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Community Police In Focus
posted (September 28, 2010)
Earlier on in the newscast, we told you about those police operations which netted major cash, weapons and ammunitions seizures.

And while that's the strong arm of the law - there's also a softer side, and that's community policing. The Belize Police Department alongside the United States Embassy is hosting two Community Policing Workshops with participation from over 40 police officers from across the country. The first workshop was presented today at the Yarborough Community Policing Center. Seven News caught up with facilitator - Arturo Venegas - retired Chief of Police of Sacramento California. He told us what the purpose of the workshops is….

Arturo Venegas, Workshop Facilitator
"Talking about community policing and how does the police department engage the community as a whole really and its own policing and as a police department how does it transform beyond just small number of officers to the greater organization, a recognition that it's not just them but their colleagues as well that what they is great and fantastic of getting the other folks to recognize its value and its contribution to the effort of policing."

Monica Bodden
"How importantly do you think that is?"

Arturo Venegas, Workshop Facilitator
"Totally important. everybody has heard the idea that it takes an entire village to raise a child, Venegas' version of it is that it takes an entire community to police itself and the community of stakeholders is the entire police department not just the officers here. The police of that neighborhood out there as we go out is not just their officers, its other and it is also the community itself. So how do we get everybody on the same page? Totally essential."

Today's workshop lasted from 8:30 this morning to 12 noon. The second workshop will be held on Thursday at the Belmopan Police headquarters..

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