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| Chief of the Royal Bhutan Police, Brigadier Kipchu Namgyel (right), arrives at the INTERPOL General Secretariat, greeted by the Organization’s Secretary General, Ronald K. |
Lyon: Chief of the Royal Bhutan Police, Brigadier Kipchu Namgyel,
underlined his country’s commitment to transnational police cooperation by
presenting the Government of Bhutan’s offer to host an international conference
on the protection of cultural property, during his visit to the INTERPOL
General Secretariat headquarters.
The proposal for Bhutan to host the international event in
early 2013, which would bring together global experts from both the public and
private sectors, was the focus of Brigadier Namgyel’s discussions with INTERPOL
Secretary General Ronald K. Noble and other senior officials.
“The Royal Bhutan Police is committed to protecting the
cultural heritage of our country, our region and also the world, and working
with INTERPOL to host this conference will help bring greater focus to a type
of crime which affects us all as a society,” said Brigadier Namgyel.
Bhutan’s announcement comes less than a week after delegates
at the 81st INTERPOL General Assembly in Rome, Italy, unanimously endorsed a
resolution encouraging the law enforcement community to consider as a priority the fight against the
illicit traffic in cultural heritage, and to enhance international cooperation
and information exchange in combating this type of crime.
Since becoming a member of INTERPOL in 2005, Bhutan has also
worked closely with the world police body in combating wildlife and
environmental crime through Project Predator, providing support to a series of
interventions, including Operation Prey earlier this year which led to nearly
40 arrests and the seizure of a range of wildlife goods including big cat
skins, rhino horn, ivory and seahorses in addition to flora such as protected
orchid and cactus plants.
“During its relatively short membership of INTERPOL, the
Royal Bhutan Police has already demonstrated its leadership in the area of
international law enforcement cooperation, notably in regional and global
efforts against wildlife crime,” said Secretary General Noble.
“Bhutan’s offer to host an international conference on the
protection of Asian cultural heritage is another example of its commitment to
the global policing community, and underlines the Royal Bhutan Police’s role as
a valued partner in INTERPOL’s vision for a safer world,” added the INTERPOL
Chief.
The Bhutan Police Chief also gave a presentation to senior
INTERPOL officials on the country’s Police Youth Partnership programme: an
initiative aimed at encouraging interaction between the police and young people
and providing education on a range of areas including drug abuse, fire and
traffic safety, youth policing, community service and conservation.
The Bhutanese delegation – which included Police
Superintendents Lieutenant Colonel Kuenzang Rinzin, Major Passag Dorji and
Major Deki Chogyal and Officer Commanding of Police Lieutenant Tshering Namgyal
– was also briefed on INTERPOL activities against organized crime, drugs and
human trafficking, as well as on the
INTERPOL Global Complex for Innovation which will open in Singapore in 2014.