The Belize Police Department Celebrate the work of women

Activities marking International Women’s Month continued with a special award ceremony for the Belize Department’s female officers and support staff. The event was to highlight the women for their commitment to ensuring Belize is a better place. Dale McDougall attended the event and has the story.

Dale McDougall, Love News: The women of the Police Department in Belize City were honored on Friday with a luncheon and an award ceremony. The afternoon event, staged at the Queen Street Station, included Police Commissioner, Chester Williams, who discussed why events like this one are so important. 

Chester Williams – Commissioner of Police: “They play a very integral role in the functioning of our department. The duties of every police man and woman is important to us and should equally be recognized. As I said in my presentation to them that gone are the days when women would feel like they have to work ten times harder than a man for them to be recognized. As the Commissioner I look at police officers equally whether they’re a man or a woman. When it comes to promotion if the woman is doing as good a job as the man she will be entitled to promotion and will be promoted. So it’s no longer they have ot outshine the man to be recognized no those days are behind us.”

Dale McDougall, Love News: Throughout the Belize District, nominations were accepted for women to receive accolades for their dedication, commitment, compassion, and service to the department. Inspector Hortence Hernandez outlined a bit of the process.

Insp. Hortence Hernandez – Public Relations Officer, BPD: “Of the 26 names we had three females that came out on top and was taken to Belmopan and tabled. The first one was Teresita Audinette. The second one Ms.Denise Logan from Precinct 2. And no other than this person who works in this department probably longer than many of us she has I think she has Ms.Vargas how much thirty one ? Thirty one years. Ms.Vargas was also selected in the top three.”

Dale McDougall, Love News: That included Leonora Vargas, who has worked with the department for 31 years. For Commissioner Williams, women have been doing a lot of the heavy lifting in ensuring that our streets are safer, debunking the narrative that men are doing most of the police work. 

Chester Williams – Commissioner of Police: “I would not say that. I can say that both men and women in the police department work equally. Gone are the days where we say that certain tasks within the department is a task for a man and certain tasks are tasks for women that is no longer the case. Gone are the days when men expect that women would be in the office and bring coffee for them and these sorts of things. Women are out on the streets now hitting the pavement as much as men are and it is only fitting that now that we’re in the month of Women’s Month that we do give recognition to the women of the Belize Police Department.”

Dale McDougall, Love News:  According to the Commissioner’s own figures, women make up about 25 percent of the department’s workforce – ranging from high ranking officers to support staff including emergency operators. Dale McDougall, Love News.