Iraqi Women Plant Flag As First Female Police Officers

UNCLAS BAGHDAD 002986 SIPDIS SENSITIVE TAGS: KJUS PGOV IZ SUBJECT: Iraqi Women Plant Flag As First Female Police Officers ¶1. (SBU) Summary: Coordinator for Assistance Transition Patricia Haslach attended Baghdad Police College's graduation ceremony, including its first class of 50 female police officers on November ¶9. Recruited from around Iraq, the new first lieutenants will serve at Ministry of Interior (MOI) and provincial headquarters. INL supports 13 International Police Advisors at the Baghdad Police College under the military's Multinational Security Transition Command Iraq's (MNSTC-I) training command. Danish and UK police advisors also worked closely with the cadets. Attended by Interior Minister Bolani just two weeks after the car bomb attacks that devastated several government buildings in Baghdad, the graduation was a positive sign of the GOI's determination to return to business. The graduates, representing a new generation of women trailblazers in security professions, expressed the need for advanced training and combating discrimination in a male-dominant sector. End Summary. ¶2. (SBU) Iraq's first fifty women graduated from the Baghdad Police College's officer training program on November 9 alongside 1,050 male colleagues. Interior Minister Bolani attended and gave opening remarks, encouraging graduates to continue the fight against terrorism despite recent setbacks. The MOI recruited the women through a nation-wide television, radio, and print media campaign last fall. The self-called "Lioness Group" are all university graduates, roughly half are lawyers; others are scientists, sociologists, psychologists, journalists, and accountants. The women attended a separate training program from men with a reportedly similar curriculum. In addition to the officers, 25 former shurta (basic policewomen) also graduated as the first female commissioner class (first line supervisors). ¶3. (SBU) INL supports 13 International Police Advisors (IPA) at the Baghdad Police College under the military's training command. To complement the formal training, U.S., UK, and Danish police and military women serving in Baghdad mentored the Iraqi cadets on the challenges facing them as trailblazers in a traditionally male profession. ¶4. (SBU) Danish Police Superintendent and International Police Advisor at the Baghdad Police College Nanna Skriver told us that while the MOI will not relegate the women strictly to administrative tasks, the new graduates will be assigned to headquarters, instead of police stations, in areas from which they were recruited. This reflects both general security concerns and their own desires to serve near their families. Based on their educational background, the women will serve in forensics, human resources, investigations, public and higher education, domestic violence, and community outreach capacities. As more female police officers graduate and societal views about women in the police force become more accepted, Skriver is optimistic that future classes will join their male colleagues in the full range of field positions. Another 100 women will begin officer candidate training in January. ¶5. (SBU) Coordinator for Assistance Transition Patricia Haslach attended the ceremony, along with MNSTC-I MG Barbero, and spoke with many of the female cadets following the ceremony. Haslach praised the women for their brave decision to serve their country. The newly minted first lieutenants told her that they were fully aware Qnewly minted first lieutenants told her that they were fully aware of the challenges ahead of them, but were eager to take on the task. Several women expressed the need for additional higher-level training opportunities for women in their new specialties and the need to combat discrimination in a male-dominant profession. Haslach reaffirmed the Embassy's commitment to police training, noting our intention to focus on the advanced skills such as those advocated by the graduates. (Note: As police training transitions from the U.S. military to civilian lead, INL Baghdad will be incorporating specialized and higher-level training and advising programs like those advocated by the new officers. End Note) ¶6. (SBU) The ceremony was widely covered by international and local media, including the Washington Post, New York Times, Associated Press, NBC, and Christian Science Monitor. Haslach gave on-camera interviews to leading Iraqi TV stations, al Sumaria and al Hurra, emphasizing USG support for the new Iraqi police officers and their families. She also underscored the assistance coordination with the international community to support the Iraqi Police and Security Forces as they demonstrate great resilience in the wake of the October 25 bombings.