Police spokesperson in the North West Province, Adele Myburgh, says currently women constitute 38% of the SAPS.

Myburgh adds on 28 January, the police service will honour former and current female police officers who have come a long way since the first enlistment of female officers in 1972.

Established in 1913, the South African Police Service was a 100% male-dominated organisation. That was the situation for 59 years.

In 1966 the Federation for Woman organisation requested that women be appointed to the organisation.

In 1969 the then Minister of Police presented a memorandum to the cabinet with a request for women to be appointed to the police.

Myburgh says the SAPS has made significant strides in ensuring women of different races, including those who are differently-abled, are appointed within the organisation.

Meanwhile, station commander at Phokengthe SAPS, Sarah Moagi, says the strides women are making in the SAPS go beyond boundaries and they bring a completely new angle to policing.

“There are remarkable strides that were made by the policing environment since the dawn of democracy and the representation of females on all levels and categories attest to that. This was made possible with various interventions that were implemented by the organisation in alignment with the government prescripts and legislations,” says Myburgh.

Members of the police will have a Medal Parade and Gala Dinner to celebrate female police officers in the province on Friday 21 January 2022 at Church Park in Potchefstroom.

OFM News