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YouTubeUNODC supports development of community-oriented policing in Kazakhstan
On 20 May the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Programme Office in Kazakhstan (UNODC), in cooperation with the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan and "Legal Policy Research Center" (LPRC) Public Foundation held the Legal Forum “Kazakhstan’s Operational Model of Service-oriented policing: Prospects and Development Strategy” in Nur-Sultan.
The Forum brought together over 165 participants, including high-level officials from state and law enforcement agencies, parliamentarians, representatives of judiciary, academia, international experts, as well as non-governmental and international organizations.
Participants discussed the major aspects of integrating service-oriented approach in the activities of neighborhood police and identifying of priority issues in improving the quality of policing and the level of public trust to police in Kazakhstan.
“The creation of a new police model should be implemented jointly and in close partnership with society. This forum is the first big dialogue on specific steps in this area. We need to carry out a strategic work aimed at quality changes in police, including transformation to human-oriented system without excessive bureaucracy, and transition from paper-based work to real interaction with the people,”- stressed Marat Akhmetzhanov, Minister of Internal of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
“UNODC has been engaging with the Ministry of Internal of the Republic of Kazakhstan to support the implementation of its police modernization strategy. Last year we jointly signed a programme of activities funded by the United States of America (https://www.unodc.org/centralasia/en/news/unodc-and-kazakhstans-interior-ministry-sign-workplan-under-police-reform-project.html). We support the efforts of the Ministry of Internal Affairs to promote justice and develop new approaches to policing, crime prevention and public safety, while prioritizing human rights and evidence-based policies”, emphasized Ashita Mittal, UNODC Regional Representative for Central Asia, at her welcoming remarks.
Discussion focused on effective approaches and practices in crime prevention, police accessibility and innovative solutions for ensuring public safety. Particular attention was paid to the preliminary results and future prospects of two pilot projects on introducing of service-oriented approaches in policing launched in Nur-Sultan and Karaganda сities.
"Kazakhstan is trying to move away from the power model of interaction and transit to the service-oriented policing. Achievement of this goal is primarily related to a performance assessment of police work. High-quality education and training of police officers should be foundation for quality service. Building and maintaining trust in the police is a job that takes a lot of time," said the Ambassador of the European Union to Kazakhstan, Kestutis Yankauskas
UNODC Crime Prevention and Criminal Officer Johannes De Haan made a presentation on evidence-based crime prevention and related UNODC tools and guidelines which emphasizes best practices on reducing violence, crime, including prevention of violent extremism, and creating safe public spaces in according with 2030 Agenda for sustainable development.
International experts from Italy, Latvia, the Netherlands shared the experience about community-oriented policing strategies and practices in their countries. UNODC expert from Kazakhstan, Member of the Public Council of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Kuat Rakhimberdin spoke about interrelationship of administrative supervision and social reintegration of ex-violent extremist prisoners (VEPs) with the service-oriented policing model and its impact on reducing the risks of reoffending.
Thus, the UNODC experts who spoke at the Forum came to common conclusion that the combination of Police and Prison reform can bring to protecting communities and building their trust to police and at the same time to the reduction of reoffending rate.
The event was conducted with the financial support of the Delegation of the European Union to Kazakhstan.
For further information please contact:
Arifa Fatikhova
Communications and External Relations Officer
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)
Regional Office for Central Asia
Mobile: (+998 99) 825-05-43 | Email: arifa.fatikhova[at]un.org