Author: Bibby, Claire1
Published in National Security Journal, 05 April 2021
How well are United Nations Security Council resolutions communicated?
New Zealand Police report on United Nations Security Council conventions and resolutions relating to gender equality through the Ministry for Women.22 These are the NZ National Action Plan for Women, Peace and Security, the Beijing Declaration, and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.23 When asked about their familiarity with United Nations conventions and resolutions on gender equality, 53.19% of females and 57.89% of males (54.84% of constables and 59.34% of non-constabulary staff) responded that they were not at all familiar with them. Only two males and one female said they use the United Nations conventions on gender equality in their everyday work.
When asked how familiar they are with the NZ National Action Plan for United Nations Security Council resolutions, including 1325 Women, Peace and Security, 82.52% or 118 people responded that they were not at all familiar with the NZ National Action Plan. There is little variation between male (81.25%) and female (85.11%) or constabulary (81.91%) and non-constabulary (83.67%). When asked if they had read the NZ National Action Plan, 89.51% said they had not. If the influencers and decision makers in police are better informed about the intent and value of resolution 1325, then women’s contribution toward peace and security will have increased opportunity to be actualised.
Opportunities for communicating internationally
The survey identified those who had policed internationally by asking whether respondents had attended an international meeting, convention, conference or training; undertaken a short-term deployment, such as responding to an international disaster, or crowd control type events, or undertaken an in-country residential deployment.
Ninety-four of 143 respondents answering this question have policed internationally of whom 85 are constables. There is a significant statistical variation with 79.17% of all male respondents having policed internationally compared to 38.30% of all female respondents. The evidence showed that when women do police internationally, they are less likely to participate in key opportunities for communicating, networking and influencing policing (see Figure 6). Eighty-seven people responded to the question designed to identify key opportunities for communicating, networking and influential policing. Between January 2016 and July 2017, most respondents had participated in meetings (77.01%), provided or attended training with international participants (58.62%), and some had attended an international convention, conference, or symposium (34.38%). However, on a percentage basis, women participate less than men and more women (37.50%) than men (12.68%) did not participate at all.