pmcimagazine.com
10
TRAINING:
TRAINING SUAREZ INTERNATIONAL SOUTH AFRICA.
At PMCI we are always interested in looking at unique training courses and programs that will let
serving personnel or those leaving the military hone certain areas of their skill-set. Recently I was
lucky enough to speak to Gerald from SUAREZ International South Africa.
E
very so often a chance encounter opens up
a new line of conversation, and so it was
that Gerald and I started speaking. A small
conversation on a matter unrelated to the
tactical world led to us discussing wider
topics, and I discovered that not only was the
gentleman involved in the same world as I,
but that he actively ran very unique training
courses in South Africa.
My own late father, a former infantry instructor, called
South Africa his home during the last years of his life; it
was a country he came to love and to call his home, and
my brief visits allowed me to share his joy of the beautiful
wide open spaces there. Like me he was an outdoorsman
and a keen shooter, and the wild terrain of South Africa was
exactly his thing. However, sadly South Africa has a much
darker side; in February 2007, the Centre for the Study of
Violence and Reconciliation was contracted by the South
African government to carry out a study on the nature of
crime in South Africa. The study concluded that the country
was exposed to high levels of violence as a result of different
factors, including the normalization of violence. Violence
had come to be seen as a necessary and justified means of
resolving conflict, and males believed that coercive sexual
behavior against women was and is legitimate. High levels
of inequality, poverty, unemployment, social exclusion and
marginalization mixed with this acceptance of violence create
a turbulent melting pot that at any given time is liable to boil over.
Gerald and his colleagues are at the forefront of training
both civilians and professionals in the key skills of how to
deal with a potentially violent attack, both inside and outside
the home or workplace, and his links to the outspoken but
nevertheless highly respected firearms trainer Gabe Suarez
means that his trainees are getting the very best instruction
possible. When I pressed further Gerald very kindly agreed to
answer my questions and this is what he had to tell me.
PMCI: So Gerald, in your own words please tell me what led
you guys to set up the SUAREZ International South Africa
training program?
SISA: I have hosted Gabe Suarez here in Cape Town South Africa
on two separate occasions, firstly in 2003 then 2010. This is
where I graduated as an instructor under Suarez International
USA Inc. From there I have adapted the original curriculum
so as to make it more relevant for what is happening here
in Africa or other areas where crime is out of control and
personal security training is wanted. I served in the South
African Navy back in 1992-1994 then the reserve forces for
around 20 years. I was originally a junior engineer serving on
mine hunters. I later tried out for and was accepted to attend
the elite Navy Divers class. I passed and then served with
the teams. I have completed studies in Brussels in terrorism