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By the 18th Military Police Brigade
BAGHDAD – The inaugural class of 370 Iraqi police completed their first week of training, Sept. 29, 2008, in a course designed to teach the future media advisors the duties and responsibilities of how to become the connection between the Iraqi people and the IP organization at the Al Furat Iraqi Police Training Center in Baghdad.
The IP recruits are attending their version of advanced individual training during a media course that mentors them on how to work with the media to help communicate the police force's capabilities and missions.
The ultimate goal is to place at least two media advisors at each station in Baghdad to help station commanders communicate police activities within the city in order to tell the story of the Shurtas.
"There are many good things the Iraqi police are doing at their stations, and the story is not being told by the IP," said Lt. Col. Michael Indovina, a native of Parma, Ohio, who serves as the public affairs officer with 18th Military Police Brigade, Multi-National Division – Baghdad. "The Shurtas and the IP systems have developed two-fold in the past year – now it is time for others to hear it from the IP perspective.
"Hearing these stories from the IP themselves will help increase their creditability and help build trust between the people of Iraq and the police forces."
This media training is the second phase of an eight-week basic IP recruit training at the center. In the first four weeks of the training course, the IP were trained on how to be an Iraqi policeman or "Shurta." The IP training focused on reviewing basic law enforcement techniques, such as weapons training, combative techniques, structure-clearing techniques, first-aid and defensive maneuvers against small-arms attacks.
During the second phase, which the Shurtas are currently undergoing, the training focuses on a variety of techniques designed to train the students on how to establish a link between the IP station commanders and the communities they live and serve in.
The media and communication training focuses on subjects that include public affairs planning, interpersonal communications, electronic press usage, information strategies, dealing with the media, PA and crime, human rights principals, freedom of expression, crisis communications, news gathering and how to prepare for a press conference.
The training also focuses on informing the people of Baghdad about the IP's capabilities and keeping them informed of the truth of what the IP are doing for the people on a daily basis.
"We are here to help the people as well as help the IP get their messages out to the people," said Aidl Idan, a media advisor student attending the course.
The future IP media advisors will serve to provide an avenue for IP station commanders to keep the public informed.
"We are the bridge that delivers messages from the station commander, to the Ministry of Interior, and then out to the Iraqi people," said Aidl, who majored in media relations in college. In fact, a majority of his fellow classmates have already earned their college degrees as well prior to entering the training.
As the course continued throughout the week, perhaps the key message emphasized to the students pertained to the power of words – and the power of the press.
By keeping the populace informed and keeping them abreast of the facts, it provides them the avenue to address illegal activities and to "use media as a weapon to fight crime," in a manner of speaking, said the representative from Baghdad Media College. However, he added, it is instrumental to ensure that as the Iraqi police representatives, that they "always seek the truth."
The instructor emphasized that the people of Iraq have a passion to fight crime, and it is the public affairs representative's mission at the station to help them fight that crime by communicating the facts through words and photos.
"We all have a passion against the enemy," said the college representative. "Don't be scared to tell the truth about criminals."
The representative went on to say that religion plays no part when it comes to reporting the truth.
"Our religions have nothing to do with our jobs in the media," said the representative.
In a seminar conducted, Sept. 23, 2008, a representative from the Ministry of Health provided a block of instruction on the different diseases that are prevalent in Iraq and provided background information on health issues faced by the Iraqi people. For the IP media advisors, the background information could prove vital in helping them to formulate their plans in how to communicate the IP actions during a possible crisis.
Many of the students declared they feel it is their job to report the truth about the IP and, in doing so, they believe they will gain the trust of the Iraqi people.
"The Iraqi people have to trust us," said Aidl. "We are the first source of information, so they need to be able to trust us."
The students explained that before the coalition forces liberated Iraq, the people were unaware of the truth of the IP because no one was allowed to report it.
"The IP lost the trust of the people before," said Aidl, referring to Saddam Hussein's regime. "Before reporters could not write about the police. Once the CF liberated us and we began to live in democracy, the people of Iraq began to trust the IP.
"We are excited to learn so we can better serve the people of Baghdad as media representatives for the IP."
The recruits will continue to press on during their upcoming weeks of media advisor training and are scheduled to graduate from the Al Furat IP Training Center, Oct. 24, 2008.
| Date Taken: | 09.27.2008 |
| Date Posted: | 09.27.2008 11:57 |
| Story ID: | 24215 |
| Location: | BAGHDAD, IQ |
| Web Views: | 223 |
| Downloads: | 212 |
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