International instructors teach human rights, Women, Peace and Security for TRADEWINDS 23
By Spc. Joshua TaeckensJuly 20, 2023
GEORGETOWN, Guyana – As the Caribbean-focused multinational exercise, TRADEWINDS 23, hits full stride in Guyana, a team of U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) and Dominican Republic instructors traveled by land and sea to various training sites to speak about humanitarian law, human rights and Women, Peace and Security (WPS).
SOUTHCOM Human Rights Coordinator, Lt. Col. (Ret.) Jose Rodriguez said the promotion of human rights is a major objective of TRADEWINDS and the principles that the team covered was a crucial aspect to interoperability.
“Respect for human rights is consistent with democratic values, so we promote those values that unite us and strengthen our partnerships,” said Rodriguez. “We have common threats in our [region] and we have to face them bilaterally and multilaterally. Respect for human rights is a part of that interoperability.”
More than just a human rights training, TRADEWINDS is an annual SOUTHCOM sponsored, joint, combined, multinational and interagency exercise designed to strengthen partnerships and interoperability, increase all participants' training capacity and capability to mitigate, plan for and respond to regional crises and security threats.
https://www.army.mil/article/268527/international_instructors_teach_human_rights_women_peace_and_security_for_tradewinds_23
