Witness protection: A key tool in the fight against crime

Witnesses play an essential part in bringing offenders to justice, as the successful conclusion of criminal proceedings usually depends on their cooperation with authorities.

While some witnesses are innocent individuals who share their first-hand accounts during an investigation or a trial, others are criminals who testify against co-defendants in exchange for a more lenient sentence. No matter who they are and why they cooperate, witnesses are vulnerable to intimidation and retaliation. Laws and mechanisms should therefore be established to support and protect them. Otherwise, the security of individuals and the criminal justice system itself will be undermined.

Witness protection is a broad issue that calls for a variety of responses, including victim and witness assistance, court security, short-term protection, and witness protection programmes. Another response, already implemented in a growing number of jurisdictions, is to exempt witnesses from testifying in court and allowing testimony to be given through the use of communications technology such as video links. These measures all serve different purposes and involve different resources, expertise and risks.

Supporting and protecting witnesses is particularly important in cases involving organized crime, where perpetrators are difficult to identify and prosecute and where participants in criminal proceedings are often threatened.

The transnational nature of organized crime is an additional challenge that requires inter-agency and international cooperation for witness protection efforts to be effective. The United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime provides the framework for such cooperation and legally binds States Parties to protect persons who give testimony. Governments could do so by, for example, entering into reciprocal agreements to admit foreign nationals into witness protection programmes and to promote mutual legal assistance. The exchange of best practices in witness support and protection at the legislative, law enforcement and prosecutorial levels could also prove useful in helping countries with non-existent or weak witness protection programmes to either create or strengthen them.

To this end, UNODC is convening regional expert group meetings on witness support and protection in 2005 and 2006. The information obtained from these meetings will be used to develop a manual of good practices covering both legal and operational aspects. Training materials will also be developed for judicial, prosecutorial and law enforcement authorities.