International cooperation in criminal matters includes, among others, Mutual Legal Assistance (MLA); a process by which States seek and provide assistance in obtaining evidence and information for use in criminal cases, and extradition, which is the formal process whereby a State requests the enforced return of a person accused or convicted of a crime to stand trial or serve a sentence in the requesting State.
READ MOREAs of October 2020, the SEAJust network had already facilitated 20 pending MLA cases, including with countries outside the region (like Uzbekistan, with the operational support of the CASC network). The SEAJust Network aims to conduct more tailored training on relevant thematic topics upon the requests of the member countries, including asset freezing/recovery and cybercrime in the context of MLA.
READ MOREThe Global Programme for Strengthening Capacities of Member States to Prevent and Combat Organized and Serious Crime (GPTOC) provides technical assistance to Member States to effectively implement the Organized Crime Convention in order to deal with different forms of serious and organized crime. Access the Global Programmes Website here:
READ MOREWith the emergence of the Covid-19 pandemic, UNODC's fight against transnational organized crime faced truly unprecedented, inconceivable challenges in 2020. Contrary to what was originally predicted, the movement of supplies and illegal goods -drugs, chemical precursors, illegal substances, sub-standard and falsified medical products, wildlife and fisheries crimes, weapons, explosives, etc., has not experienced a palpable decline, even despite the apparent limitations resulting from the ongoing pandemic.
READ MOREInternational judicial cooperation finds its foundation, on the one hand, in the global fight against organized crime, with States identifying cooperation avenues, thus aiming at preventing transnational impunity, as well as ensuring that bilateral relations fully observe the principle of shared accountability in terms of legal and procedural guarantees.
READ MOREGPTOC is a global facilitator for International Cooperation in Criminal Matters and supports four Judicial Cooperation Networks worldwide. Learn more about the tireless work being carried out by our regional networks with global influence areas.
READ MOREThe most frequent problem faced by judicial or law enforcement agencies in cooperating with counterparts in other countries is the slowness of formal procedures in the response time from the requested State. UNODC's Regional Judicial Cooperation Networks have established collaboration avenues, which are meant to facilitate technical assistance in these matters, and expedite corresponding administrative and judicial process relating to Mutual Legal Assistance (MLA).
READ MORE