Vienna: Qatar underlined the need to strengthen bilateral, regional and international cooperation aimed at preventing transnational organised crime, corruption and terrorism. It called on the United Nations member states to adopt an approach that facilitates the implementation of this cooperation in order to achieve development, peace and stability.
H E Maj. Gen. Dr. Abdullah Al Mal, Adviser to H E the Minister of Interior and Chairman of the Follow-up Committee for the Implementation of Doha Declaration, addressed the 31st session of the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice. He said Qatar, based on its belief in the importance of the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime, has donated half a million dollars to the UN Voluntary Trust Fund for Victims of Trafficking in Persons.
H E Al Mal noted that Qatar, in cooperation with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), presented a pioneering model in transforming the recommendations of the Doha Declaration into actions and achievements on the ground through the Doha Declaration Global Program.
Over five years of implementation, the Program’s projects have succeeded in developing the mechanisms and approaches of the UNODC work, developing new tools in the areas of training and capacity development, and enhancing the readiness and effectiveness of member states to address transnational organised crime, drugs, corruption and terrorism.
The Program has also established partnerships and working relationships with many partners inside and outside the United Nations system, and has contributed to promoting the concept of sustainability.
H E Al Mal underlined that Qatar is keen to combat crime, consolidate the principle of the rule of law, and establish a successful and effective criminal justice system.
Accordingly the country topped the list of the Middle East and North African countries in the Global Peace Index 2021, and ranked first in the Arab world in the social safety and security index.
He shed light on the challenges posed by cybercrime. He noted that its danger is exacerbated by the acceleration of the pace of the technological and technical progress and the penetration of digital technologies into all aspects of life, accompanied by the ability of criminal gangs to innovate and adapt to the changes, until crimes of information and communication technologies became a direct threat to the safety and well-being of societies and people around the world.
He added that Qatar has always given top priority to the development of a comprehensive international agreement on combating the use of information and communication technologies for criminal purposes, and has contributed to the issuance of the 2010 Salvador Declaration. It was the basis for the establishment of an expert group to conduct a comprehensive study of the problem of cybercrime and the measures to address it by member states, the international community and the private sector.
H E Al Mal pointed to Qatar’s hosting of the 13th United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice in 2015. The issuance of the Doha Declaration which included a call to explore measures aimed at providing a safe and solid cyber environment, preventing and combating criminal activities carried out via the Internet, and examining the options available to strengthen the legal and other measures currently undertaken at the national and international levels to confront cybercrime and proposing new measures for this purpose.
He underlined that Qatar is determined to make all available efforts, in cooperation with the United Nations and its member states, in order to reach a comprehensive agreement that builds on the successes achieved in international and regional arenas, and the national legislation of countries. It enhances the cooperation and coordination among member states to combat the use of information and communication technologies for criminal purposes.
In the conclusion of his statement, H E Maj. Gen. Dr. Abdullah Al Mal touched on the sports aspect, and said that Qatar is working to integrate sports into crime prevention and criminal justice strategies related to youth. The country is interested in hosting major sporting events, including the 2022 World Cup, because of its belief in the ability of sports to achieve development and convergence among peoples, and build a culture of peace.
