ODI Global
An elder listens to a land dispute between community members
In part, Community Policing builds on long-standing dispute resolution practices that communities have relied on for generations. Elders within the community (such as the man pictured here, with legs crossed) are called to resolve disputes that arise according to locally specific customary laws, rather than government law. Community Police Officers can refer non-serious crimes to elders for speedier and more locally accepted resolutions, however serious crimes must be referred to the police, at least in theory. Customary laws usually reflect dominant social and cultural attitudes , which can mean that the rights of women, girls and other vulnerable groups are not always respected and some young women prefer to first report crimes of a sexual nature to non-governmental organisations (NGOs) rather than community policing structures.
To read more about community policing in Ethiopia, see ODI's recent case study.
Images ODI/Lisa Denney
An elder listens to a land dispute between community members
In part, Community Policing builds on long-standing dispute resolution practices that communities have relied on for generations. Elders within the community (such as the man pictured here, with legs crossed) are called to resolve disputes that arise according to locally specific customary laws, rather than government law. Community Police Officers can refer non-serious crimes to elders for speedier and more locally accepted resolutions, however serious crimes must be referred to the police, at least in theory. Customary laws usually reflect dominant social and cultural attitudes , which can mean that the rights of women, girls and other vulnerable groups are not always respected and some young women prefer to first report crimes of a sexual nature to non-governmental organisations (NGOs) rather than community policing structures.
To read more about community policing in Ethiopia, see ODI's recent case study.
Images ODI/Lisa Denney