Diplomatic Correspondent :
The Women and Children Help-Desk (WCHD) has been set up in in Rohingya camps at Madhuchara Police Camp-1 in Cox’s Bazar district with the association of Cox’s Bazar Police and UN Women.
The help-desk service has been established at the request of the Cox’s Bazar SP with support from the Government of Germany.
The WCHD will have dedicated and trained female police officers to assist Rohingya women and children, and facilities for female police officers so that they can stay overnight also to provide 24-hour services.
The WCHD started its journey from Sunday amid an opening ceremony where ABM Masud Hossain, Superintendent of Police(SP), Cox’s Bazar and Shoko Ishikawa, Country Representative, UN Women Bangladesh were present to inaugurate the facility.
Besides, the people from different international and national oraganisations including Rohingya women leaders, Government high officials, UN agencies, Camp-in-Charges and different forum members attended the opening ceremony.
The presence of female police officers in the camps is emergency in response to long-standing safety and security of Rohingya women and children against trafficking and domestic violence.
“We have not been able to approach anyone to report wrong-doings against us.The existence of female police officers and the help-desk now gives us confidence that the camps will be safer to live in, and law and order will be upheld”, UN Women on Monday said this in a press release quoting one Rohingya woman leader.
A female police officer expressed their readiness in dealing with complaints received from the refugees, and along with SP ABM Masud Hossain, thanked UN Women and all partners for supporting the initiative, the press release said.
Shoko Ishikawa, Country Representative, UN Women, Bangladesh remarked that women’s help-desks are expected to make it easier for women to approach police for help.
Furthermore, she stressed on the need for other agencies to take similar initiatives to increase the representation of female police members in the Rohingya camps in Cox’s Bazar.
In December 2018, UN Women trained 55 female police, focused on procedures for handling Gender Based Violence (GBV) and Domestic Violence (DV) cases, management and reporting, collection of evidences with an emphasis on forensic evidence and victim-centered interviewing techniques for women and children, who have experienced GBV/DV.
In order to strengthen overall procedures and to provide prompt services, UN Women in collaboration with Police, have established the ‘Women and Children Desk’ as part of the police station located in Camp-4, the press release concludes.
