That, he said, includes transitional justice, security sector reforms and governance.
Abubakarr S. Jeng made this disclosure on Thursday at Metzy Hotel at the start of a three-day Training of Trainers (TOT) forum, designed for security personnel on human rights, humanitarian law and handling of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence in The Gambia.
The capacity building organised by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) came on the backdrop of a TRRC recommendation in its final report that the government, through the Ministry of Justice, should collaborate with the commission to ensure regular trainings on human rights for personnel of the security sector.
Also, the event is aimed at strengthening the capacity of rule of law actors in the discharge of their day-to-day functions as law enforcement officers, especially in human rights and humanitarian law, among others.
Jeng recalled that the security institutions partnership with the NHRC began in 2019, when the commission was newly established as a permanent institution mandated to promote and protect human rights in The Gambia.
The Commission, he added, conducted several capacity building initiatives for the rule of law actors, as they renew their joint commitment to creating a security that is responsive to the needs and aspirations of Gambians.
“The current curricula of the various security services can be improved to properly reflect the key principles, standards and norms of human rights and humanitarian law and to better address the issue of gender-based violence,” he said.
He further indicated that security personnel need to be regularly and systematically trained on gender, human rights and humanitarian law in line with the ongoing reforms and institutional development of the security sector.
“Evidently, it was the omission and neglect in these areas that enabled the weaponisation of the security sector against civilians and the systematic perpetration of human rights violation and abuses during the former regime.”
In line with the ongoing Security Sector Reforms (SSR), he re-echoed that concrete steps had been taken in collaboration with the Commission to review and update aspects specific to human rights into the training curricula of the security institutions.
