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The first 138 new Afghan policemen, who have been trained by a mixture of British soldiers, MOD police and other security sector personnel at the Interim Helmand Police Training Centre located in Lashkar Gah, graduated yesterday, Thursday 28 January 2010.
Helmand Deputy Governor Sattar Marzakwal, Major General Ghulam Ali Wahdat, the Afghan Chief of Police in Regional Command South, and Brigadier James Cowan, the Commander of Task Force Helmand, all attended the graduation ceremony to send off the 138-strong graduating class.
Addressing the graduates, Mr Marzakwal said:
"You have the responsibility of serving the Afghan people with dignity.
"Our people face problems in this country; however, we can solve them because you can solve them. The only wish our people have is security for our country. Fortunately, we have brave and honourable forces who can bring us peace."
Brigadier Cowan reiterated Mr Marzakwal's call for provincial security and said the newly-trained policemen were the first step toward a safe, happy, and prosperous Helmand. He added:
"The task ahead is to bring security to Helmand in order to allow development and economic prosperity. In that task, a professional and effective police force is crucial.
"The policemen who graduate today will join the ranks of the Helmand police force, deploying their new-found skills where they are most needed."
Before the graduation ceremony, groups of graduates demonstrated their skills in two separate policing situations. One group cleared a compound, apprehending insurgents using proper detention techniques. The other displayed vehicle and detainee search methods.
Not only were the graduates proud to demonstrate their skills, but they were glad to have had the opportunity to learn from their instructors, said one graduate, Muhammad Wasri:
"We had professional mentors who taught us everything about the military way of life," he added, continuing that ambush skills, weapons training and tactical patrolling were the most useful skills he had learned.
Helmand Deputy Governor Sattar Marzakwal presents an Afghan National Police course instructor with a certificate of appreciation as Brigadier James Cowan, Commander of Task Force Helmand, looks on
[Picture: Copyright Private First Class Luke Rollins 2010]
He also said this training has readied him for his first assignment in the Nad e-Ali district.
Joining him there will be Guardsman Michael Harrison, a member of the 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards and an instructor for this initial training cycle. He said:
"To see them actually graduating now is fantastic. Now my unit is moving out, and we'll get to see them at the checkpoints. Training them has actually benefited us just as much as it's benefited them."
The Interim Helmand Police Training Centre (IHPTC) was stood up in December 2009 to help with the recruitment push for 160,000 policemen across Afghanistan by the end of 2010.
The recruits train on policing skills such as weapons handling, first aid, and vehicle searches.
The recruits receive literacy training and are familiarised with the Afghan constitution and rule of law.
The IHPTC borrows a curriculum for police training from similar training centres in Kandahar and Kabul, adding a level of professionalism to regular pay and provided uniforms.
150 recruits are trained in each cycle.
In March 2010, when the IHPTC is operating at maximum capacity, three cycles will run simultaneously, totalling 450 recruits at a time, and up to 2,550 students a year.
The facilities will continue to grow along with the enrolment. A 100-metre firing range is currently under construction and plans for a counter-IED course are on the horizon. A more permanent, concrete facility is a long term goal.
The combined efforts of the Ministry of Interior and ISAF means the Afghan National Police are going from strength to strength.
The Helmand Provincial Reconstruction Team's funding, and more than 200 international staff, are provided by the UK, US, Danish and Estonian Governments as part of the 43-nation NATO commitment to Afghanistan.
Ministry of Defence | Defence News | Defence Policy and Business | First Afghan Police graduate from Helmand training centre
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