Brazil
Investigative interviewing in Brazil has undergone remarkable development in recent years. At the heart of this transformation is CogJus, the Brazilian partner of the Norwegian Centre for Human Rights (NCHR). Increasingly, the Civil Police across Brazil have embraced investigative interviewing, with several police academies now incorporating it into their training programs.
Supported by NCHR and the University of Portsmouth, various initiatives have provided training for Brazilian police and justice professionals in scientific, non-coercive interviewing techniques. These methods aim to elicit reliable information from victims, witnesses, and suspects, contributing to more just and accurate investigations.
Brazil has become a proving ground for investigative interviewing: “If it works in Brazil, it works anywhere.” The country’s high levels of violent crime, which peaked in 2017 with over 65,000 homicides, have instilled a sense of humility in international trainers. Yet, what stands out most is the enthusiastic reception from Brazilian police officers, who have not only welcomed the method but have begun applying it in their units—with promising results.
Thailand
Together with our partner, the Thailand Institute of Justice (TIJ), NCHR has been engaged in projects to advance investigative interviewing in Thailand for more than a decade. This includes trainings and workshops on investigative interviewing and evidence evaluation for and with experts from the Royal Thai Police, The Royal Thai Police Cadet Academy, the Office of the Attorney General in Thailand and the Nitivajra Institute. NCHR also facilitates the participation of Thai experts during important meetings and events on access to justice and police reform at the United Nations in Vienna, Geneva and New York.
Indonesia
Having started out as a search for alternatives to the use of torture, NCHR contributed to the first training in Indonesia on investigative interviewing for military intelligence and military police in 2013. Since then the work has gradually been oriented towards the police. In 2014 both military and police personnel participated in the training. By 2015, most of the participants were representatives of the police. From 2016, investigative interviewing has been included in the continuing education programme for criminal investigation detectives. The methods have been put to use in different police departments, and a core group of skilled detectives is specialising in the application of the investigative interviewing methodology.
Vietnam
NCHR has worked with the Ministry of Public Security and the People's Police Academy since 2011. The first phase of the project identified candidates for a core group of Vietnamese experts that eventually will form the backbone of the corps of instructors for the Vietnamese police in investigative interviewing. The expert group has developed Vietnamese training modules and curriculum to be taught in the police academies in Vietnam. The second phase of the project concerns expanding the corps of instructors to cover the major police districts as well as the training and teaching facilities. The training and selection is undertaken jointly with the Vietnamese experts.
Ukraine
NCHR has established a collaboration with the Ukrainian NGO JustGroup and the Ukrainian prosecution authorities to provide training in effective and human rights-friendly investigation methods, particularly in connection with war crimes. The cooperation is supported by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs through the Nansen Support Programme for Ukraine. Read more about our cooperation in Ukraine here.
China
There is a keen interest in alternatives to traditional interrogation methods in China. In 2016, Renmin University organised a roundtable on investigative interviewing where Norwegian experts from NCHR interacted with Chinese professionals and academics involved in or interested in the police investigation process for the first time. In 2017, the NCHR was invited to the Yunnan province to train the police in investigative interviewing. Later that year, the NCHR visited the Peoples Public Security Police College in Beijing to give presentations at a symposium and to lecture on investigative interviewing to police cadets.