GHANA POLICE SERVICE GRADUATES INSTRUCTORS AND

UNCLAS ACCRA 001291

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPT PLEASE PASS INFO ALL AFRICAN DIPLOMATIC POSTS

JUSTICE FOR ICITAP, OPDAT
NSC FOR COURVILLE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PHUM PINS ASEC SOCI GH
SUBJECT: GHANA POLICE SERVICE GRADUATES INSTRUCTORS AND
CADETS WHILE REFLECTING ON PROGRESS IN REFORMS

SUMMARY
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1. Speaking at two recent graduation ceremonies for
ICITAP-funded instructor development courses and the Ghana
Police Service's 39th Cadet Officers' Course, GOG officials
confirmed Ghana's commitment to ongoing training and lauded
advances in the police training program, but admitted that
shortfalls remain. President Kufuor challenged officers to
protect citizens' rights while avoiding being unduly
influenced by friends and family. Minister of Interior
Kan-Dapaah praised integration of the ICITAP curriculum into
Ghana's police training program. ICITAP graduates challenged
their superiors to tackle problems in Ghana's current
training programs. As a sign of continuing U.S. support for
modernization of the Ghana Police Service (GPS),the
Ambassador announced donation of 200 pairs of handcuffs. End
Summary.

GRADUATING GHANA'S FINEST
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2. As part of ongoing efforts to support the modernization of
Ghana's police force, the Embassy took part in two recent
graduation ceremonies for officers of the Ghana Police
Service (GPS). On May 22, the Ambassador delivered remarks
along with Minister of Interior Albert Kan-Dapaah and
Inspector General of Police (IGP) Patrick Acheampong at a
graduation ceremony at Ghana Police Headquarters in Accra for
sixty-four participants in two eight-week "Basic Police
Skills Instructor Development" courses. The Bureau of
International Narcotics and Law Enforcement (INL) funded the
courses, which were led by instructors from the Department of
Justice's International Criminal and Investigative Training
Program (ICITAP). The Commandant of the Ghana Police
College, numerous high-ranking members of Ghana's law
enforcement community, ICITAP trainers Robert Coburn and
Darryl McEachern and Embassy Poloffs also attended.


3. Later that week, on May 26, the Ambassador and Poloff
attended a graduation ceremony for the 39th Cadet Officers'
Course held at the National Police Training School at Tesano,
just outside of Accra. In contrast to the indoor and more
intimate ICITAP graduation ceremony, the event on the parade
grounds at Tesano consisted of marching, honoring of arriving
dignitaries, cheering by crowds of supportive family members
and an address by President John Kufuor, who commissioned the
officers. Minister of Interior Kan-Dapaah, Minister of
National Security Francis Poku, members of the diplomatic
corps and most of Ghana's high-ranking law enforcement
officers also attended.

GHANA'S COMMITMENT TO ONGOING POLICE TRAINING
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4. GOG speakers at the ICITAP graduation on May 22 focused on
the government's commitment to support further training for
Ghana's police. Noting that over 600 Ghanaian police
officers of all ranks have been trained through ICITAP
courses since Ghana's relationship with the program began in
1998, IGP Acheampong assured attendees that training remains
a top priority of the administration.


5. "The police, perhaps more than any other institution,
require regular training," said MOI Kan-Dapaah. Policing in
a democratic society is a particularly difficult job,
Kan-Dapaah continued, because officers must use their
judgment about how and when to apply the law and must do so
while protecting citizens' rights. Ghana is ready to embark
on a national wealth development program, but must protect
its early gains. The GOG will pursue efforts to empower
police with the tools they need to help prevent erosion of
these gains, Kan-Dapaah said.

TRAINING YIELDS ADVANCES, IDENTIFIES SHORTFALLS
-------------- --


6. The latest round of ICITAP-funded courses were
specifically structured for Ghana, emphasized IGP Acheampong.
The two eight-week courses covered a wide range of skills
such as human rights, policing in a democracy, use of force,
communications, civil disobedience, ethics, building and
vehicle searches, and officer safety and survival, among
others. As train-the-trainer courses, they also covered

conducting needs-analysis, using presentations and role-plays
in teaching, and fostering teamwork among trainees.
Attesting to the usefulness of the courses, IGP Acheampong
confirmed that his Working Group for Curriculum
Standardization had recommended that the full ICITAP
curriculum be inserted completely into the current Ghana
Police Service basic training program. In her subsequent
remarks, the Ambassador noted that the Ghana Police Service
had replicated the entire ICITAP basic training program
earlier in 2006, reportedly the first time this has occurred
in Africa.


7. Despite the positive tone of the ICITAP graduation
ceremony, however, some speakers were not afraid to point out
shortfalls in the GPS' current training programs and admonish
the police for recent failures. Offering advice to the IGP
during a report from the trainees' perspective, one officer
said that through the ICITAP training courses, the students
realized that their current training program puts too much
emphasis on drill and repetition, yet too little emphasis on
basic police skills at the cadet level, techniques for
vehicle and building searches, officer rescue and use of
force. Perhaps most important is lack of training in proper
weapons handling, leading to a spate of recent incidents in
which police have fired upon and killed civilians. In a new
training program that the students developed, and which they
plan to deliver to the IGP, weapons handling would become an
integral part of the program, the student said. The
Ambassador, praising the graduates for their achievements
while reminding them that much work remains in modernizing
Ghana's police force, told attendees she had taken note of
the students' report and that the United States would work
with the IGP and Ghana Police Service to tailor future
trainings accordingly.

GHANA APPRECIATES INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT
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8. MOI Kan-Dapaah and IGP Acheampong uniformly expressed
their appreciation for assistance provided by the United
States through the ICITAP program. "Though Embassy staff
come and go, the spirit of cooperation continues," IGP
Acheampong said, adding approvingly that USG funding remains
uninterrupted through staff rotations. Confirming that U.S.
support would continue, the Ambassador surprised the ICITAP
ceremony audience by announcing that the United States would
donate 200 pairs of handcuffs to the GPS.

KUFUOR PRAISES GRADUATES, CRITICIZES MAINTENANCE
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9. President Kufuor, speaking at the 39th Cadet Officers'
Course graduation on May 26, echoed the need for ongoing
training raised by speakers at the May 22 ICITAP ceremony,
saying that training must be updated continually to meet the
challenges of modern policing. Police must always be mindful
of their responsibility toward society, and the public, in
turn, must support the police in order for them to be
effective. In particular, the public must avoid seeking
"undue influence" among the police through friends or
relatives, Kufuor said.


10. Noting that the 39th Cadet Officers' Course is the
largest training group since inception of the Ghana Police
College in 1959, President Kufuor praised the increasing
quality of incoming students, with incoming cadets now
normally possessing advanced degrees. Making tacit reference
to ICITAP, Kufuor lauded the police college for developing a
new curriculum for modern policing and for incorporating
skills and experience acquired by Ghanaian police who have
participated in international peacekeeping missions or in
overseas training programs.


11. President Kufuor also took a few moments to admonish the
police service, however, expressing dismay at officers'
laxity in maintaining government-provided equipment. Kufuor
directed that the GPS immediately put measures into effect to
curb such problems.

BRIDGEWATER