THE POLICE: INL TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE UPDATE -

UNCLAS TBILISI 000493 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR INL/AAE, G/TIP, EUR/ACE, EUR/CARC E.O. 12958: NA TAGS: SNAR PGOV MARR KCRM GG SUBJECT: THE POLICE: INL TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE UPDATE - FIRST QUARTER CY08 Ref: TBILISI 60 ¶1. Summary: INL Tbilisi activities in the first quarter of 2008 run the gamut from forensics to first aid. Some ongoing projects were completed with fanfare, e.g., opening of the Police Academy's English Language Center, while others are being launched, such as evaluation and assessment of Georgia's fingerprint database capabilities. Training programs for forensic ballistics examiners, military personnel, and horse-mounted police officers continues. End Summary. Fingerprint Database -------------- ¶2. Two FBI CJIS (Criminal Justice Information Service) representatives visited Tbilisi January 20-25 to evaluate fingerprint programs in Georgia and explore how the USG might support Georgian law enforcement and begin sharing fingerprint records. INL Tbilisi is committed to supporting the purchase and installation of an automated fingerprint identification system (AFIS) and accompanied the CJIS team on their assessment. The CJIS representatives met with Laboratory Directors and fingerprint section personnel to assess techniques and record-keeping at both the National Forensics Bureau (NFB) and the Ministry of Internal Affairs' lab. Both labs have skilled personnel and demonstrated appropriate techniques for completing a standard 10-print fingerprint card. The Ministry of Justice's NFB Lab does not have an automated database for storing prints but files the cards according to the Henry classification system (most common internationally). The MOIA lab maintains an automated fingerprint database, but the system -- manufactured in Belarus -- has limited capabilities. ¶3. The CJIS representatives held a joint meeting with Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs Eka Zguladze and Deputy Minister of Justice Maia Kopaleishvili to provide an outbrief. The Ministries agreed that a new AFIS system would be administered by the Ministry of Justice, -- with full access available to users -- including the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Agreement between the ministries on the system's administration had been a major impediment to a new AFIS purchase. With agreement now in place, INL, under the aegis of its ongoing forensic development project, will support the visit of a contract fingerprint specialist to map a way forward. The specialist will travel to Tbilisi in April to develop tasks, timelines, and identify forensic and law enforcement personnel who will be the GOG's point of contact for the procurement process, the development of SOP's and quality assurance mechanisms, as well as training on a new AFIS system. Forensic Ballistics -------------- ¶4. February 4-13, ATF Advisor Richard Gryzbowski provided joint training for forensics ballistics examiners from Georgia's National Forensics Bureau (Ministry of Justice),the Ministry of Internal Affairs forensics lab, and two firearms examiners from the Armenian national forensics laboratory. The training followed on a previous session in Armenia last November, as well a visit to a firearms factory in Poland last July. During this training segment, examiners were given a proficiency test designed to be more difficult than U.S. firearms examiners routinely take every year to maintain professional accreditation. The NFB examiners passed the test with flying colors thanks to the availability of a comparison microscope, which INL provided to the lab in September 2007. The MOIA firearms examiners -- without the aid of the modern microscope at their lab -- incorrectly identified some of the evidence. This turn of events was a troubling indicator for Georgian forensics since the MOIA examiners process about 90 percent of bullet and cartridge case evidence from criminal cases. In a subsequent meeting with MOIA Lab Director Gena Shainidze, Mr. Gryzbowski noted the skill and competence of the examiners and cited outdated equipment and poor working conditions as the reason for the MOIA examiners' poor marks. Shainidze noted his intention to purchase a comparison microscope for the lab in the near future. Mr. Gryzbowski will conduct his next training session, jointly again with the Armenian firearms examiners, in June. Anti-TIP Training at Ministry of Defense -------------- ¶5. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) continued to implement INL's anti-TIP training and awareness program for Georgian military personnel. During the week of February 20-26, IOM provided 89 non-commissioned officers and 219 officers with a basic 1.5 hour training on Trafficking in Persons at the NCO and Officer training academies. The training session included the following topics: the Georgian Ministry of Defense's zero tolerance policy on TIP, the internationally recognized definition of TIP, NATO's policy on TIP, Georgian Penal Code Provisions on TIP, various forms of TIP, and reporting mechanisms for soldiers, especially those deployed overseas. ¶6. The format of the training was interactive with a 45 minute power point presentation, a written testimonial from a Georgian victim, 2 case studies, and a True/False Quiz at the conclusion of the presentation. In each training sessions, soldiers appeared engaged and asked many questions, pushing the training session past the 2-hour mark. Some of the questions asked included: -- What does a soldier do when they find a victim? -- Have there been any cases of soldiers caught trafficking in persons? -- What is purpose of the training for soldiers? -- What is difference between an unfair labor contract and trafficking in persons? -- When an employer fails to pay wages--is that trafficking? And finally ... -- Can a soldier shoot a trafficker? ¶7. In January, IOM provided the Ministry of Defense with training materials, including material for the 2000 soldiers now serving in Iraq (Reftel). In March, IOM and the Ministry of Defense, will train instructors at the military academies about human trafficking in order to ensure sustained dissemination of anti-TIP information. First Aid/CPR Training -------------- ¶8. After assessing the inadequate training of Georgian law enforcement on First Aid techniques, INL Tbilisi sponsored a 4 day "train the trainer" seminar on First Aid at the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MOIA) Police Academy February 18-21. The class was attended by 7 future First Aid trainers from the academy staff and the Patrol Police. The chief instructor for the course was Dr. Kakhaber Chikhradze, Chief of Emergency Medicine at the Gudaushauri National Medical Center in Tbilisi. ¶9. Course content focused on topics most relevant for law enforcement officers, including, clearing the airway, CPR, visual examination of a victim and establishing the seriousness of an injury, triage techniques, shock treatment, use of cervical collars, traction splints, vacuum splinting, bandaging techniques, and safe secure movement of patients. The students also received a lecture on assisting in emergency childbirth cases. Police Academy: New English Language Center -------------- ¶10. On Friday March 7, Ambassador Tefft, together with OSCE Ambassador Hakala, MOIA Minister Merabishvili and Deputy Minister Zguladze, participated in a ceremonial opening of the new English Language Center at the Ministry of Internal Affairs Police Academy. The project was jointly funded by INL and the OSCE Mission to Georgia. INL funded renovation of the classroom space, language lab, library, instructor offices and connecting corridors for $47,000. The OSCE provided approximately 20,000 Euros for computer and language lab equipment, and reference materials for the library. INL also provided a $14,400 grant to the Police Academy to fund 3 instructor salaries for one year. The instructors, identified for us by ETAG (English Language Teacher's Association of Georgia),will develop the basic ESP (English for Special Purposes) curriculum and provide classroom instruction. The Academy will pick up the instructor salaries in January 2009. ¶11. In response to a proposal by PAS Tbilisi, the Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs (ECA) awarded a grant to bring an English Language Specialist to the Police Academy for one month to finalize the basic ESP curriculum, oversee its implementation, and develop a specialized curriculum on law enforcement-specific language. PAS is covering the per diem and in-country travel expenses of the Specialist. Horse-Mounted Police -------------- ¶12. On February 25, two Georgian horse-mounted police officers began a 10-week training course at U.S. Park Police Headquarters in Washington, D.C. The training in police equestrian skills includes appropriate techniques for horse-mounted patrolling, with special emphasis on community policing concepts, traffic control and enforcement, ceremonial events, and crowd management. The two Georgian officers were featured in Washington's local Fox News Morning segment March 14. ¶13. Following completion of the course May 5, U.S. Park Police instructor Eric Evans will return to Tbilisi to provide a one-month training course to the entire mounted unit, emphasizing the main skills taught in the 10-week course. INL supports the development of the mounted unit not only as an effective addition to Georgian law enforcement, but also as a vehicle for community outreach. The model of police officer as public servant is a new concept in Georgia, and public skepticism of the police remains. Utilizing mounted patrols will allow the police to project their presence in a more approachable manner, even as they carry out their law enforcement duties. PERRY