The International Committee of the Red Cross and the Myanmar Police Force began a four-day seminar on international policing standards in the Rakhine State capital, Sittwe, on December 10.
The seminar, which will also cover the discretionary use of police powers, is the first such event to be held for police officers in Rakhine State, the ICRC said in a statement issued in Yangon on December 10.
Other topics to be covered at the seminar include public-order management and riot control, the use of force and firearms, arrest and detention, and search practices, the statement said.
It said 35 senior police officers from the rank of captain to lieutenant colonel were taking part in the seminar, being conducted by Mr John-Erik Jensen, the ICRC’s regional police expert who has more than 30 years experience as a policeman.
"We are delighted to continue expanding our dialogue with the Myanmar Police Force," said MrJürgMontani, the ICRC's head of delegation in Myanmar.
"Through its work with police forces around the world, the ICRC has gained expertise in addressing the challenges that face law-enforcement officers in various situations,” MrMontani said.
The seminar in Sittwe follows a similar event in Nay Pyi Taw in September, which was the first of its kind for police commanders to be held in Myanmar by the ICRC, which is based in Geneva.
The ICRC, a strictly humanitarian and non-political organization, together with the Myanmar Red Cross, are working with local authorities in Rakhine State to strengthen and improve access to the health-care system.
The statement also said the ICRC was helping to develop sources of income for violence-stricken communities in the state.
Major outbreaks of communal violence in Rakhine State in June and October last year claimed scores of lives and left tens of thousands of people homeless, many of whom have since been living in camps.
