LONDON – A woman of Pakistani origin has made history as she became the first Muslim and Asian to be appointed as detective superintendent of Scotland Yard.
Shabnam Chaudhri has been honoured by the Metropolitan Police Service in Britain for her ‘outstanding contribution’ to the fight against hate crime.
The woman, who hailed from Karachi, was just two years old when she moved to England with her parents and joined the force in 1989 in London against the wishes of her family.
Her parent wanted her to marry and have children like an ordinary woman, but Chaudri opted to go with her dream of doing something in life.
She said that after some time the parents were proud of her when they saw her fighting crime and helping people.
There were few Muslim and Asian women in the police when she joined as the women with this background avoid being part of it, she said.
Inspired by slain Pakistani political leader Benazir Bhutto, Chaudri urged women to apply for the police jobs and work hard for recognition and rights.
At the rank of detective superintendent, she is the only Muslim woman in the Met police nationally. Chaudri struggled for six years to reach this position and suffered attacks during the career while fighting crime gangs.
She said that her bosses supported her when she applied for the post due to her services, adding that she had worked at London Olympics and many other key events.
In her career of 28 years, she has been hounoured with several awards for her services in London. She is also part of several awareness campaigns against hate crime and domestic abuse. She motivates women who avoid engaging with police.
Talking to an English newspaper, she said: “I have dealt with every kind of job. We have vests to protect ourselves against attacks. We have the equipment to keep ourselves safe. I have managed teams and I have been on front line duty. I am not scared of anything and that’s what I have learned while being in the police. Every day brings a new challenge in this job.”
“We were four sisters and my parents wanted us to get married, but we followed the dreams set in our minds and the result is here”.
