Police training challenged by illiteracy

LASHKAR GAH, Afghanistan, Feb. 12 (UPI) -- British troops training local Afghan recruits to become an effective police force are facing basic challenges like widespread illiteracy.

The British 2nd Battalion Royal Gurkha Rifles are deployed to the volatile Helmand province in southern Afghanistan, where they are conducting eight-week police training programs. An effective police force in Afghanistan is a critical component to countering the escalating threats from the Taliban's drug smuggling operations, corruption and other criminal activity, the British Ministry of Defense reported.

Despite the importance of a capable police force, British troops are having to adapt their training techniques to overcome significant obstacles like illiteracy and other basics the Afghan population has been without as a result of decades of war.

"They cannot write and read -- that's the main thing -- so we have to cut down the lessons," Sgt. Chhatra Limbu, 2nd Battalion Royal Gurkha Rifles, said in a statement.

"Not proper 45 minutes or 40 minutes, we have to cut down to 20 minutes and maximum 25 minutes. That's best suited for them. … They cannot think all the things, because they cannot write and they cannot take notes."