Tour of duty
Sergeant Margaret Windle, or Maggie as most people call her, is a popular figure in Bougainville villages. Although her main duty as part of the six-person New Zealand police team, based in Arawa, is advising and training the village, or Community Auxiliary, police, a highlight for her is raising awareness about the police role in schools.
“One of the things the kids love is when we take our portable generator (no power) and show them Whalerider – a great treat!” she says.
As Ms Windle is also a registered nurse – having nursed for 16 years, including 7 years in intensive care – she is able to offer health education to villagers, especially women who are dealing with HIV, Bougainville’s most worrying health problem.
“HIV is a biggie – it will be the ruin of the country if not stopped in its tracks,” she says.
But her main focus in Bougainville is helping the local police run their villages and local courts, which deal with most things, apart from the more serious crimes of rape and murder, which are heard in the District Court.
Ms Windle says the village court system is “alive and well” in Bougainville, so she is on the road a lot, meeting with chiefs and monitoring the performance of the police force.
On July 4, the New Zealand police contingent finished training 10 recruits who were to return as village police to the No Go Zone – their graduation was attended by the new president Mr Kabai.
Ms Windle joined the police 12 years ago, after giving up nursing and travelling extensively. She was a Detective Constable, then a Detective, in the Criminal Investigation Branch in Wellington and New Plymouth before her promotion to Sergeant in July 2004.
With her combined skills and love of travel, it seemed natural for her to apply to go to Bougainville. After arriving in late January this year, she was the only woman in the New Zealand police team until April, when she was joined by Constable Tania Turner of Dunedin.
Ms Windle is not at all fazed by driving for four hours and crossing 17 rivers to get to team meetings in Buka, as “it is all very scenic, with beaches and coconut palms”, she says.
Bougainville may have been marked this year by exciting Anzac Day celebrations, elections and the swearing in of its autonomous government, but the villagers will remember this multi-skilled New Zealand sergeant for her untiring work behind the scenes.
Sergeant Maggie Windle