On November 19-20, 2019, UNDP in the Kyrgyz Republic and in Korea organized a training “Strategies for Internal Affairs Personnel Training to Support Victims of Gender-Based Violence" in Bishkek. The exchange of knowledge was supported by the Kyrgyz Academy of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Korean Police Investigation Academy.

Asel Osmonova, Advisor to the Minister of Internal Affairs, shared statistics and experience of Kyrgyzstan in investigating cases of domestic violence and stressed the importance of restoring the rights of victims of gender-based violence.

“If no prevention measures are taken, sexual violence can have serious negative consequences for women and girls, as well as their families and society as a whole. Therefore, it is very important for law enforcement agencies to be equipped with the knowledge and skills necessary for prevention and professional support for victims of violence,” said Jennifer Tasker, British Deputy Head of Mission at British Embassy.

Within two days, employees of the Academy of the Kyrgyz Ministry of Internal Affairs, Ministry of Social Development, lawyers and representatives of civil society were trained on the Korean Police Guide on Interrogation of Victims of Gender-Based Violence and the training-of-trainers experience in Korea.

Ms. Lee Dong-hee, Professor at Violent Crime Investigations at the Korean Police Investigation Academy, spoke about the use of the Police Guide on Interrogation. Particular attention was paid to the application of the Guide in police daily work. Participants simulated the interrogation of a victim of gender-based violence, mastered the interrogation structure and discussed the wording of questions to avoid secondary victimization.

During the two-day training, participants shared their experiences and lessons learned related to interrogation of victims, development and implementation of training programs for internal affairs officers. On the first day, participants discussed a partnership to find solutions to support victims of sexual and gender-based violence as well as the Korean Police Guide on Interrogation as tools that can minimize secondary victimization, especially of minors and victims with disabilities. On the second day, participants reviewed a training plan for the Kyrgyz police, priority areas for enhancing police response in the event of gender-based violence, expanding access to justice and institutionalizing a capacity development program.

“UNDP in the Kyrgyz Republic has been working in the field of prevention and response to sexual and gender-based violence for many years. In close cooperation with the Kyrgyz Ministry of Internal Affairs, UNDP implemented a series of projects aimed at preventing gender and sexual violence, supported laws prohibiting religious marriage of minors and provided pro-bono support to victims of gender-based violence. The project has trained over 600 internal affairs officers, 100 judges and 120 lawyers,” said Erkinbek Kasybekov, Program Advisor to the UNDP Resident Representative in the Kyrgyz Republic.

Participants in the training highlighted the need to:

·       Improve the methodology for the provision of gender-based violence services currently used by the Academy of the Ministry of Internal Affairs;

·       Increase hours on gender-based violence in the training program of the Academy of the Ministry of Internal Affairs;

·       Review the training program to incorporate a gender perspective in police work;

·       Sign a memorandum with the Korean National Police University to facilitate the exchange of publications, studies, and protocols on gender crimes.

As the primary authority to investigate cases of sexual and gender-based violence, the police plays a key role in linking victims to justice, as well as promoting the well-being and recovery of survivors. In 2017, the UNDP Seoul Political Center launched a Decision-Making Partnership, or a platform for knowledge sharing between South Korea and partner countries and introduced the Korean Police Guide for interrogation of Victims of Sexual and Gender-Based violence. To date, this Guide has been implemented in Albania, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Senegal, Zimbabwe and Kyrgyzstan.

In Kyrgyzstan, this tool was launched in 2019 with the aim of creating and strengthening triparty cooperation between politicians, experts in the field of sexual and gender-based violence and UNDP through knowledge-sharing activities.

The training is part of efforts of the UNDP project “Enhancing Accountability and Transparency in Promoting the Rule of Law in the Kyrgyz Republic - Phase 2”, funded by the British Embassy in the Kyrgyz Republic.