Communitarian Police have trained volunteer security staff in Potete village, Ermera district, so they can be directly involved in the security of their neighborhood.
Communitarian Police (POLKOM) department chief Deputy Helena das Dores Alves said the training was held in January with the objective of contributing to the security of the neighborhood.
“If the problem occurs in the community, volunteer staff are in charge to solve the problems in their own area,” Deputy Alves said in Kaikoli, Dili.
Deputy Alves said those who joined the volunteer service were directly chosen by the community.
“They choose the people who they trust, so when problems happen those people are the ones to talk to; people trust them,” she said.
She added youths, veterans, sub-village chiefs and village chiefs were involved in the volunteer security program which was held in 13 districts.
Commission B (security, defense and foreign affairs) member Member of Parliament (MP) Anna Ribeiro said she appreciated the initiative as it would see people taking responsibility to assure the security of their own neighborhoods.
“Even though security is the duty of the police, the community also has a responsibility to the security of its neighborhood,” she said.
The MP said she hoped the program would be implemented in other districts as well, so more villages were secure.
