Erbil Police Academy handed over to government of Iraq at celebration of new campus

Courtesy Photo | The new academy will provide training for more than 650 Iraqi police cadets at any given time, with the specialized training Iraq needs to uphold the rule of law.  

IRAQ

10.18.2008

Courtesy Story

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Gulf Region North

By LuAnne Fantasia
Gulf Region (North)

ERBIL, Iraq — The Erbil police academy was handed over to the government of Iraq during a celebration on the new campus. The morning's events also included dedication of a bronze bust of Army 1st Lt. Ashley Henderson and a pass in review of Iraqi police officers and cadets.

"This project is an example of the successful partnership between the Kurdistan Ministry of Interior, the civilian police assistance training team in Erbil, and the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers," said Gary York, resident engineer at the USACE Erbil resident office.

The $15 million project was funded by both the Kurdistan regional government and the U.S. government; $5 million and $10 million, respectively. It sits on 149,000 square meters and consists of an administration building, restaurant, dormitory and education center, a sports field and all supporting infrastructure for the facility. The year-long project completed without contract modification and was on time and within budget.

The training provided at the new academy will help stabilize the security for not only the Kurdistan region, but all of Iraq, York added.

Maj. Gen. Jerry Cannon, director general for the CPATT of the Multi-National Security Transition Command-Iraq, said the academy will help provide the specialized training Iraq needs to uphold the rule of law.

"The future of a stable, secure and prosperous Iraq begins when communities and government have trust and faith in their police force," Cannon said. "A police force has to be competent and demonstrate everyday their respect for upholding the rule of law."

The academy will provide training for more than 650 police cadets at any given time.

"We share responsibility as Iraqis to provide security for all people of Iraq - whether they be Iraqi, Kurdish or Turkoman," said Erbil's Minister of Interior Sinjari. "We must do everything to make sure our homeland does not become a haven for terrorism ... we must prevail."

Before the ribbon was cut on the four new buildings, a special dedication took place in the traffic circle on the campus. With her father present and participating in the dedication, a bronze bust of Army 1st Lt. Ashley Henderson was unveiled. Henderson was a military police officer assigned to the Erbil police transition team in 2005. She was instrumental in the development of the Erbil police academy plans, working closely with Sinjari and the provincial director of police and made a strategic impact on the Erbil province. She died of injuries suffered in Mosul, Iraq, in September 2006, when a suicide vehicle-borne improvised explosive device detonated near her mounted patrol during combat operations.

"This Erbil police academy did not just happen," York said during the event. "It was a dream and hope of many people...and one of them was 1st Lt. Ashley Henderson."

Since the Iraq Reconstruction Program began in 2004, the USACE Erbil resident office has provided project and construction management for over 87 reconstruction projects in the Erbil province of northern Iraq. Completed projects total more than $314 million and include health and education, electrical, security and justice, public works and water and transportation projects.

• Date Taken: 10.18.2008
• Date Posted: 10.19.2008 00:25
• Story ID: 25195
• Location: IQ