Major Radhika Sen of the Indian Army was selected as the recipient of the UN award for her work supporting women and girls during her deployment as a peacekeeper, said Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
Dujarric said Guterres will present Sen with the 2023 Military Gender Advocate Award on Thursday, the United Nations International Day of Peacekeepers.
The award recognizes the efforts of peacekeepers to advance the principles of the 2000 Security Council resolution, which calls for the protection of women and girls from conflict-related sexual violence and defines the United Nations‘ gender-based responsibilities.
Mr. Guterres congratulated him and called him “a true leader and role model.” His service was a true honor for the United Nations as a whole. “
Sen works for the Organizational Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO), which led community leaders, youth and women in North Kivu province to create a community vigilance network as a “platform for voicing security and humanitarian concerns.” That’s what the United Nations says.
He worked with his colleagues at MONUSCO to address these concerns.
The U.N. secretary-general said his forces would engage “with humility, compassion and commitment” to “conflict-affected communities, including women and girls, in the conflict environment in North Kivu.”
“Maintaining peace with gender sensitivity is the responsibility of everyone, not just women. Peace begins with the beautiful diversity of all of us,” Sen said.
He added: “This award is special for me. “It recognizes the efforts of all peacekeepers who have worked in the difficult environment of the Democratic Republic of Congo and done their best to bring about positive changes in society.”
Hailing from Himachal Pradesh, Sen is a biotech engineer who was completing his master’s degree from the Indian Institute of Technology Mumbai when he decided to join the Army.
He was assigned to MONUSCO as the Combat Platoon Commander of the Indian Rapid Deployment Battalion in 2023 and completed his term in April 2024.
Sen is the second Indian peacekeeper to receive this award after Major Suman Gavani, who served in the UN Mission in South Sudan and received the award in 2019.
Of the 6,063 Indian personnel participating in UN peacekeeping operations, 1,954 work in MONUSCO, 32 of whom are women.
The United Nations said Sen created a role model for men and women by leading mixed-gender joint patrols and operations and “promoting a safe space for men and women to operate together under his command.”
He also said peacekeepers under his command would operate with respect for gender and social norms in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo “to build trust and thereby increase his team’s chances of success.”
The activities he started for women included English classes for children and health, sexuality and vocational education for adults.
“Their efforts have directly promoted women’s solidarity and created a safe space for open meetings and dialogue,” the UN said.
She encouraged the women of Kishira village, near the city of Rwanda, to organize for their rights, particularly on issues of local security and peace.
