

"The OSCE Mission is committed to working closely with the Interior Ministry to reform the police service into a democratic institution that values the rights of all members of the communities in which they serve" said Edward Kabina, OSCE Community Policing Programme Manager at the opening ceremony.

Experts from the Diversity Department of the Kent Police College in the United Kingdom will facilitate the training module, with plans to hand over the course to local trainers to help ensure the programme's sustainability.

The course, supported by the OSCE Mission in partnership with the British Council, the Kent Police Service and the Serbian Interior Ministry, is part of the Ministry's ongoing diversity programme, which aims to enable the police to effectively manage the challenges of policing in a diverse and multicultural society.