APAP recently took it upon itself to go to the town of Jinka and its environs and give training to the following:

• A total of 28 militia men;
• Sixteen social judges, three of whom were females;
• Twenty-six members of Kebele Councils, nine of whom were females; and
• Thirty-five 35 prison administrators, 11 of whom were females.

Jinka, of course, is located in the South Nations and Nationalities and Peoples Regional State.

Through the training, the prison authorities, the security officers and the members of the Kebele Councils were thus acquainted with the rudiments of the various laws of the land and with the concepts of human rights. The prison authorities, on the other hand, were introduced to the basics about prisoners’ rights. As such, much effort was made to impress upon them the need for protecting and respecting these rights. What is more, the Kebele Councils were acquainted with such principles of good governance as transparency and accountability.

At the end of the training, the participants expressed to the trainers their appreciation of the training given to them. As one of them said, “We are seldom exposed to such knowledge and experience, given the fact that our town is located far away from Addis Ababa.”  They have also implored them to “come again with a similar type of training.”