'Bring women police personnel into mainstream'

By K.T.Sangameswaran

CHENNAI, NOV. 13. In line with the Government's focus on the need to tackle women's issues and problems more effectively, senior police officers have suggested recruitment of more women into the force. They also want women personnel brought into the ``mainstream of police functioning'' along with the men.

Instead of restricting their role to the cases relating to rape, dowry deaths, dowry harassment and molestation and bandobust duty, women personnel, it was felt, could be asked to take up general duties.

Of course, the top echelons did not want to lose sight of the problems encountered by women personnel during work. Chief among them was the absence of proper accommodation facilities to women during mobilisation for bandobust work away from the headquarters.

Streaks of gender bias, they felt, could be overcome by ``understanding the problems of women personnel at work'' and the men extending ``maximum possible support ''.

Recently, senior officers like IGPs and Additional DGPs expressed their views at a `gender sensitisation' programme organised by the Directorate-General of Training as a follow-up to the Chief Minister's idea given while reviewing the police performance in June this year.

A range of subjects from gender inequalities, gender stereotypes, status and strength of women and violence against women to women's empowerment, gender issues and policy approach came up at the two-day session which, in a way, also helped them assess the performance and problems faced by the women police.

Though opinion was mixed about women police's performance, officers felt that the personnel could enhance their image by improving investigative skills, early chargesheeting of cases, enriching their legal knowledge and effective follow-up of the cases pending in courts. Though these are essential requisites for the entire force, societal expectations from women police on women's issues were more than from the men.

Victims of violence needed a more humane treatment by police. In an``accused-oriented criminal justice system'', victims were invariably forgotten by the law-enforcers and society.

Another problem for women personnel was inadequate support from men police in some places, mainly due to a strong gender bias.

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Section  : Southern States
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