Press Releases 2009
U.S. Embassy Rejects Media Allegations Regarding Sihala Law Enforcement Training Center
October 20, 2009
Islamabad - The U.S. Embassy was disappointed by a media report today that attributed nefarious purposes to the Sihala law enforcement training facility. The report was factually incorrect and mischievous. The 512 Pakistani police officials who have trained at Sihala could easily set the record straight.
The Embassy provides the following points to correct the record:
Since 2003 the United States has provided training in a variety of counter-terrorism-related skills to Federal and Provincial police officials at the Punjab Police College in Sihala. The specific courses of training are identified in complete cooperation with the relevant authorities of the Government of Pakistan who approve all of the course selections. The students are selected for participation in the courses by federal and provincial law enforcement authorities. The use of the Sihala training facility itself was proposed by the Pakistan government. The existence of the facility is transparent. There is no "monitoring" equipment located at the facility and all materiel present at the facility is for the exclusive use of the law enforcement personnel receiving training.
The administration of the Punjab Police College has repeatedly visited the facility. The current Commandant has access to the facility at any time. All of the personnel trained at the facility are Pakistani law enforcement personnel; no foreigners are trained at the facility.
The scourge of extremist terrorism has been a serious challenge to Pakistani police and to Pakistan's democratic government. The U.S. Anti Terrorism Assistance program, which has worked at the Sihala training facility since 2003, is one example of the U.S. commitment to work with Pakistan to help strengthen the police and enhance the safety and security of every Pakistani citizen. It is unfortunate that, through a series of baseless allegations and innuendo, the article attempts to suggest otherwise.