OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine organizes conference on gender equality and law enforcement

EVPATORIA, UKRAINE, 18 May 2005 - Promoting gender equality in law enforcement activities and raising awareness of gender-related issues is the focus of a three-day conference which opened today in the Ukrainian coastal town of Evpatoria.

The conference, supported by the OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine, brought together representatives of the Interior Ministry, experts, researchers and law enforcement personnel, as well as civil society representatives from Belarus, Moldova, Russia and Ukraine. They will share best practices and formulate mechanisms for implementing gender policy in Interior Ministry personnel practices, including tackling the current imbalance in the ratio of female to male employees.

"The conference will help raise awareness and formulate recommendations for teaching gender theory at the Ministry's universities, conducting gender research from a law enforcement perspective and implementing international standards of gender equality in law enforcement activities in Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova," said Kateryna Levchenko, advisor to Ukraine's Interior Minister.

All OSCE participating States have committed themselves to promoting gender equality. Law enforcement bodies are a particularly important focal point as they are often the first contact point for gender-based issues such as domestic violence, trafficking in human beings and other gender-based discrimination.

The conference was organized by the National University of Internal Affairs of Ukraine and the International Women's Rights Centre La Strada, with support from the Ukrainian Ministries of Interior and Youth and Sports, and the United Nations Development Programme.

The conference will offer recommendations to the Ukrainian Parliamentary Committee on Legal Support for Law Enforcement Activities.