Africa-Press – Mozambique. The Community Security Councils are cells made up of members elected by the communities, who act as observers on the look-out for activity that threatens public order and security.
Announcing the development on Saturday (27-11), Bernardino Rafael made no comment on the mobilisation, mainly in the district of Mueda, of militias comprising ex-combatants.
“We are of a mind to reactivate our Community Security Council cells in all districts, especially those prone to terrorist attacks,” he said.
The police leader made it known that community policing, which is now receiving a new impulse in Cabo Delgado, is not something new, and has always responded to the need to defend security for the general public.
“It is not a new mission. It is a traditional mission that began in the most primitive communities, in which there have always been movements to mitigate conflict. And each historical moment corresponded to the reality of that moment,” he declared.
Community safety
The revitalisation of these community units appears in a context in which the police see the public as essential allies against the criminal gangs that terrorise the Mozambican province of Cabo Delgado.
“This process of community policing is a commitment of the PRM, because only with the support of the community can we discover and stop the criminals who are infiltrating our communities,” Bernardino Rafael said.
“Reality shows that the best police are the community, because that’s where crime takes place. Therefore, for Cabo Delgado province, we want to reactivate and revitalise the Community Security Councils, bodies of trustworthy people that the population elects in order to guarantee the safety of the community itself, in coordination with the police.”
UN support
Bernardino Rafael was speaking during a ceremony for the reception of six vehicles donated to the police by the United Nations’ International Organization for Migration (IOM)
The vehicles will be used to support community policing in the districts of Metuge, Montepuez, Ancuabe, Chiúre and Namuno, all of which currently host families displaced by terrorism.
“The vehicles are going to the southern districts [of Cabo Delgado], where the displaced communities have taken refuge. It is from these districts that we will organise ourselves as the population returns and find a structure set up,” said Commander Rafael.
The head of the IOM mission in Mozambique, Laura Tomm-Bonde, said that the donation to the PRM would strengthen communities in activities related to community policing, and contribute to stability and peace in Cabo Delgado.
In addition to this material support, the IOM is also involved in training PRM agents and communities in Cabo Delgado in community policing and the creation of community security councils.
For More News And Analysis About Mozambique Follow Africa-Press
