United Nations: Major Radhika Sen, an Indian peacekeeper who will be honored by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres with a prestigious gender advocate accolade here, has expressed that it is an honor and privilege to represent India at this global forum.

Major Sen, who served with the United Nations Organisation Stabilisation Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO), is set to receive the esteemed 2023 United Nations Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award from Guterres on May 30, marking International Day of UN Peacekeepers.

“It is indeed a profound honor and privilege for me to represent not just my team but all my esteemed colleagues, the peacekeepers in MONUSCO, and especially my homeland India,” Major Sen conveyed in an exclusive interview with PTI on Tuesday.

“Representing the country on such an international platform is an indescribable feeling,” she said. Major Sen, who was stationed in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) from March 2023 to April 2024 as the Commander of MONUSCO’s Engagement Platoon for the Indian Rapid Deployment Battalion (INDRDB), will be honored by the UN chief during a formal ceremony at United Nations Headquarters here.

She is the second Indian peacekeeper to receive this prestigious award following Major Suman Gawani, who served with the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) and was honored in 2019. Major Sen also met with India’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Ruchira Kamboj, at the Indian mission.

In a post on X, the Indian envoy stated: “Major Radhika Sen will be honored with the UN Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award on May 30th for her exemplary service in DR Congo. Her dedication and bravery underscore the invaluable role of #women peacekeepers in building a better world. We are immensely proud of her achievements and inspired by her commitment to peace and equality.”

Born in Himachal Pradesh in 1993, Major Sen joined the Indian Army eight years ago. She graduated as a biotech engineer and was pursuing her Master’s degree from IIT Bombay when she decided to join the armed forces. She was deployed to MONUSCO in March 2023 as the Engagement Platoon Commander with the Indian Rapid Deployment Battalion and completed her tenure in April 2024.

Congratulating Major Sen on her service, Guterres lauded her as a true leader and role model. He remarked that in an escalating conflict environment in North Kivu, her troops actively engaged with conflict-affected communities, including women and girls. She earned their trust, demonstrating humility, compassion, and dedication.

Major Sen stated that the primary aim of being an engagement platoon commander was to inspire people to make a difference. In any conflict zone, women and girls are disproportionately affected, she said, adding that her mission and that of her team was always to reach out to them, understand their problems, and try to address them. Among the measures they took was to educate and encourage them to speak out against any human rights violations and discrimination.

She emphasized the importance of women supporting each other and fighting against societal discriminatory norms. “Employment also plays a significant role in empowering women,” she said. At the same time, it is crucial for men to support women and women leadership in every sphere, she added.

She mentioned that apart from the mission mandate, she and her contingent were involved in raising situational awareness among the people as well as understanding the security concerns of the local populations, including men, women, the elderly, and children.

“We aimed to educate women about their rights, especially concerning gender-based violence, the importance of education, and employment for women. We focused significantly on women’s health issues, including childcare, health, and hygiene.”

Focus was also placed on training the youth and developing skills, including baking and tailoring for women, and self-defense and English training for children. Major Sen led mixed-gender engagement patrols and activities in a volatile environment, where many people, including women and children, were forced to flee the conflict.

The Community Alert Networks she helped establish in North Kivu served as a platform for community leaders, young people, and women to voice their security and humanitarian concerns, which she would then help address with her colleagues in the Mission.

Major Sen facilitated English classes for children and provided health, gender, and vocational training for displaced and marginalized adults. Her efforts directly inspired women’s solidarity, creating safe spaces for meetings and open dialogue.

As a gender advocate, she encouraged women in the village of Kashlira, near Rwindi town, to organize themselves to address issues collectively, advocate for their rights, and amplify their voices within the community, particularly in local security and peace discussions.

India is currently the 11th largest contributor of women military peacekeepers to the United Nations, with 124 now deployed. India has traditionally been among the largest troop and police-contributing countries to UN peacekeeping missions.

In January last year, a platoon of women peacekeepers was deployed in Abyei as part of the Indian Battalion in the United Nations Interim Security Force, Abyei (UNISFA), marking India’s largest single unit of women peacekeepers in a UN Mission since it deployed the first-ever all-women contingent in Liberia in 2007.

On the importance of ensuring an enhanced role and participation of women peacekeepers in UN missions, Major Sen noted that in any conflict, the majority affected are women and girls. Increasing the number of women peacekeepers extends the reach to this segment of society.

“If you increase and employ women in the right roles, it will help us in addressing the problems of those in conflict,” she said, adding that women and men working together can bring about a positive change in society.