14 - July 2017 - With the purpose of supporting the work carried out in Central America and the Caribbean , CRIMJUST carried out various academic and training activities during the month of July and August.
The activities, carried out by UNODC-ROPAN under the CRIMJUST framework, were related to strengthening the capacities of criminal justice actors, specifically on investigation and communication of specialized offices in crimes related to drugs, organized crime and money laundering.
The first activity was a panel discussion with the title "Let us know corruption: What is it and how does it affect the State?" on 14 July in Panama. This activity was organized by the Public Prosecution Office and the Project Coordinator of CRIMJUST was invited to deliver a presentation during this panel discussion. The dialogue focused on challenges of institutional corruption and addressed officials of the Administrator's Office of the Attorney General, but also included anti-corruption prosecutors, who have been exposed to different types of criminal offenses against public administration.
A second activity consisted of a seminar in accordance with the recent reform of the accusatory criminal justice system in Panama. The main objective of the seminar was to familiarize officials of the Public Ministry with the implementation of the system. During the seminar, an Attorney General of Argentina was invited to share best practices building up on Argentina's experience managing the system. Additionally, an on-site training tailored to officials of the Advocacy Department and of the Public Ministry was organized. At the training, the participants received a comprehensive presentation and tools for effective communication and investigations related to drug trafficking, organized crime, money laundering and corruption.
The fourth activity was a workshop on techniques to effectively communicate the work of the Public Ministry in investigations of organized crime.This activity concluded with a practical exercise with strategies to plan the communication of the role of the Ministry, which should be delivered in a standardized manner.
Finally, the fifth activity was a consultative meeting to elaborate a manual for prosecutors to apply criminal liability of legal entities for money laundering offenses. The development of this activity included the financial support of the Regional Anti-Corruption Academy of Central America and the Caribbean (ARAC). The meeting aimed at assessing the capacity building gaps of the law enforcement officials.
The recent and upcoming activities in the region reflect CRIMJUST and UNODC ROPAN effort to deliver tailored technical assistances aligned with national and regional priorities.
Under the framework of the CRIMJUST project funded by European Union Cocaine Route Programme, UNODC and its partners (INTERPOL and TI) aim to assist Member States to enhance their capacity and integrity of criminal justice institutions to detect, investigate, prosecute and adjudicate illicit cocaine trafficking cases, and to foster cooperation at the interregional level for effective action to tackle drug trafficking and related organized crime.
For more information:
- European Union "Cocaine Route Programme"
- Administrator's Office of the Attorney General of Panama
