Stay Safe Training for (I)NGO Security Focal Points and Mangers (5 days)

Summary

Do you feel safe and secure during your humanitarian work? Do you know how to assess risks endangering your staff, programs or properties?  Or how to cope with safety / security incidents including administering first aid or operating a fire extinguisher? Do you know what to do or not to do as hostage?

These are daily questions for many (I)NGO senior staff who serve security managers and focal points. Worldwide security incidents and safety accidents are on the rise, resulting in (I)NGO personnel being injured and/or losing their lives. (I)NGO safety and security culture is often underdeveloped; however as threats increase, the need for simple management skills like risk assessments or incident management, as well as basic practical skills, are emergent. This training will help you to improve the safety and security culture of your (I)NGO.

Objectives

• Becoming familiar with HDFF’s Ample Risk Management assessment and essential security management skills for staff, programs and locations
• To increase risk management capabilities
• To  be able to understand the tasks and apply skills for security focal points / managers

+ risk avoidance

+ hostage incidents

+ communication in crisis

• Practical skill building including

+ mine awareness

+ improve IED knowledge as well as hostage incident management

+ how to react in case of minor injuries and fire immediately

Participants

This 5-day-training is open predominantly for Security Focal Points and Security Managers but also for administrative/HR managers of (I)NGO in Southeast Asia and beyond.

The course will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis up to a maximum of 25 participants. Please register as soon as possible to ensure your space in the training.

Time /location:

20 – 24 February 2012 / Bangkok

Costs: Early Bird Discount by 20 Nov 2011:  18,000 THB per person/600 US$ /later 18.750 THB/ 625 US$

Trainer

Dr. Wilfried  A. Herrmann, HDFF with support from UNDP, NPA, Thai Mine Action Centre et.al.

Contact/ Inquiry/ Registration

Ms. Elana Zyman, zygman@hdff.org

Stay Safe Safety and Security Training 2012-1 Outline

December 9, 2011 | By EZ | Category: Stay Safe Training for NGO Safety and Security Personnel (5d)

 

1. 1.       Stay Safe- Security Training

Human Development Forum Foundation (HDFF) is a registered Thai foundation (non-for- profit) based in Bangkok specialized in training and leadership capacity building as well as safety and security for international non-governmental organizations. We believe that sharing security knowledge and improving security and safety skills of the executives and security focal points/employees of (inter)national non-governmental organizations will strengthen the work of humanitarian personnel in unsafe areas, thus contributing to the overall aim of reducing human suffering and aiding development for those in need.

In a world where the role of global (I)NGOs is increasing, the chance of life threatening situations for implementing personnel of UN organizations, aid agencies and other (inter)national non-governmental organizations is on the rise. HDFF understands that these staff members run an ever-greater risk of becoming victims of violence and conflict. Humanitarian work is endangered from various factors including petty crime, politically motivated violence, and war zones. Additional threats can include terrorism, working in restricted environments and natural / man-made disasters including traffic accidents etc. Consequently, being unprepared to act in these environments can jeopardize the continuity of aid operations, prolongs the efficiency and effectiveness of helping those in need and endanger humanitarian workers well being.

Consequently YOU need an “All Hazard Approach” to develop an “Ample Risk Management” (ARM) for your organization. Against this backdrop, HDFF has developed — in the context of the UN initiated program “saving lives together” —   Stay Safe: Safety and Security Training which has been successfully conducted several times with participants ranging from Iraq to Indonesia. (2011-2 Stay Safe Training overview).

HDFF’s Stay Safe- Safety and Security Training addresses the management and security related personnel needs of UN organizations and (inter)national non-governmental organizations in South East Asia and beyond. The trainings are conducted by experienced culturally sensitive facilitators in an utmost participatory way.

• Focus on all aspects of development work in risk areas, management and implementations of security plans, protocols and strategies
• Focus on main security risks and how to prevent and/or to mitigate these risks
• Improving security awareness and risk avoidance behavior  as well as practical security management skills to handle personal and organizational security
• Sharing best practice security management tools as well as already implemented and successful security concepts
• Considering cultural/socio-political sensitive approaches regarding safety and security in Southeast Asia and beyond

 

 

1. 2.       Content of HDFF’s Stay Safe- Safety and Security Training completing the Ample Risk Management (ARM) :
   1. I.                    Security Management
      1. Leadership in crisis incl. roles and responsibilities of key personnel
      2. Security Management Process mainly based on IFRC manuals

 

1. II.                  Situation Assessment
   1. Context Analysis for staff, program and locations
   2. Determining Risks / Risk Assessment

 

1. III.                Security Planning
   1. Risk Reduction Strategy/ acceptance strategies and others
   2. Contingency Planning /Evacuation Planning
   3. Standard Operation Procedures (SOP)
   4. Security Briefings and Debriefings

 

1. IV.               Incident Management
   1. Incident Reporting
   2. Incident Analyses
   3. Incident Management/ Hostage incident management

 

1. V.                 Practical Exercises

Tailor made to participants’ needs & requests, focus on IED,  mine awareness, urgent need of fire fighting and First Aid; HDFF has teamed up with Thailand Mine Action Center, Royal Thai Armed Forces and Bangkok Metropolitan Fire Brigade 3 as well as experienced trainers from UNDP, NPA, APOPO, et.al. as implementers during the practical programs

 

 

 

 

Registration Information:

Registration form: please complete attached registration form and send it back via email (herrmann@hdff.org   or zygman@hdff.org ) or fax (02 617 7020)

Registration Deadlines: Early Bird 20 November 2011 /   Deadline 10 January 2012

Registration fee:  Early Bird 18,000 THB per person / 600 US$ / after 20 Nov 2011: 18.750 THB/ 625 US$

                     (NOTE: Fee includes lunch, refreshments & course material and documentation)

 

Payment:

Payment to be made via money transfer to:

A/C Name:      Human Development Forum Foundation

Bank:               Bangkok Bank

Branch:            Silom Head office, Bangkok, Thailand

Account Number:  1018300341

Swift Code:            BKKBTHBK

 

Substitution/ Cancellation:

Substitution is allowed for a registered participant/delegate. Please note that all transfer payments must be made prior to the event proper. No refund will be made for cancellation received after 10^thFebruary 2012.

 

Point of contact

 

Dr. Wilfried A. Herrmann                   herrmann@hdff.org

Ms. Elana Zygman:                             zygman@hdff.org

 

HDFF Office:                                           Tel/Fax.  02 617 7020

1. 3.       Why HDFF’s Stay Safe – Safety and Security Training?

Practical Approach

HDFF’s Ample Risk Management approach and the resulting “Stay Safe – Safety and Security Training” conveys the most important and up-to date theoretical and practical knowledge needed to make good decisions in unsecure environments in order to be prepared for security incidents. While this is a good foundation, the theoretical training is supported by firsthand experiences gained through practical exercises. These exercises also encourage better and long lasting learning. Cooperation partners include Thai Mine Action Center, Royal Thai Armed Forces, and Bangkok Metropolitan Fire Brigade 3 and specialized trainer for hostage incident management (e.g. UNDP, NPA, APOPO et.al). Participants of the “Stay Safe Training 2011” (2 courses) were highly satisfied with content and presentation as well as their learning experiences.

Rapid Response

As security incidents/ disasters emerge rapidly, UN organizations and (inter)national non-governmental organizations must be able to take immediate action. HDFF supports these organizations by organizing safety and security training courses as well as individual consultancies on a very short notice. For 2012 HDFF plans two rounds of the safety and security training

• 2012_1  from 20-24 February  2012
• 2012_2  end of July 2012
• (if demand is sufficient) November 2012

 

Professional standards

HDFF has developed standards to ensure that our quality remains high. We believe in making a difference for humanitarian aid workers in the field and the management and security personnel of UN organizations and (inter)national non-governmental organizations alike. A solid basis on the IFRC and other actual manuals as well as numerous inputs from practical experiences guarantee a hands on training utmost beneficiary for the participants.

Integrity

Honesty and trustworthiness characterize the relationship between HDFF and its clients. We aim to build a stable relationship with you by being a reliable partner, both now and in the future. A supporting Stay Safe Network is established and provides all participants with further information and a platform for exchange of experiences.

Non-for-profit

Because HDFF is a non-for-profit organization, the costs remain affordable. We aim for a safe working environment for humanitarian workers, and not for profit. You therefore receive the best services for a reasonable price.

Transparency

HDFF chooses to deal clearly and directly with each client. From experience we know that this direct approach is appreciated by our trainees. HDFF is member of UN Global Compact thus guaranteeing transparency.

Application Form HDFF Stay Safe Training 2012-1

December 9, 2011 | By EZ | Category: Stay Safe Training for NGO Safety and Security Personnel (5d)

PDF File

 

Protective Intelligence Lessons from an Ambush in Mexico – Lessons for Security Managers

November 20, 2011 | By ED | Category: Stay Safe Training for NGO Safety and Security Personnel (5d)

By Scott Stewart

On the afternoon of May 27, a convoy transporting a large number of heavily armed gunmen was ambushed on Mexican Highway 15 near Ruiz, Nayarit state, on Mexico’s Pacific coast. When authorities responded they found 28 dead gunmen and another four wounded, one of whom would later die, bringing the death toll to 29. This is a significant number of dead for one incident, even in Mexico.

According to Nayarit state Attorney General Oscar Herrera Lopez, the gunmen ambushed were members of Los Zetas, a Mexican drug cartel. Herrera noted that most of the victims were from Mexico’s Gulf coast, but there were also some Guatemalans mixed into the group, including one of the wounded survivors. While Los Zetas are predominately based on the Gulf coast, they have been working to provide armed support to allied groups, such as the Cartel Pacifico Sur (CPS), a faction of the former Beltran Leyva Organization that is currently battling the Sinaloa Federation and other cartels for control of the lucrative smuggling routes along the Pacific coast. In much the same way, Sinaloa is working with the Gulf cartel to go after Los Zetas in Mexico’s northeast while protecting and expanding its home turf. If the victims in the Ruiz ambush were Zetas, then the Sinaloa Federation was likely the organization that planned and executed this very successful ambush.

Photos from the scene show that the purported Zetas convoy consisted of several pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles (two of which were armored). The front right wheel on one of the armored vehicles, a Ford Expedition, had been completely blown off. With no evidence of a crater in the road indicating that the damage had been caused by a mine or improvised explosive device (IED), it would appear that the vehicle was struck and disabled by a well-placed shot from something like a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) or M72 LAW rocket, both of which have been seen in cartel arsenals. Photos also show at least one heavy-duty cattle-style truck with an open cargo compartment that appears to have been used as a troop transport. Many of the victims died in the vehicles they were traveling in, including a large group in the back of the cattle truck, indicating that they did not have time to react and dismount before being killed.

Unlike many other incidents we have examined, such as the ambush by CPS and Los Zetas against a Sinaloa Federation convoy on July 1, 2010, near Tubutama, Sonora state, the vehicles involved in this incident did not appear to bear any markings identifying them as belonging to any one cartel. In the Tubutama incident, the vehicles were all marked with large, highly visible “X”s on the front, back and side windows to denote that they were Sinaloa vehicles.

Most of the victims were wearing matching uniforms (what appear to be the current U.S. Marine Corps camouflage pattern) and black boots. Many also wore matching black ballistic vests and what appear to be U.S.-style Kevlar helmets painted black. From the photos, it appears that the victims were carrying a variety of AR-15-variant rifles. Despite the thousands of spent shell casings recovered from the scene, authorities reportedly found only six rifles and one pistol. This would seem to indicate that the ambush team swept the site and grabbed most of the weapons that may have been carried by the victims.

Guns may not have been the only things grabbed. A convoy of this size could have been dispatched by Los Zetas and CPS on a military raid into hostile Sinaloa territory, but there is also a possibility that the gunmen were guarding a significant shipment of CPS narcotics passing through hostile territory. If that was the case, the reason for the ambush may have been not only to kill the gunmen but also to steal a large shipment, which would hurt the CPS and could be resold by Sinaloa for a substantial profit.

Whether the objective of the ambush was simply to trap and kill a Zetas military team conducting a raid or to steal a high-value load of narcotics, a look at this incident from a protective intelligence point of view provides many lessons for security professionals operating in Mexico and elsewhere.

Lesson One: Size Isn’t Everything

Assuming that most of the 29 dead and three wounded gunmen were Zetas, and that most of the 14 vehicles recovered at the scene also belonged to the convoy that was attacked, it would appear that the group believed it was big enough to travel without being attacked. But, as the old saying goes, pride goeth before destruction.

In an environment where drug cartels can mass dozens of gunmen and arm them with powerful weapons like machine guns, .50-caliber sniper rifles, grenades and RPGs, there is no such thing as a force that is too big to be ambushed. And that is not even accounting for ambushes involving explosives. As evidenced by events in places like Iraq and Afghanistan, even convoys of heavily armored military vehicles can be ambushed using large IEDs and smaller, sophisticated explosive devices like explosively formed projectiles.

There are people in both the private and public sectors who cling to the erroneous assumption that the mere presence of armed bodyguards provides absolute security. But this is simply not true, and such a misconception often proves deadly. Indeed, there are very few protective details in all of Mexico that employ more than two dozen agents for a motorcade movement — most are smaller and less well-equipped than the Zetas force that was destroyed May 27. Most protective details do not wear heavy raid vests and Kevlar helmets. This means that government and private-sector protective details in Mexico cannot depend on their size alone to protect them from attack — especially if the attackers are given free rein to conduct surveillance and plan their ambush.

In an environment where the threat is so acute, security managers must rely on more than just big men carrying guns. The real counter to such a threat is a protective detail that practices a heightened state of situational awareness and employs a robust surveillance-detection/countersurveillance program coupled with careful route and schedule analysis.

Indeed, many people, including police and executive protection personnel, either lack or fail to employ good observation skills. These skills are every bit as important as marksmanship (if not more) but are rarely taught or put into practice. Additionally, even if a protection agent observes something unusual, in many cases there is no system in place to record these observations and no efficient way to communicate them or to compare them to the observations of others. There is often no process to investigate such observations in an attempt to determine if they are indicators of something sinister.

In order to provide effective security in such a high-threat environment, routes and traveling times must be varied, surveillance must be looked for and those conducting surveillance must not be afforded the opportunity to operate at will. In many cases it is also far more prudent to maintain a low profile and fade into the background rather than utilize a high-profile protective detail that screams “I have money.” Suspicious events must be catalogued and investigated. Emphasis must also be placed on attack recognition and driver training to provide every possibility of spotting a pending attack and avoiding it before it can be successfully launched. Proper training also includes immediate action drills in the event of an attack and practicing what to do in the event of an ambush.

Action is always faster than reaction. And even a highly skilled protection team can be defeated if the attacker gains the tactical element of surprise — especially if coupled with overwhelming firepower. If assailants are able to freely conduct surveillance and plan an attack, they can look for and exploit vulnerabilities, and this leads us to lesson two.

Lesson Two: Armored Vehicles Are Vulnerable

Armored vehicles are no guarantee of protection in and of themselves. In fact, like the presence of armed bodyguards, the use of armored vehicles can actually lead to a false sense of security if those using them do not employ the other measures noted above.

If assailants are given the opportunity to thoroughly assess the protective security program, they will plan ways to defeat the security measures in place, such as the use of an armored vehicle. If they choose to attack a heavy target like the Los Zetas convoy, they will do so with adequate resources to overcome those security measures. If there are protective agents, the attackers will plan to neutralize them first. If there is an armored vehicle, they will find ways to defeat the armor — something easily accomplished with the RPGs, LAW rockets and .50-caliber weapons found in the arsenals of Mexican cartels. The photographs and video of the armored Ford Excursion that was disabled by having its front right wheel blown off in the Ruiz ambush remind us of this. Even the run-flat tires installed on many armored vehicles will not do much good if the entire wheel has been blown off by an anti-tank weapon.

Armored vehicles are designed to protect occupants from an initial attack and to give them a chance to escape from the attack zone. It is important to remember that even the heaviest armored vehicles on the market do not provide a mobile safe-haven in which one can merely sit at the attack site and wait out an attack. If assailants know their target is using an armored vehicle, they will bring sufficient firepower to bear to achieve their goals. This means that if the driver freezes or allows his vehicle to somehow get trapped and does not “get off the X,” as the attack site is known in the protection business, the assailants can essentially do whatever they please.

It is also important to recognize that high-profile armored vehicles are valued by the cartels, and the types of vehicles usually armored generally tend to be the types of vehicles the cartels target for theft. This means that the vehicle you are riding in can make you a target for criminals.

While armored vehicles are valuable additions to the security toolbox, their utility is greatly reduced if they are not being operated by a properly trained driver. Good tactical driving skills, heightened situational awareness and attack recognition are the elements that permit a driver to get the vehicle off the X and to safety.

Lesson Three: Protect Your Schedule

Even for an organization as large and sophisticated as the Sinaloa Federation, planning and executing an operation like the Ruiz ambush took considerable time and thought. An ambush site needed to be selected and gunmen needed to be identified, assembled, armed, briefed and placed into position. Planning that type of major military operation also requires good, actionable intelligence. The planner needed to know the size of the Zetas convoy, the types of vehicles it had and its route and time of travel.

The fact that Los Zetas felt comfortable running that large a convoy in broad daylight demonstrates that they might have taken some precautionary measures, such as deploying scouts ahead of the convoy to spot checkpoints being maintained by Mexican authorities or a competing cartel. It is highly likely that they consulted with their compromised Mexican government sources in the area to make sure that they had the latest intelligence about the deployment of government forces along the route.

But the route of the Zetas convoy must have been betrayed in some way. This could have been due to a pattern they had established and maintained for such convoys, or perhaps even a human source inside the CPS, Los Zetas or the Mexican government. There was also an unconfirmed media report that Los Zetas may have had a base camp near the area where the ambush occurred. If that is true, and if the Sinaloa Federation learned the location of the camp, they could have planned the ambush accordingly — just as criminals can use the known location of a target’s home or office to plan an attack.

If an assailant has a protectee’s schedule, it not only helps in planning an attack but it also greatly reduces the need of the assailant to conduct surveillance — and potentially expose himself to detection. For security managers, this is a reminder not only that routes and times must be varied but that schedules must be carefully protected from compromise.

While the Ruiz ambush involved cartel-on-cartel violence, security managers in the private and public sectors would be well-served to heed the lessons outlined above to help protect their personnel who find themselves in the middle of Mexico’s cartel war.

<a href=”http://www.stratfor.com/weekly/20110601-protective-intelligence-lessons-ambush-mexico”>Protective Intelligence Lessons from an Ambush in Mexico</a> is republished with permission of STRATFOR.

EARLY BIRD for HDFF”s Stay Safe Training for (I)NGO Security Focal Points and Mangers (5 days) extended !!! Register NOW !!

November 19, 2011 | By ED | Category: Stay Safe Training for NGO Safety and Security Personnel (5d)

Summary

Do you feel safe and secure during your humanitarian work? Do you    know how to assess risks endangering your staff, programs or properties?  Or how to cope with safety / security incidents including administering first aid or operating a fire extinguisher? Do you know what to do or not to do as hostage?

These are daily questions for many (I)NGO senior staff who serve security managers and focal points. Worldwide security incidents and safety accidents are on the rise, resulting in (I)NGO personnel being injured and/or losing their lives. (I)NGO safety and security culture is often underdeveloped; however as threats increase, the need for simple management skills like risk assessments or incident management, as well as basic practical skills, are emergent. This training will help you to improve the safety and security culture of your (I)NGO.

Objectives

• Becoming familiar with HDFF’s Ample Risk Management assessment and essential security management skills for staff, programs and locations
• To increase risk management capabilities
• To  be able to understand the tasks and apply skills for security focal points / managers

+ risk avoidance

+ hostage incidents

+ communication in crisis

• Practical skill building including

+ mine awareness

+ improve IED knowledge as well as hostage incident management

+ how to react in case of minor injuries and fire immediately

Participants

This 5-day-training is open predominantly for Security Focal Points and Security Managers but also for administrative/HR managers of (I)NGO in Southeast Asia and beyond.

The course will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis up to a maximum of 25 participants. Please register as soon as possible to ensure your space in the training.

Time /location:

20 – 24 February 2012 / Bangkok

Costs: Early Bird Discount by 31 Dec 2011:  18,000 THB per person/600 US$ /later 18.750 THB/ 625 US$

Trainer

Dr. Wilfried  A. Herrmann, HDFF with support from UNDP, NPA, Thai Mine Action Centre et.al.

Contact/ Inquiry/ Registration

Ms. Elana Zyman, zygman@hdff.org

“Stay Safe Training 2011_2″ — A Terrific Success!

September 8, 2011 | By AD | Category: Stay Safe Training for NGO Safety and Security Personnel (5d)

HDFF’s “Stay Safe Training 2011_2″ —  A Terrific Success!

As quoted during the training, Charles De Gaulle stated “Faced with crisis, the man of character falls back to himself. He imposes his own stamp of action, takes responsibility for it, makes it his own”.

The second round of the “Stay Safe Training 2011_2” was held 22-26 August 2011 and similarly reflected Mr. De Gaulle’s statement.  Twelve safety and security NGO focal managers from diverse international countries representing Thailand, Cambodia, Indonesia, Myanmar, Philippines and Iraq and organizations such as World Vision, Diakonia, Save the Children, Mercy Corps and International Rescue Committee  attended the training. The participants were given the opportunity to learn to increase their capabilities of preventing threats and maintaining internal/ external safety within their organizations.

The five day training included a variety of skill building sessions with topics in Leadership in Emergencies, Situation Assessment, Communication in Crisis and Security Planning including mind mapping risk analysis, standard operating plans and contingency planning. Each manager was able to focus on identifying the potential emergencies that could affect their personnel and how to plan, act and report accordingly.

Numerous ideas that were discussed as relevant risks included natural disasters, human trafficking, road accidents, kidnap for random, fires and bombings. Fortunately, our Iraq representative was a security manager and was able to provide numerous examples and relevant experiences.

The training also included several practical applications including hostage incident management conveyed by a trainer from UNDP, mine awareness training from the Thailand Mine Action Center / APOPO representatives, fire fighting and first aid from varying experts.  Each experience provided the participants with a level of theory and hands on practice in order to cope with varying threats in their respective environments. Some of the most interesting and fun activities were CPR, trying on demining suits and of course conquering the fear of battling fire.

All in all, it was an excellent week and the participants gained a new perspective in fulfilling their roles.  HDFF is excited to be offering two more Stay Safe trainings coming up, one November 15-16^th for all NGO staff and the third SST for security focal points and managers in 2012 from February 20-24^th. Continue to watch out for further information on facebook and the website (www.hdff.org) !!              Contact Elana Zygman at zygman@hdff.org for further information.