International deployment
The International Deployment Group (IDG) was established in February 2004 to manage the deployment of Australian and Pacific Island police overseas.
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) is committed to working alongside our overseas neighbours to achieve long-term law enforcement results of maintaining a safe, stable and secure region. Regional stability depends on well trained and equipped police agencies working together.
On 25 August 2006, Prime Minister John Howard, the Minister for Justice and Customs, Chris Ellison and AFP Commissioner Mick Keelty announced an increase in funding to strengthen the AFP's capacity to respond to international crises. This funding will boost IDG's staffing levels by about 1200 personnel over five years and will be the largest single increase in staff since the force was established in 1979.
The extra resources will allow the IDG to establish a 200-strong Operational Response Group that is ready to respond at short notice to emerging international law and order issues and stabilisation operations.
Since the Government first announced the establishment of the IDG, it has played a vital role in meeting ongoing regional security requirements.
The IDG currently has members deployed to Cyprus, Solomon Islands, Sudan, Timor-Leste, Nauru, Tonga, Vanuatu, Cambodia & Afghanistan.
Goal
To provide leadership within the Law and Justice sector in the delivery of offshore law enforcement initiatives.
Purpose
To contribute to regional stability and security on behalf of the Government of Australia by:
- Contributing to offshore law enforcement initiatives
- Participating in capacity development programs within the Law and Justice Sector
As at March 2007, there are approximately 350 members currently serving overseas in IDG missions. Of these, 100 members have been seconded from Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania, Queensland, Northern Territory and Western Australia Police and from thirteen Pacific Island Nations. Each mission is about upholding the law and people’s rights through mentoring and capacity building to support regional police.
The IDG employs over 250 Australian-based (A-Base) personnel that provide support to the deployed IDG members. The administrative office, A-Base, is located at the Wanggirrali Ngurrumbai Centre, Majura, Canberra.
The A-based support include the following areas:
- Contracts and Logistics
- HR and Finance
- Foreign Police Liaison
- Forensics
- Information Technology
- Intelligence
- Marketing and Public Affairs
- Ministerial
- Mission Administration
- Operational Response
- Pacific Islands Police Advisor
- Training
- Protective Service
- Strategy Planning, Monitoring and Governance
- Wellbeing and OH&S Services
"The IDG provides an opportunity for Australian and Pacific Island police to operate in a collaborative environment as part of a Whole-of-Government response to challenging International issues" - Federal Agent Paul Jevtovic, IDG National Manager."
Career opportunities
The IDG comprises staff drawn from the AFP and from Australian State jurisdictions. State police personnel are appointed as special members of the AFP for the duration of their IDG service.
All Australian police and support personnel are employed or appointed under the employment legislation and industrial instruments, including determinations made in respect to conditions of service for the IDG, by the Commissioner of the AFP.
Relevant legislation
It is recommended that personnel from other jurisdictions familiarise themselves with the following Commonwealth legislation:
- Crimes Act 1914 (Attorney-General's website)
- Law Enforcement (AFP Professional Standards and Related Measures) Act 2006 (Attorney-General's website)
- Australian Federal Police Act 1979 (Attorney-General's website)
- Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Attorney-General's website)
- Archives Act 1983 (Attorney-General's website)
- Privacy Act 1988 (Attorney-General's website).
Articles
Peacekeeping
- PPF Commander Will Jamieson farewelled in Honiara (PDF, 17kb) - AFP News, July, 2007
- Near neighbour commitment (PDF, 772kb) - AFP News article, June, 2006
- IDG: two years on and still going strong (PDF, 396kb) - AFP News article, April, 2005
- Women in Peacekeeping (PDF, 19kb) - Federal Agent Dee Quigley's presentation at the Women in Policing Globally 2002 conference (Australian Institute of Crimilology website)
- Peacekeeping Commitment has a long tradition - Federal Agent Peter White's paper, providing a police perspective on peace missions
- The road to peace - Platypus article by Federal Agent Ben McDevitt.
- Commemorating police in peacekeeping - Platypus article detailing Commonwealth/ACT/AFP members who have served 1964-1998.
- International Policing Conference 2001 - 'Civilian Police as peacekeepers' - article by Alan Mills
- IDG -One Year On (PDF, 767kb) - Platypus article by Federal Agent Paul Jevtovic
- "Khartoum calling hard to ignore" (PDF, 3.5Mb) - Daily Telegraph, Saturday 19 August 2006
Government
- AFP Submission to the Senate Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Inquiry into Australia's involvement in Peacekeeping operations 2007 (PDF, 132Kb)
- Commissioners Speech on ‘Safety - How it can be achieved through Collaboration’ - 28 November 2003
Contact IDG
Personnel from other police forces seeking further information on IDG as a result of advertised expressions of interest, please contact the listed contact officer for your agency. For any other enquiries, please use the contact details below.
| International Deployment Group | National Manager, IDG | Ph: (02) 6256 7777 Email IDG |