NEW YORK, 6 November, 2018 (UN News): More women officers are needed at UN Police, to make the work of the Organization more efficient and reach the whole population they are meant to serve, a senior United Nations peacekeeping official told the Security Council on Tuesday, adding that, “to reach our full potential, we must bring more women police officers into the fold.”
Alexander Zuev, Assistant Secretary-General for the Rule of Law, at the Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) was speaking at an annual briefing by UN Police Commissioners on UN Peacekeeping operations, which focused on the work of UN missions in South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Haiti.
“Women police officers,” he said, “can help to mentor and inspire future women police leaders, increase access to justice for women and children at risk, and improve information-gathering and analysis by building bridges to vulnerable groups.
Mr. Zuev said that UN Police have stepped up their efforts to increase female participation, in line with initiatives including the UN Secretary-General’s Gender Parity Strategy, and have developed an action plan with specific targets for female police numbers in the field, and at UN Headquarters, by December 2028.
Speaking after Mr. Zuev, Unaisi Lutu Vuniwaqa, Police Commissioner of the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), said that the Mission is developing its own gender strategies and action plans.
Kvindelige FN-politifolk i Sydsudan
UNMISS police operations, said Ms. Vuniwaqa, recently deployed a mixed Formed Police Unit, comprising of 50 percent women police officers who provide security to unarmed Individual Police Officers conducting activities such as awareness raising, and fostering community watch groups in addition to providing force protection in situations where women and children converge in large numbers.
The deployment of women police officers, she added, promotes confidence, encourages survivors of sexual violence to report incidents, and enables civilians to share information.
Today, said Ms. Vuniwaqa, women police officers “comprise 22 percent of the mission’s police component, including 33 percent women in professional police posts.”
