SURINAME'S POLICE ACADEMY TAKING FULL ADVANTAGE OF

UNCLAS PARAMARIBO 000072

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR WHA/CAR - LLUFTIG
DEPT FOR INL/LP NBOZZOLO, KBROWN
CARACAS FOR LEGATT

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KCRM SNAR EAID PGOV PREL NS
SUBJECT: SURINAME'S POLICE ACADEMY TAKING FULL ADVANTAGE OF
INL ASSISTANCE

1.(U) Summary. In July 2005 Post through its International
Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) program funded
the renovation of a classroom building on the campus of the
Surinamese Police Corps' (KPS) training academy and donated
translation and presentation equipment. Since the much-
needed overhaul of the dilapidated building, the classrooms
have been in constant use, allowing KPS members of all
ranks to enhance their skills in a variety of areas,
including forensic investigations and human rights. End
Summary.



2. (U) Over the two past years, the KPS has made a
concerted effort to increase the quantity and quality of
its officer force, which is roughly 1,200 people in size.
During 2005, nearly 200 recruits completed basic level
training, while the KPS is on track to train an additional
300 recruits by the end of the first quarter of 2007.
Suriname's Chief of Police Delano Braam told the Embassy
that the KPS is also making long-term investments in its
middle and senior level personnel through additional
managerial and technical training. In order to reach its
goals, the KPS police academy has been upgrading its
facilities to attract the highest quality recruits and
provide a professional learning environment for current KPS
members that meets international standards.


3. (U) Post's classroom project dovetailed into the KPS
efforts for increased quality training opportunities. The
majority of classroom buildings at the academy are in sub-
standard condition where a lack of air-conditioning exposes
learning materials and computer equipment to tropical
humidity. Through its INL program, Post renovated the
ceilings, walls, and floors of one classroom building and
installed air conditioning units. The renovations turned
an unusable space with a leaky roof into two modern
classrooms that now house computers available for
information technology classes along with space for
international training seminars.


4. (U) Since the completion of the renovations six months
ago, the KPS, often in cooperation with Dutch law
enforcement experts, have used the classrooms to conduct
courses on techniques in forensic investigations; human
rights responsibilities in policing; relations between
police officers and defense attorneys and prosecutors;
handling victims of crime; domestic violence and sexual
abuse; and how to improve police relations with the public.


5. (U) With the renovated classrooms, the police academy
now has suitable facilities to host future INL funded FBI
training courses, the first one being planned for May.
Having trainings at the academy will result in significant
long-term savings since we will no longer need to rent
expensive hotel conference halls as training sites. The
donation of translation equipment also saves the rental
costs of such equipment for future USG funded training.
The translation equipment will also enable Dutch-speaking
Suriname to take advantage of possible training
opportunities with experts from its French, Portuguese, and
English speaking neighbors.


6. (U) KPS Chief Braam recently relayed his deep
appreciation to the USG for the police academy project. He
said that he was very pleased with the results thus far and
feels that the project is making a contribution to his
management team's efforts to increase the quality of the
KPS police force and to bring the KPS training program up
to international standards. The director of the police
academy told the Embassy that he has plans to upgrade other
classroom facilities with KPS resources using the renovated
classroom building as the standard. Post feels these new
plans exemplify the cooperative relationship between Post's
INL program and the KPS.

LEONARD