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The Rhodesia Herald,
March 9, 1978
WHATEVER happens in Rhodesia, no one will have done more than the BSA Police to keep the country free from the fear of bondage, or the bondage of fear, a senior government official said yesterday.
Mr MF Garnett, the Secretary for Justice, said this when he addressed a passing-out parade of 44 recruits at the Morris Depot in Salisbury.
Although times were uncertain, anxious, sometimes even dangerous, “we must not lose our nerve”, Mr Garnett told the new patrol officers-23 of them, women.
“If Rhodesia shall lose her freedom and many other countries have lost their liberty, let it be your proudest plume not that you were the last to desert, but that you never deserted her.”
Citizens would “command the greatest respect if you exercise your undoubted power with restraint and a sense of fair play”.
“Every citizen is entitled to be fairly treated, even though you may at times have to deal firmly with him.
“If you fail to be fair, justice will probably fail, for justice relies heavily on the integrity of the Police and others.”
The 23 women form one of the biggest intakes of women patrol officers in the history of the force.
It was also the first passing-out parade attended by the BSAP’s new chief, Commissioner Peter Allum.
LESSONS FOR TODAY
- The glass ceiling has already been broken especially in fields that were previously a preserve for men like the police force. Today, women have the opportunity to rise to the highest echelons of power in such professions. They just have to work hard.
- Women should strive to build on the success achieved by their predecessors by following in their footsteps.
- The record number of women in the intake above shows that women have the ability to match men if they set their mind to it.
Online Reporter