In Burkina Faso, anchoring a culture of human rights within the Police Forces
“I have discovered that human rights are at the centre of everything we do as supervisors.”
Those are the words of Police Assistant Jean Samtouma, after he took part in a two-day training course on the respect and protection of human rights among police officers in Burkina Faso.
I have discovered that human rights are at the centre of everything we do as supervisors.
The training took place on 24 to 26 April and together with 24 other Police Supervisors, Mr. Samtouma participated in the course jointly organised by The National Police in Burkina Faso and the Danish Institute for Human Rights (DIHR).
A step in the right direction
The partnership between The National Police in Burkina Faso and DIHR was established in 2013, and according to DIHR Strategic Advisor, Elsa Morandat, the training constitutes a further step in the emergence, integration and anchoring of a culture of human rights within the police schools.
Human rights trainings is only one aspect of the partnership, which also includes development of learning material and improvement of the police’s own control mechanisms to deal with human rights violations.
“The training provided an opportunity to remind supervisors that human rights are at the heart of their missions”, says Elsa Morandat.
Playing a key role
According to Ms. Morandat, the supervisors are responsible of preparing the students for the execution of their future missions.
“The technical supervisors play a key role throughout the training of police students, and therefore it is of utmost importance that they do not only have a theoretical knowledge about human rights, but that they also keep them in mind in everyday life”, says Elsa Morandat.