Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

Cheryl Ann Pearce, is a deputy commissioner in the Australian Border Force and a retired senior officer of the

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (Austral ...

. She graduated from the

Officer Cadet School, Portsea The Officer Cadet School, Portsea (sometimes referred to as OCS Portsea) was an officer training establishment of the Australian Army. Established at Portsea in Victoria, Australia, in 1951 to provide training to officer cadets prior to commissio ...

and was commissioned into the

Royal Australian Corps of Military Police The Royal Australian Corps of Military Police (RACMP) is a corps within the Australian Army. Previously known as the Australian Army Provost Corps, it was formed on 3 April 1916 as the ANZAC Provost Corps. It is responsible for battlefield traff ...

in 1985. She has commanded the Defence Police Training Centre (2003), 1st Military Police Battalion (2006–08), Task Group Afghanistan (2016) and

Australian Defence Force Academy The Australian Defence Force Academy (ADFA) is a tri-service military Academy that provides military and academic education for junior officers of the Australian Defence Force in the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), Australian Army and Royal Aus ...

(2017–18), and has served on operations in East Timor and Afghanistan. She was Force Commander,

United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus The United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) is a UN peacekeepers, United Nations peacekeeping force that was established under United Nations Security Council Resolution 186 in 1964 to prevent a recurrence of fighting following Cypr ...

from January 2019 to January 2021 and, following her retirement from the Australian Army, was appointed Deputy Commissioner Ports and Enforcement in the Australian Border Force in August 2021.

Military career

Pearce graduated from the

and was commissioned into the

in December 1985. Her early career featured a range of regimental and staff appointments, including postings to Headquarters 1st Brigade, to the G3 (operations) branch at Land Headquarters, and as staff officer to the commandant of the

. She graduated from the

Australian Command and Staff College The Australian Defence College (ADC) comprises three joint education and training organisations operated by the Australian Defence Force in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory: * the War College, * the Australian Defence Force Training Cent ...

in 2001 and, in 2002, deployed as a military observer with the

United Nations Mission of Support to East Timor The United Nations Mission of Support to East Timor (UNMISET) lasted from 20 May 2002 to 20 May 2005, when it was replaced by United Nations Office in Timor Leste (UNOTIL). It was established when East Timor became an internationally recognised ind ...

, for which she was awarded a Chief of the Defence Force Commendation. Following her return to Australia, Pearce was appointed to command the Defence Police Training Centre in 2003. She was next posted as Provost Marshal – Army, prior to assuming command of the 1st Military Police Battalion from 2004 to 2006. In recognition of her "exceptional service" in these three positions, Pearce was appointed a

Member of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

in the

2007 Australia Day Honours The 2007 Australia Day Honours are appointments to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by Australian citizens. The list was announced on 26 January 2007 by the Governor General of Australia, Michael Jeffrey The Austral ...

. Pearce was subsequently posted to the directing staff of the Australian Command and Staff College, served as Director Network Centric Warfare in the

Capability Development Group The Chief of Capability Development Group (CCDG) was head of the Capability Development Group (CDG) in the Australian Department of Defence, part of the Australian Defence Organisation. This position was created in December 2003 and disbanded th ...

, and served as Director Special Operations Support from 2010 to 2012. She attended the

Higher Command and Staff Course The Higher Command and Staff Course is a staff course for senior military officers of the United Kingdom armed forces and allies. It is taught at the Defence Academy of the United Kingdom in Shrivenham, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom. The course is p ...

in the United Kingdom in 2013 and, on her return to Australia, was appointed chief of staff at Headquarters Australian Army from 2013 to 2016. In 2016, Pearce deployed to the Middle East as commander of Task Group Afghanistan. The task group, as part of Australia's contribution to NATO's

Resolute Support Mission Resolute Support Mission (RSM) or Operation Resolute Support was a NATO-led multinational mission in Afghanistan. It began on 1 January 2015 as the successor to the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), which was completed on 28 Decem ...

, provided training and advice to the

Afghan National Security Forces The Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF), also known as the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF), were the military and internal security forces of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. Structure The Afghan National Security Forc ...

. Pearce's "distinguished performance" during the nine-month deployment was recognised with the award of the

Commendation for Distinguished Service The Commendation for Distinguished Service is a military decoration awarded to personnel of the Australian Defence Force, it is awarded for the distinguished performance of duties in warlike operations. The Commendation for Distinguished Service w ...

in the

2018 Queen's Birthday Honours The 2018 Queen's Birthday Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded as p ...

. Pearce was subsequently appointed commandant of the Australian Defence Force Academy from 2017 to 2018. In November 2018, the Secretary-General of the United Nations,

António Guterres António Manuel de Oliveira Guterres ( , ; born 30 April 1949) is a Portuguese politician and diplomat. Since 2017, he has served as secretary-general of the United Nations, the ninth person to hold this title. A member of the Portuguese Socia ...

, announced that Pearce had been selected to succeed Major General

Mohammad Humayun Kabir Major General (Retd) Mohammad Humayun Kabir, OSP, SUP, rcds, psc, was a two-star general of the Bangladesh Army. As Major General he served as the Commander Logistics Area Dhaka Cantonment of Bangladesh Army. He served in various command and headq ...

as Force Commander of the

(UNFICYP). Pearce, who assumed command of UNFICYP in January 2019, is the second woman to be appointed force commander of a United Nations mission. As force commander, she was responsible for more than 800 personnel from 15 nations working to maintain peace and stability in Cyprus, in spite of the additional challenges posed by the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. Pearce relinquished command of UNFICYP on 4 January 2021 and, for her "outstanding achievement" in the role, she was awarded the Conspicuous Service Cross in the

2022 Australia Day Honours The 2022 Australia Day Honours are appointments to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by Australian citizens. The list was announced on 26 January 2022 by the Governor General of Australia, David Hurley. The Australia ...

Border Force

Pearce retired from the Australian Army shortly following her return from Cyprus and, on 30 August 2021, she was appointed Deputy Commissioner Ports and Enforcement in the Australian Border Force.

Personal life and education

Pearce was born in

Loxton, South Australia Loxton is a town on the south bank of the River Murray in the Riverland region of South Australia. It is located on the lands of the Erawirung people who occupied the area before European colonisation. At the 2016 census, Loxton had a populat ...

. She has a partner, Paul, and two daughters. Pearce holds a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

in Asian Studies from the University of New England, a Graduate Diploma of Management in Defence Studies from the

University of Canberra The University of Canberra (UC) is a public research university with its main campus located in Bruce, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. The campus is within walking distance of Westfield Belconnen, and from Canberra's Civic Centre. UC ...

, a Master of Intelligence, Policing and Counter Terrorism from

Macquarie University Macquarie University ( ) is a public research university based in Sydney, Australia, in the suburb of Macquarie Park. Founded in 1964 by the New South Wales Government, it was the third university to be established in the metropolitan area of S ...

, and a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

in Defence Studies from Deakin University.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pearce, Cheryl Australian generals Military personnel from South Australia Australian military personnel of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) Deakin University alumni Graduates of the Officer Cadet School, Portsea Living people Macquarie University alumni Members of the Order of Australia People from Loxton, South Australia Recipients of the Commendation for Distinguished Service Recipients of the Conspicuous Service Cross (Australia) University of Canberra alumni University of New England (Australia) alumni Year of birth missing (living people)