Kuwait showcases successes in crime prevention

DOHA, April 15 (KUNA) -- Kuwait's delegation to the 13th UN Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice on Wednesday briefed the conferees on the successful experiments made by the country in preventing the trans-border crimes such as terrorism and money laundering.
Kuwait's constitution stipulates in article 8 that the state is responsible for protecting the safety and security of the society and preventing any attempts to destabilize the country, Counsellor of the Kuwaiti Ministry of Foreign Affairs Tahani Al-Nasser said.
She was addressing a session on the third agenda item of the congress "Successes and challenges in implementing comprehensive crime prevention and criminal justice policies and strategies to promote the rule of law at the national and international levels, and to support sustainable development." "A government legal panel has worked out a draft law on international legal and judicial cooperation in the penal issues which will be passed soon," Al-Nasser revealed.
On the regional level, she said the government has finalized the guidelines of the agreement on legal and judicial cooperation, the national statutes of the single System of International Legal Cooperation in Criminal Matters, and the GCC treaty for criminal extradition.
In the framework of the Arab League, Kuwait has also endorsed the Arab Anti-Corruption Convention, the convention against money laundering and financing for terrorism, and the convention against trans-border organized crime, she pointed out.
"On the international level, Kuwait joined 18 treaties on the combat against criminal and terrorist acts," Al-Nasser said, noting that the as soon as these documents were endorsed they took effect on equal footing with the national laws of Kuwait.
"Kuwait, represented by the Ministry of Justice, inked a number of bilateral agreements with several countries on judicial cooperation and legal assistance in the criminal matters and extradition of criminals," she went on.
Under item 13 of article 45 of the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC), signed by Kuwait in 2006, the Ministry of Justice is the central authority entitled to receive applications for mutual legal assistance.
Kuwait has also joined the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC) and its two protocols in 2006.
In 2013 the country joined the International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism and the International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism.
In the same year the country approved Law No. 106 on the combat against money laundering and financing for terrorism.
The Amiri Decree No. 325/2014 approved launching an international anti-corruption academy which will come into existence this May.
Kuwait also set up a committee for verifying the implementation of the UN Security Council resolutions against terrorism under Chapter VII of the UN Charter in keeping with the UN strategy and international obligations to the combat against terrorism, she added.
The 13th UN Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice opened here on April 12 and continues until April 19 in the presence of UNODC Executive Director Yury Fedotov who addressed the gathering earlier today (pickup previous) nnd.gb