The United Nations Police Advisor and Director of the Police Division of the United Nations Headquarters in New York, Commissioner Luis Carrilho, has stated that the United Nations is in need of more female police officers to serve on their peace keeping missions.
Commissioner Luis Carrilho emphasized that most people, especially the vulnerable ones, in war-zone countries feel safer with women police officers deployed there than their male counterparts.
“United Nations police is usually deployed in environments where there are people in need; victims of crimes, internally displaced people, refugees, elderly women, people that really need the support of the police, and the women police are better accepted by people that are in need, and what we all want."
Emphasiizing the nurturing nature of women, he said women police contribute towards ensuring maximum security for people in wore-torn countries.
“Women and men police officers alongside is, to contribute to a better security for the people to a better quality of life, so women really make a difference in the peace operations where the United Nations police deploy,” he remarked.
The UN Police Advisor, made the above remarks when he paid a courtesy call to the Acting Inspector General of Police (IGP), James Oppong Boanuh, at the Ghana Police Headquarters in Accra Tuesday.
According to Commissioner Luis Carrilho, he was impressed by the all-female police March band who welcomed him at the premises.
While praising the Ghana Police for its contribution towards peacekeeping tasks, he further called on the IGP and his leadership to deploy more female officers to mission.
“I was particularly impressed with the guard of honor all female. Female police officers are in high demand in peace operations, and I also make a plea to the Inspector General of Police, and the leadership to continue to deploy excellent police officers for peace operations, particularly female police officers,” he said.
Commissioner Carrilho is on a diplomatic mission to Ghana on a capacity building workshop to train police officers in Ghana and other countries to equip officers who are responsible for the Formed Police Units (FPUs).
The seminar is to help accomplish policing tasks when security personnels are deployed for peacekeeping.
