Police officers have been urged to prioritize professionalism when handling cases involving children and other marginalized groups to avoid infringing further harm.
Station Officer responsible for Mulanje Police Station, Superintendent Clement Mwale, said the law enforcers must always be competent in handling such matters to ensure the rights of all people is respected.
The remarks were made in Mulanje during the opening of a three-day training workshop, organized by YONECO which has brought together officers from Mulanje district Police Units with the aim of capacitating them on issues of community policing.
Participants of the training are expected to gain skills on various topics including child protection policy and guidelines, handling of sexual offences, arrest/detention and bail of children.
Mulanje District Coordinator for YONECO Patrick Makonde, said protection issues are central hence the need to capacitate the law enforcers on issues to do with community policing so that they can cascade that information to the communities where they are operating.
YONECO is implementing SP-GEAR project in three districts of Mulanje, Nsanje and Chikwawa with funds from European Union (EU) and Irish Aid through UNICEF.
