THE IRON LADY

In 1974, for the first time 14 women—seven Sub-Inspectors and seven constables were recruited in the Special Branch to perform plain clothes security duties. The first uniformed women police were recruited in 1976 in the Dhaka Metropolitan Police. Since then policewomen have made their mark not only in the country but also in UN Peacekeeping missions in other countries. Yasmeen Ghafoor ppm, an Additional Deputy Inspector General of Police who is currently posted as the commandant of the Special Branch Training School in Dhaka, talks about her journey.

Yasmeen Ghafoor ppm

What motivated you to join the Police?
I went to the BAF Shaheen School where I excelled in physical training along with my studies. Later on while I was a master's student of Zoology at Dhaka University, my friends were filling out the forms for the 7th BCS (1985).  I thought I would give it a try. Four women including myself qualified. I have always wanted to serve my country.

What are your responsibilities?
This is an in-service training facility. We offer training courses on critical areas like intelligence, surveillance, immigration and VVIP Protection.  We also provide a one month training programme to personnel who go to households to verify the identity of passport applicants.

What are the challenges you faced reaching this position?
In 1994 when I was posted as the additional SP of Bogra, a rather conservative district, I wore sari on my first day at work. A lot of  people came to see me like I was an exotic animal. The SP, my boss, told me I could not enter my office unless I took care of the labor unrest at Chelopara, which I did. Eventually I started wearing uniform. People called me the female SP, not the Additional SP.

How about policewomen at the lower level?
At police stations, policewomen still face difficulties when it comes to accessing facilities like bathroom and dressing room. At the model police stations these conditions are improving. As of 2014, more than 7 percent of the police force is women. In 2008 it was 1.8 percent.

Any memorable incident?
In 2005 I was in charge of arrangement of the plain clothes police providing security to the dignitaries of the SAARC summit. I worked extremely hard to make sure everything went smoothly. Sometimes I would hear the morning call of prayer and suddenly realize I had worked all night. My colleagues in other departments started calling me the iron lady.
When I was the SP of Gazipur, I encountered a difficult problem. Female workers at garment factories were let off at 3 or 4 in the morning. On their way back home, sometimes some girl would be picked up by criminals only to be raped and murdered later. As a policewoman I felt it was my obligation to stop heinous crimes like rape and also send a message to the perpetrators about consequences of such crimes. I reached out to factory owners and community leaders. We decided that letting them off at the time of the morning call of prayer would be better because a lot of people would be up by then. It worked. It made me happy to see such crimes declining rapidly.

Would you advise women to join the police?
Absolutely. For example, victims of domestic violence and sex crimes speak more openly with female officers. Growing up as a young woman, I was a victim of eve teasing. Almost every woman in our country can tell you a story. I wanted to do something about it. Now I teach a class on sexual harassment for managerial level officials at BRAC. The higher the number of women in the police force, the better for the society.

What do you do on your days off?
I like to clean my home and keep things in order, skype with my elder daughter who goes to university in Canada. The younger one is here with me. I love spending time with her.

How can the police regain the public's trust?
One person cannot change it. We have to deal with it as an institution. A well trained, neutral and professional force can serve people well.