Police receive critical INTERPOL training to combat human trafficking

Oct 27, 2016 News

Guyana is receiving significant help from INTERPOL to fight human trafficking.
Several officials of the Guyana Police Force recently benefitted from training,

Participants from the Guyana Police Force’s Immigration and Criminal Investigations Departments in the INTERPOL Trafficking in Persons ‘Victim Identification, Referral and Assistance Training’ held in Trinidad and Tobago.

according to the Ministry of Public Security.
INTERPOL (The International Criminal Police Organization –ICPO) is an inter-governmental organization facilitating international police cooperation.
The entity is currently conducting training on combating “Human Trafficking and Migrant Smuggling in the Caribbean”.
According to the Ministry, yesterday, a number of Caribbean governments have joined with INTERPOL to improve the Caribbean’s institutional capacity to combat the problem.
Last April, the Ministerial Task Force on Trafficking in Persons welcomed INTERPOL to Guyana for a Trafficking in Persons Needs Assessment.
“This needs assessment, along with corresponding activities conducted in other Caribbean countries, has given rise to a series of training courses for officers who work in combating trafficking in persons in Guyana and the rest of the Caribbean.”
For five days in September, Superintendent E. Wray and Inspector P. Harris of the Guyana Police Force’s Immigration Department and W/Sergeant 19981 Castello, Corporal 19822 Pitama and W/Constable 21232 McBean of the Criminal Investigations Department, Major Crimes Unit attended a ‘Victim Identification, Referral and Assistance Training’, in Trinidad and Tobago.
The course targeted law enforcement agencies which work with victims of trafficking in persons in their daily operations.
Trainers sought to equip participating officers with enhanced skills in effectively detecting potential victims and responding to cases of trafficking in persons, the ministry explained.

Presenters and participants in the Trafficking in Persons Training Course for Investigators from the Guyana Police Force’s Criminal Investigations Department, Major Crimes Unit.

In September also, for four days, Assistant Superintendent V. Hunte, W/Inspector A. Solomon and Corporal 18351 D. Jones –Prosecutors with the Guyana Police Force – attended another training course entitled ‘Human Trafficking Training for Legal Authorities’. The training also took place in Trinidad and Tobago.
“This training course targeted judicial authorities engaged in the prosecution of human trafficking cases with the aim of facilitating an increase in the capacity to successfully prosecute these types of cases in the Caribbean.”
Very shortly, two more regional workshops- ‘Investigative Skills Training for Human Trafficking Investigations’- will be conducted.
The ministry disclosed that stemming from the ‘Victim Identification, Referral and Assistance Training’, Commissioner of Police (ag), David Ramnarine, DSM, organized a local two-day training course for 13 officers from the Guyana Police Force’s Criminal Investigations Department, Major Crimes Unit which was held on September 26 and 27, 2016 at the Guyana Police Force Officers’ Training Centre, Camp and Young Streets.
The training included presentations by the very officers who benefitted from INTERPOL Training along with representatives of the Ministerial Task Force on Trafficking in Persons, including non-governmental organizations.
“The Task Force intends to ensure that information gained through the training workshops extended by INTERPOL is further distributed among agencies with responsibility for combating trafficking in persons in Guyana through training courses and other means.”
Human trafficking has been significant with indications pointing to instances especially in the mining and logging areas.
Women especially are held against their will, their identification cards and passport confiscated by persons.
The US government had flagged Guyana on a watch list, but the country has since taken steps to improve its standings.

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