An MOD police officer from Dalry, North Ayrshire, is training some extraordinary women to become gun-carrying police officers in the Afghan National Police. Isabella McManus has been in the MOD police for 22 years but decided to give herself a new challenge and volunteered to serve in Helmand, Southern Afghanistan, as a mentor and advisor to the local police force. Five months later she has single-handedly doubled the number of women who want to become police officers in the province. .She is...
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An MOD police officer from Dalry, North Ayrshire, is training some extraordinary women to become gun-carrying police officers in the Afghan National Police. Isabella McManus has been in the MOD police for 22 years but decided to give herself a new challenge and volunteered to serve in Helmand, Southern Afghanistan, as a mentor and advisor to the local police force. Five months later she has single-handedly doubled the number of women who want to become police officers in the province. .She is the first British female police officer in Helmand. Speaking from Afghanistan she said: "It wasn't my job to start mentoring the women specifically but they struck a chord with me. They were ignored entirely at the Police Headquarters and it wasn't right. They needed a uniform giving them some status and they needed training and equipment. I've fought those battles for them every step of the way and we are getting somewhere. The women are empowered and it's great to see.".Isabella is no stranger to working in foreign countries and dealing with unfamiliar cultural issues. She served in Kosovo and Iraq and has learnt from her experiences there: "I found the quickest and best way to interact with the new recruits was to smile. Being open and honest is something that they value. Many of the women have been down-trodden but speaking with them as an equal really helps put them at ease.."We do a mixture of classroom lessons and training on the firing ranges. Fire arms training during the summer was really testing. The women are real crack-shots but working in 50 degree heat was very testing. My skin has never been exposed to harsh sunshine! ."For lessons, we sit on the floor and talk about what they have been doing. Then it is down to business."..Asked why she had taken on the role, when others would be quite happy to carry on their day job at home, Isabella replied:."Someone needed to develop them and champion their cause. I have 22 years of experience in the service and I am only
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