HEAT 2023 – The Peace Operations Training Centre (POTC), operating within the Centre for European Perspective, last week held Hostile Environment Awareness Training (HEAT). The intense training took place between 24 and 29 September 2023 at Gotenica Police Training Centre.
The so-called HEATs are well-established trainings organised worldwide by different non-profit and for-profit organisations. For more than 10 years CEP, and now POTC, in close cooperation with Slovenian Police and Slovenian Armed Forces, has been the only provider of HEAT in Slovenia.
The general aim of HEAT is to train individuals to deal effectively with risk-associated and emergency/critical situations while deployed in hostile environments abroad. The latest training was attended by 24 participants; 19 from Slovenia (participants were mostly referred by the three partner institutions: Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs and Ministry of Interior of Slovenia) and five participants from abroad. Participants attending either already work in hostile environments or plan to apply for positions that require a certificate of HEAT attendance, such as positions in peacekeeping missions and operations.
The training was a mix of interactive lectures that covered a wide range of topics, among others: how to provide for your own personal security (what is in your grab bag?), how to plan movements and what to do at (il)legal checkpoints (just follow the rules), about radio communication and orientation (GPS does not always work), movement during mass gatherings (don’t panic), surviving kidnap situations (cooperate and gather information), stress management (don’t forget to breathe), improvised explosive devices (if you do not know it, do not touch it!) and basic life support (slow is smooth and smooth is fast).
During the course of training the participants were surprised by a couple of unexpected situations that required their specific reaction. The training culminated in a day-long simulation exercise during which the participants were faced with many stressful situations that required appropriate responses.
We wish all our participants the best of luck in their hostile environments, hopefully, they will never need to apply the knowledge and skills gained at HEAT. To quote one of our lecturers (who quoted Seneca) “Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.”
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8. 9. 2023 | POTC, PR
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Dne 13. septembra 2023 bo na Gradu Jable v Mengšu potekalo usposabljanje za uslužbence Ministrstva za obrambo in Slovenske vojske o nevarnostih trgovine z ljudmi v kontekstu mednarodnih mirovnih operacij in misij pred njihovim odhodom na le-te.
Problematika trgovine z ljudmi je kompleksna in zahteva združen pristop na nacionalni, regionalni in mednarodni ravni. Da bi se uspešno spopadli s to težavo, je ključno, da se vojaško in civilno osebje ustrezno usposobi.
V okviru tega boja deluje Medresorska delovna skupina za boj proti trgovini z ljudmi (MDS TZL), ki že dolga leta izvaja redna usposabljanja za strokovnjake s področja trgovine z ljudmi, med katerimi so policija, tožilstvo, centri za socialno delo, konzularno in diplomatsko osebje ter inšpektorji za delo. Vendar pa je za leto 2023-2024 sprejeta nova pobuda, ki vključuje tudi vojaško osebje.
Cilj usposabljanja je seznaniti udeležence z aktualnimi vsebinami s področja boja proti trgovini z ljudmi ter jih ozavestiti o njihovih dolžnostih, ko gre za zaznavo tovrstnih kaznivih dejanj. Poleg tega bo poudarek na zmanjševanju povpraševanja po storitvah in blagu, ki jih običajno izvajajo žrtve trgovine z ljudmi, v kontekstu samih mirovnih operacij.
To usposabljanje je v skladu z Natovo politiko boja proti trgovini z ljudmi, ki prav tako vključuje ozaveščanje in usposabljanje na tem pomembnem področju.
Organizatorji se veselijo predstaviti vsebine na tem ključnem usposabljanju, saj bo prispevalo k preprečevanju trgovine z ljudmi in zagotavljanju varnosti mednarodnih operacij in misij.
22. 8. 2023 | Bled Strategic Forum, PR, Strengthening Societal Resilience and Countering Foreign Perpetrated Disinformation in 6 Western Balkans Countries
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Project Strengthening Societal Resilience and Countering Foreign Perpetrated Disinformation has invited twelve representatives of Western Balkans media and civil society organisations to join a roundtable discussion at the margins of the Bled Strategic Forum.
The roundtable discussion will take place on 28 August, titled ‘The Line Is(n’t) Thin: Fact v. Opinion, Regulation v. Censorship’.
Western Balkan participants will be joined by Mr Jakub Kalensky of the European Centre of Excellence for Countering Hybrid Threats and Mr Burak Ünveren, a journalist at Deutsche Welle.
Through an open and dynamic exchange, participants and guests will have an opportunity to touch upon questions that do not always have straightforward answers in the fight against disinformation, such as: how to ensure that democratic standards and freedom of speech are upheld while still curbing the spread of disinformation? Are the current projects and initiatives focused on countering disinformation largely on the right track – or do we need to adjust our course? How has the experience with Covid-19 and the Russian aggression against Ukraine changed journalism – have we learned anything?
Strengthening Societal Resilience and Countering Foreign Perpetrated Disinformation project continues to support efforts of Western Balkan governments, media and civil society to establish national mechanisms for countering disinformation. The roundtable event will further be an opportunity to discuss the way forward in these efforts, and in particular, the role of media and civil society.
After the roundtable discussion, Western Balkan participants are invited to join and enjoy the rich program of the Bled Strategic Forum on 28 and 29 August.
The project is funded by the National Endowment for Democracy and the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Slovenia through development cooperation funds.
