Grinder
19 August 2003, 14:51
Coalition Provisional Authority
Baghdad, Iraq
Contact: Thomas J. Basile
Office of Strategic Communications
1-914-822-7597
GRADUATION DAY FOR FIRST CLASS OF IRAQI PRISON GUARDS
First Female Corrections Officer in History Among Class
Baghdad, Iraq...August 14, 2003 -- Ushering in a new era for Iraq's prison
system, the country's first class of new prison guards graduated from
training at a ceremony today in Baghdad. The Coalition Provisional
Authority is pleased to announce that 34 guards, including Iraq's first
woman corrections officer are ready to serve the prison system.
The new guards completed a three week training course where they were
instructed by both Iraqis and Coalition forces. The course included work in
the prison environment, conflict resolution, and other practical, on-the-job
training classes.
A significant portion of the course was dedicated to ethics classes,
instruction on criminal rights, and codes of conduct. This new class of
guards represents a fundamental change in the way prisons will be operated,"
stated Gary DeLand, Senior Advisor to the Coalition Provisional Authority
for prisons.
Under the regime of Saddam Hussein, inmates were routinely tortured, beaten
and killed by prison guards who received no penalty for committing
atrocities. "These new guards understand that inmates are not to be
tortured or brutalized," said DeLand. "We are stressing the principles of
human rights in our training and instituting accountability in job
performance."
The guards will be stationed at the Tasferat and Russafa prison facilities
in Baghdad. The first female graduate will be heading for the Al-Asiliah
facility also in Baghdad, which houses mostly women and juveniles.
The Coalition is currently developing a new recruitment program, including
one targeted at recruiting more female guards for women's prisons.
Baghdad, Iraq
Contact: Thomas J. Basile
Office of Strategic Communications
1-914-822-7597
GRADUATION DAY FOR FIRST CLASS OF IRAQI PRISON GUARDS
First Female Corrections Officer in History Among Class
Baghdad, Iraq...August 14, 2003 -- Ushering in a new era for Iraq's prison
system, the country's first class of new prison guards graduated from
training at a ceremony today in Baghdad. The Coalition Provisional
Authority is pleased to announce that 34 guards, including Iraq's first
woman corrections officer are ready to serve the prison system.
The new guards completed a three week training course where they were
instructed by both Iraqis and Coalition forces. The course included work in
the prison environment, conflict resolution, and other practical, on-the-job
training classes.
A significant portion of the course was dedicated to ethics classes,
instruction on criminal rights, and codes of conduct. This new class of
guards represents a fundamental change in the way prisons will be operated,"
stated Gary DeLand, Senior Advisor to the Coalition Provisional Authority
for prisons.
Under the regime of Saddam Hussein, inmates were routinely tortured, beaten
and killed by prison guards who received no penalty for committing
atrocities. "These new guards understand that inmates are not to be
tortured or brutalized," said DeLand. "We are stressing the principles of
human rights in our training and instituting accountability in job
performance."
The guards will be stationed at the Tasferat and Russafa prison facilities
in Baghdad. The first female graduate will be heading for the Al-Asiliah
facility also in Baghdad, which houses mostly women and juveniles.
The Coalition is currently developing a new recruitment program, including
one targeted at recruiting more female guards for women's prisons.