THE CONCEPT OF ILEA
As we approach the 21st Century, it has become imperative that we develop and implement an international training program to confront the global challenges facing us with the escalation of international crime and terrorism. For the first time in history, we must prepare, enable and empower police officers with little or no experience, to operate within a democratic framework in which they must both maintain social order and preserve civil and human rights. It is imperative that the brotherhood of law enforcement professionals will be willing and able to stem the corrosive tide of organized crime.

In mid-1994, FBI Director Louis J. Freeh and a delegation of top United States law enforcement professionals traveled throughout Central and Eastern Europe. The purpose of the trip was to meet law enforcement colleagues in the region and discuss methods to attack transnational criminal activity. Mutual assistance and training were quickly identified as two areas which would have an immediate, significant impact. It was in this context that the concept of an ILEA type facility for the region was first developed.

The ILEA initiative is a multi-national effort organized by the United States, the Government of Hungary, and other international training partners. United States federal law enforcement agencies and the Department of State (DOS) are engaged in a cooperative effort to provide assistance to our police colleagues in the emerging democracies. These law enforcement agencies are the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), United States Secret Service (USSS), Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (BATF), United States Customs Service (USCS), Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the Department of State Diplomatic Security Service (DS), the Department of Energy (DOE), and the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC). Other countries engaged in this international partnership by providing instructors for ILEA programs include, Canada, Great Britain, Ireland, Italy, Germany, Russia, Hungary and the Netherlands. In addition, representatives from the European Union and the Council of Europe have also participated in the development and operation of the ILEA. The partnership developed between the law enforcement agencies of the United States and the Hungarian National Police, serves as a model for international law enforcement cooperation. As full partners in the ILEA initiative, both countries contributed financial and personnel resources to ensure that the ILEA would be successful.

[ILEA FACILITIES] [THE ILEA INTERNATIONAL CURRICULUM COMMITTEE (ICC)] [THE ILEA FACULTY] [MANAGEMENT of ILEA] [ILEA FUNDING] [STUDENT SELECTION] [ILEA EIGHT-WEEK PROGRAM]