Compol says more women are in leadership positions under his admin!

For a long time the top brass of the Belize Police Department was viewed as an all boys club. Across the world there is a hyper-masculine culture that plays out in police departments, from policies to promotions.  In Belize, there has never been a female commissioner since the first Belizean commissioner in 1969 – the closest was deputy commissioner. And despite unprecedented numbers of women recruited in the last several years, the top leadership and management positions in the Department  are still largely considered to promote that ‘old boys’ club mentality. Well, the new commissioner Chester Williams says that he is using his tenure to turn that around and promote an inclusive climate. On Tuesday he shared more about the qualified, high-ranking women officers in leadership roles in the department.

Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police

Chester Williams

“I know there has always been an issue where people said we didn’t have enough women in authority. So, under my administration, we try our best to put women in key positions. If you go in the north, we have Senior Superintendent Marcia Moody who is the acting northern regional coordinator. If you go in the south, you have Senior Superintendent Sandra Bodden who is the southern regional commander. If you go to the border, you will see Senior Superintendent Diana Hall who is the officer commanding Benque. If you go to region two in Belize City, there you have Senior Superintendent Suzette Anderson who is the officer commanding precinct two or north side. You go to precinct three; you have ASP Dehaney Augustine who is the officer in charge of precinct three. And you have Mrs. Dezerie Magdaleno who is the commander of management services. If you look at it, we have four regional commanders and of the four two are women. So, women control the main border areas – the north, west and south and it is because we have a lot of confidence in our women. They bring a lot to the table. They bring experience and maturity and that is what we want. Being the disciplined organisation we are, they can tell you they have no difficulty managing their areas. And as much as you can see Ms Bodden look so small, she is no push over. She knows what to do and she ensures that it is done. I can say the same of the other female officers who have major command across this country where policing is concerned.”