Turkey, Balkan states lead global police training co-operative

Turkey, Balkan states lead global police training co-operative

Now in its fourth year, INTERPA is a growing international organisation aimed at improving the quality of police training.

Police training academies from Turkey and several Balkan states helped establish the International Association of Police Academies (INTERPA) in 2011. [AFP]

Turkey and several Balkan states have played instrumental roles in creating a multi-national organisation to improve police training.

The International Association of Police Academies (INTERPA) was established in 2011 with the participation of 24 police academies from 22 countries. Turkey, Albanian, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), Bulgaria, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, Romania and Serbia were among the founding members. Today the organisation includes 46 police academies from 40 countries.

INTERPA's aim is to share experiences and knowledge while identifying common problems in police training, including ethics, defence tactics, professional use of weapons, public relations, leadership, and the fight against organised crime.

It also plays a global role in standardising the conduct of police officers to respect the rule of law and human rights at the international level.

"In this way, when tackling crimes, the countries may find opportunities to provide their citizens with best possible police services," the Turkish Police Academy said in a written statement to SETimes.

The organisation's third annual conference will be held May 4th to 8th in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, with a focus on developing police academy teaching staffs.

At its first meeting, held in Antalya in 2012, then-Minister of Interior Idris Naim Sahin called INTERPA a humanitarian organisation...