Police officers from various countries who are members of the International Police Association are gathering for a few days in Villeneuve-lès-Avignon to visit Gard and Vaucluse and share friendly moments.
Around sixty members of the International Police Association (IPA) are staying in Villeneuve-lès-Avignon until May 26, where they are lodged at the camping site of the Palais des Papes.
The IPA is a global NGO with the motto “Serve through friendship.” Established in 1953 by an English police officer, with France being one of the three founding countries, it is now represented in 69 countries with over 360,000 members. It serves as a network for sharing, mutual aid, solidarity, and camaraderie among law enforcement members, active or retired, regardless of rank or function, from the national police, gendarmerie, municipal police, customs, and transportation police. This international gathering in the cardinal city is the seventh organized by the Gard-Hérault delegation of the NGO.
In her welcoming words, the president, Claire Palisse, set the tone for the spirit that unites the participants: “I feel like I am at a family reunion where we have the pleasure of coming together and meeting new members of the family: our large and beautiful IPA family.” A family where communication comes from the heart and humanity is at the center of concerns.
Police officers from the United States and Kuwait are also participating in the event in Villeneuve-lès-Avignon. Thirteen countries are represented, mostly from the European Union but also including Switzerland, the United States, and Kuwait. The Gard-Hérault delegation has prepared a rich program of discoveries, filled with exchanges and moments of conviviality, between Gard and Vaucluse with visits to Villeneuve-lès-Avignon, the Pont du Gard, Nîmes, Avignon, Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, and Gordes.
