Manila Police District to form all-women SWAT team

MANILA, Philippines — The Manila Police District (MPD) is recruiting policewomen to form an all-female Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team, an official said yesterday.

Senior Inspector Reynante Parlade, MPD SWAT team commander, said they plan to complete a unit composed of women by October.

The all-female team will be tapped to deal with hostage-taking incidents and fight organized crime, he added.

The SWAT has at least 60 police officers and only three are women.

Parlade said the new recruits, who will come from the different MPD units, will be trained in close quarters combat and undergo a basic internal security operations course.