Ramallah - 26th April 2012, EUPOL COPPS awarded a prize as a token of appreciation to Hebron Police District Commander Colonel Ramadan AWAD for having promoted gender integration, in a specialized field of police and organizing the riot control training for the Palestinian women’s police unit.
The award has been given in the presence of the Palestinian Civil Police (PCP) Gender Advisor, Major Wafa SULEIMAN, the EUPOL COPPS Police Advisory section Deputy, Bertrand LEVIEUX and the EUPOL COPPS Gender Advisor.
“I saw a need to integrate a policewomen unit into the Special Police Force (SPF) task because of operational needs in order to enhance the security and the rule of law in Hebron district. The policewomen are multitasked and are working in different fields of the police. They can rapidly respond to participate in an integrated way in SPF operations in Hebron District, if needed,” said Col. AWAD.
Still new female recruits and equipment are needed, he added, asserting that these issues can be explored in cooperation with our PCP Gender Advisor and the Main Headquarters (MHQ).
The policewomen unit currently established within the Hebron Police took intensive training course delivered by instructors at the Jericho Police Training Centre (JPTC) and were trained on modern methods of riot control, self defense, body and house searches, defensive tactics and human rights.
Major SULEIMAN praised the Hebron District Commander’s advanced efforts: “It is noticeable that women bring specific skills and strengths to police work, including in the field of special forces. I am very enthusiastic to see another concrete example at operational level in which policewomen and men in different roles and tasks work together to enhance effective and professional policing in order satisfy the needs of the Palestinian society, she added.
“The District Commander sets an example of best practice and hopefully the relevant PCP experts in the main headquarters are willing to explore the possibility to follow up this initiative and institutionalize this across the West Bank”, said EUPOL COPPS Police section Gender Advisor.
EUPOL COPPS works closely with the Palestinian Civilian Police (PCP), and its partners within the Palestinian Criminal Justice System (CJS) on the promotion and integration of gender issues.
