The Global Programme for Strengthening Capacities of Member States to Prevent and Combat Transnational Organized and Serious Crime (GPTOC) conducted a special event on the promotion of judicial cooperation networks in the margins of the 14 UN Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Congress electronically on 9 March 2021. The goal of the event was to raise awareness about the operational work of judicial cooperation networks; discuss how to strengthen the connections between them and to launch the newly established South East Asia Justice Network (SEAJust).
The SEAJust network was established in March 2020 with support of the Government of Japan and participation of eight countries of Southeast Asia (Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste and Viet Nam) and the ASEAN Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty Secretariat. The network promotes expeditious execution of mutual legal assistance (MLA) requests for all forms of transnational organized crime and works through formally appointed contact points who serve as “active intermediaries” to facilitate judicial cooperation in criminal matters with competent authorities of other networks or countries. Its membership is open to other countries and territories outside of the region. The SEAJust network alongside other UNODC supported judicial cooperation networks such as the Judicial Cooperation Network for Central Asia and Southern Caucasus (CASC), the West African Networks of Central Authorities and Prosecutors against Organized Crime (WACAP) and the Great Lakes Judicial Cooperation Network (GLJCN) aim at enhancing the effectiveness of international cooperation in investigating and prosecuting crime in all its transnational dimensions.
In her opening remarks, the UNODC Executive Director Ms. Ghada Waly highlighted the importance of informal consultations between criminal justice practitioners from different central authorities through the usage of UNODC supported judicial cooperation networks, which are complementary to formal channels of MLA. Ms. Waly remarked that “The judicial cooperation networks rely on the ‘human element’ because direct contacts and mutual trust between the central authorities and other relevant officials are the basis for successful mutual legal assistance between states”.
The Prosecutor General of Egypt, Mr. Hamada El Sawy, in his pre-recorded speech commended the networks among prosecution services and law enforcement agencies as “one of the most important steps towards stronger international cooperation in criminal matters.” Such cooperation, Mr. El Sawy said, “facilitates the identification of both substantive and procedural legal requirements due among different countries.” This, he continued, enables states which request judicial assistance to “exchange information and experience on a larger scale, and to succeed in their judicial endeavours to obtain evidence, extradite criminals, or confiscate and recover illicit proceeds.”
“The opportunity of cooperation between Iberoamerican, European, African and Asian networks gives the chance to expand our outreach and multiply the positive effects of working in unison”, said Prosecutor General of Spain Ms. Dolores Delgado in her video message. She also proposed the creation of a new platform offering the opportunity for the general secretariats and presidencies of all these networks “to get together to establish new links that allow all of us to benefit from one another.”
The Deputy Attorney General of Singapore, Mr. Hri Kumar Nair, acknowledged the benefits from participating in the SEAJust network and emphasized that in the context of increasing problems of cross-border crime, judicial cooperation has become not just a good to have but a must in combatting crime effectively.
The Secretary of Justice of the Philippines, Mr. Menardo I. Guevarra mentioned that proactive, integrated and cohesive approach for the harmonization of rules and norms is necessary for fighting against criminality and welcomed the establishment of the SEAJust network as an important step for the right direction. The Deputy Attorney General of Thailand, Dr. Chatchom Akapin mentioned the usefulness of the SEAJust network by highlighting the number of resolved MLA cases through it until now.
The meeting concluded with a panel discussion chaired by Ms. Karen Kramer, Senior Drug Control and Crime Prevention Officer of UNODC. Ms. Ianina Lipara, Coordinator at the European Judicial Network Secretariat and Mr. Jumpon Phansumrit, Director General, International Affairs Department, Office of the Attorney General of Thailand exchanged views on the importance of mutual trust in the judicial cooperation process, the potential benefits of the SEAJust network and the ways of enhancing judicial cooperation between different regions of the world.