Shahida Nasreen, Lady Police Officer Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Investigations in Multan, made the country proud recently by securing the first position at the 7th International Women in Policing Conference 2018 held in Georgia. The conference was organised to commemorate International Women’s Day.
DSP Nasreen successfully made her presence felt at the annual conference, which was attended by 300 female police officers from 13 countries, by coming out first in the international police course this year. She was also awarded the Medal of Valor.
DSP Nasreen’s efforts have been widely appreciated, with Regional Police Officer Multan Mohammad Idrees Ahmad congratulating her on achieving the first position at the prestigious event. According to The Express Tribune, he lauded DSP Shahida Nasreen for portraying Pakistani women in the best possible manner at the global level. He further said that officers like DSP Nasreen are a source of pride for the nation and there is no dearth of such hard-working and dedicated women police officers in the country.
The RPO was fulsome in his praise for DSP Nasreen, stating that she had uplifted the morale of lady police officers of not just the Multan region, but of the entire female police force of the country.
Apart from appreciation received by senior police officers, DSP Nasreen’s achievement has also been lauded by members of civil society as well as the Traders Association Multan, which presented a shield to her for her stupendous efforts. Prominent lawyer of the Multan region, Shahbaz Gurmani praised her performance, but also pointed out the problems posed by the lack of meritocracy in the police force, where officers much junior than DSP Shahida Nasreen are regularly promoted, while she is yet to receive a promotion despite decades of service in the police.
This is not the first time that Pakistan’s women police officers have shone at the international stage. Back in 2011, DSP Shahzadi Gulfam had received the 2011 United Nation’s Award for International Female Police Peacekeeper. The United Nations Police Division in the Office of Rule of Law and Security Institutions, the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, and the International Association of Women Police International Scholarship Committee had granted the prestigious award to DSP Gulfam. DSP Shahida Nasreen has carried on that proud tradition, setting the right example for women police officers in the country.
While Pakistan has been blessed with female icons of international stature, like Malala Yousufzai and Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, police officers like DSP Shahida Nasreen prove that Pakistan has many other women who in their own way are making the country proud through their hard work and talent.