Inter-regional training workshop for judges on prosecuting and adjudicating of cases on the use of the internet for organized crime and terrorism purposes
Almaty, 28-30 March 2017
An inter-regional training workshop for judges on "Prosecuting and adjudicating of cases of the use of the Internet for terrorism and organized crime purposes" took place in Almaty from 28 to 30 March 2017.
The workshop, jointly organized by the Global Programme for Strengthening the Capacities of Member States to Prevent and Combat Transnational Organized Crime and Sub-programme 2 "International/ Regional Cooperation in Legal Matters" of the Regional Programme for Afghanistan and Neighboring Countries, focused on enhancing the knowledge and skills of criminal justice practitioners on the use of the Internet for terrorist purposes. During the training many different issues were discussed including: the universal instruments that create obligations for State parties to criminalize the specified unlawful conduct related to the use of the Internet for terrorist purposes and organized crime; building capacity to gather and preserve electronic evidence; admissibility of electronic evidence to court; joint national and international investigations to support successful prosecution and adjudication; and promoting international cooperation to access evidence stored on servers in other jurisdictions for criminal justice purposes which is paramount for governments to meet their obligation of protecting individuals and society against crime.
More than 50 officials attended the workshop. This included participants from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. Expert trainers presented real cases and the legal and procedural requirements attached to them.
The training provided a conducive environment for practitioners to get a deeper insight into the issue of successful prosecution and adjudication of cases of the use of the Internet for terrorism and organized crime purposes, strengthened capacity to implement national counter terrorism legislation and related international cooperation obligations. The training also provided a good platform to share national experiences and practices related to the abuse of the Internet for terrorism and organized crime purposes as well as to discuss issues of future cooperation.
UNODC thanks the Russian Federation and the Unites States of America for supporting the event.