2 October 2014 - The
Seventh Session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime will open in Vienna on 6 October with a focus on the cooperation needed to confront criminals.
The Conference will address different aspects of the UN Convention, from trafficking in persons and smuggling of migrants to international cooperation on extraditions and new forms of transnational organized crime. Transnational organized crime challenges from trafficking in human organs, to wildlife and forest crime, to protecting vulnerable minors in West Africa will be discussed in over 30 side events.
Speaking ahead of the Conference, which will take place from 6-10 October, UNODC Executive Director Yury Fedotov said the fight against crime was founded on a strong rule of law and effective criminal justice systems. He stressed the need to defeat the criminals as a means of creating equitable societies powered by sustainable development.
Mr. Fedotov said, "Hardly a day goes by without news of the tragic deaths of smuggled migrants, humans being cruelly trafficked, firearms being smuggled and the terrible loss of wildlife and forests that are everyone's heritage."
"The essential work of next week's conference", said Mr. Fedotov "is to build global support against these crimes based on nations pooling resources, sharing information and conducting joint operations against the criminals."
The UN Convention forms the legal basis for international cooperation against all types of serious crimes and so far counts with 181 Member States as parties. Meeting every two years, the Conference of the Parties provides a global forum for advancing the application of the Convention and its three protocols on human trafficking, smuggling of migrants and firearms, to support anti-crime activities. This year, the Conference will be attended by as many as 800 permanent representatives, officials and ministers from national capitals, journalists and civil society organizations.
The full programme, including side events, is available here.
Video, Photo and Audio materials will be available here.