'UN to give special consideration to recruit more peacekeepers from Bangladesh'

Visiting UN Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Jean-Pierre Lacroix has assured that he would give special consideration to the recruitment of more peacekeepers from Bangladesh.

Lacroix made the assurance when he met acting army chief Lieutenant General Ataul Hakim Sarwar Hasan at the military headquarters on Sunday, reports UNB.

The acting army chief requested the visiting UN under-secretary general to recruit more Bangladeshi peacekeepers for the peacekeeping missions, says an Inter Service Public Relation (ISPR) media release.

Lacroix highly praised the contribution of Bangladeshi peacekeepers and thanked Bangladesh and especially the Bangladesh Army for sending the highest number of peacekeepers for a long time.

During the meeting, the appointment of Bangladeshis and especially women peacekeepers for important appointments in future peacekeeping missions was also discussed. The acting army chief thanked the UN official, adds UNB.

The UN under-secretary general is on a visit to Bangladesh to attend the Peacekeeping Ministerial-2023 Preparatory Conference to be held in Ghana's capital Accra in December this year.

This conference titled "Women in Peace" is being organised jointly by Bangladesh, Canada and Uruguay. Bangladesh has been in a leading position in the dynamic trend, which the United Nations has developed in peacekeeping missions over the past few decades, reads the ISPR release.

Zero tolerance against sexual abuse

Earlier in the day, the under-secretary general, top officials at the Bangladesh army, and the police have expressed their commitment to ensuring zero tolerance against sexual harassment and vowed to increase the representation of female peacekeepers in field positions and commanding roles in the coming years.

"We have come a long way, but we need all hands on deck to address the remaining barriers to women's full, equal, and meaningful participation," Jean-Pierre Lacroix, under-secretary-general for UN Peace Operations, said on the concluding day of the two-day "UN peacekeeping missions preparatory meeting on women in peacekeeping" conference.

Around a hundred delegates from different countries joined the conference held on 25-26 June in Dhaka.

Jean-Pierre Lacroix stressed the importance of ensuring that women are deployed within the widest possible range of functions at all levels in a fair, safe, and respectful environment. Achieving this goal will require notable changes in the military, justice, and correctional situations worldwide, as well as within UN peacekeeping.

"We understand that it may take some time to increase the pool of available women for deployment, particularly at the senior levels, and that is why we must act now and be proactive in supporting uniform women's security," he said.

He emphasised the need to make every effort to swiftly investigate incidents and hold perpetrators accountable. The tolerance of misconduct within the institution compromises the work environment and hurts operations.

Lieutenant General Waker-Uz-Zaman, principal staff officer of the Armed Forces Division, said that women and children are the worst sufferers in any conflict zone. Here lies the importance of having female engagement teams on the mission. Currently, four female engagement teams are deployed in Bangladesh contingents.

"We have realised how important their role is. Thus, Bangladesh strongly supports the WPS agenda, underscoring meaningful participation in the peace process, including UN peace operations," he added.

The principal staff officer said, "Females are different physiologically than males. So they need some facilities. If you can create this kind of facility for them, they can be very available for all the services, including UN missions."

He further said, "Sexual exploitation and abuse are common in every military unit. But zero tolerance exists in our police force as well as our military. That is why these kinds of incidents are very rare. When they occur, we take very strict action."

Muhammad A Muhith, ambassador and permanent representative of Bangladesh to the UN, said, "I have seen how our female judges in South Sudan are serving the field; it is a very challenging situation. In places like those, it is urgent to take into account the needs and requirements of women deployed.

Md Kamrul Ahsan, additional inspector general of Bangladesh Police, said women peacekeepers' role in mitigating the sufferings of women and children in conflicting areas and reducing gender-based violence to provide a sense of security to women in host countries has garnered admiration from various corners.

Under-Secretary-General for Management Strategy, Policy, and Compliance Catherine Pollard also spoke on the occasion.