By Lincoln G. Peters
The Deputy head of Mission at the French Embassy near Monrovia Mr. Herve’ Goudal has cautioned the joint security forces here to be professional and disciplined while allowing fair democratic expression.
He gave the caution at the weekend during the graduation of joint security officers who completed their training in democratic crowd control at the Liberia National Police Academy and Training Schools (LNPATS).
Goudal served as proxy of the French Ambassador to Liberia, Roux Michael.
The Deputy Head of Mission, Mr. Hervé Goudal appreciated the participation of the graduates and their instructors during the democratic crowd management training, especially during this rainy season.
Mr. Goudal reaffirmed a statement made by the French Ambassador last year on Liberia’s democratic state, noting that the French government remains committed to supporting Liberia.
“The right to demonstrate is an essential political freedom, an element of the freedom of expression, which makes democracy, but must remain a peaceful expression of demands, in respect of the rights of others,” he said.
Goudal further reminded all officers to remain disciplined while allowing fair democratic expression and guaranteeing public order to citizens.
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Ahead of the 2023 presidential and legislative elections, the Liberia National Police, in collaboration with the French Government, over the weekend graduated the third batch of Diplomatic Crowd Control Officers at the LNPATS.
The training was a French-sponsored program that started from September 19-30, 2022. It consisted of 170 Joint Security Officers from the Liberia National Police (122 officers), Liberia Immigration Service (24 officers) and the Liberia Drugs Enforcement Agency (24).
Making a special remark at the program, Police Inspector General Col. Patrick T. Sudue emphasized the delicacy of handling crowd control which requires strength, patience and cleverness.
He again thanked the Instructional Staff, the Ambassador and the French Government for their continuous support in the capacity building of Liberia’s Law Enforcement personnel.
Col. Sudue also congratulated the delegation (Major Philippe Le Marre and Brigadier Chef Roland Defit) of the Republican Security Companies formerly Compagnie Républicainé de Sécurite (CRS) from the French National Police for delivering this training.
Meanwhile, Sup. Malachi S. Kolubah, Sgt. Joseph T. Yillia and Sgt. Samuel Cole Tarr made a recommendation for advanced training in Paris, France for their discipline and special performance exhibited.
The program was attended by the Director General of the LDEA, Marcus D. Zehyoue, Deputy Police Inspector General for Training and Manpower Development, Atty. Sabastian Farr, the Proxy to the LIS boss, Danny B. Sartee, and family members of the graduates.
