Qatar Stresses Importance of Strengthening Coordinated Cooperation to Address Crime, Drugs and Corruption
New York / Information Office / October 14
The State of Qatar stressed the importance of strengthening coordinated regional and international cooperation and increasing investment in capacity-building in order to address all concerns related to combating crime, drugs and corruption.
Addressing the Third Committee of the UN General Assembly on Item (107) on "Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice", and Item (108) on "International Drug Control", member of the delegation of the State of Qatar participating in the 72nd Session of the UN General Assembly Abdul Hadi Said Al Mansouri said that efforts to combat crime, the scourge of drugs and corruption face major challenges that overshadow the implementation of the goals of the 2030 Sustainable Development Plan at the national, regional and international levels.
He highlighted the important role of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime through its numerous activities aimed at promoting justice and security, and supporting States in combating transnational organized crime, corruption, terrorism, trafficking in human beings and strengthening criminal justice systems.
He noted that Qatar has studied with interest the reports prepared by the Secretary-General under this item and commends the efforts made in the preparation of these reports, which contained many important conclusions and recommendations.
Based on the State of Qatar's belief in the importance of addressing the dangers of organized crime and its consequences on societies and values and on achieving the goals of sustainable development in 2030, Qatar has worked tirelessly to implement its legal and ethical obligations towards the implementation of the Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and its protocols, and applied them as a mechanism for international cooperation in the strengthening of criminal justice systems and the rule of law.
The State of Qatar has taken many measures at the legislative and executive levels to deal with crime and combating drugs. It has also been keen on cooperating with international and regional organizations to combat organized crime and drugs, address their causes and work on plans to address them, Al Mansouri said, referring to Doha Declaration issued by the 13th United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, which actively contributes to efforts to integrate crime prevention and criminal justice into the wider United Nations agenda in order to address social and economic challenges and to promote the rule of law at the national and international levels.
The State of Qatar welcomed the efforts made by Member States to implement their commitments to the Doha Declaration, and reiterated its commitment to continue to work with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime to ensure appropriate follow-up to the implementation of the Doha Declaration and to support projects for youth crime prevention through sport, rehabilitation and reintegration of prisoners, education for justice, integrity of the judiciary and prevention of corruption.
In the meantime, Qatar has played an active role in the region to raise awareness about the fight against corruption as part of its commitment to the rule of law and the fight against corruption. The State has taken many steps to fulfill its obligations to the UN Convention against Corruption, and the Rule Of Law and Anti-Corruption Center (ROLACC). Thanks to these measures and efforts, the State of Qatar occupied an advanced position in the fight against corruption in the overall classification of Transparency International.
At the international level, the State of Qatar launched the "Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani International Anti-Corruption Excellence Award", which is awarded annually on the World Anti-Corruption Day to honor individuals and institutions who have dedicated themselves to combating corruption in four areas: excellence, research and academic teaching materials, youth creativity and interaction, and innovation. Al Mansouri underlined that the award serves as an incentive to raise awareness and strengthen international efforts to combat corruption, and a tool to identify those who have shown vision, leadership, creativity, enthusiasm, commitment and dedication to address corruption, as well as the ability to inspire others to make similar efforts, recognize their role, honor and reward them.
In the context of Qatar's relentless efforts to combat trafficking in persons at all levels, it has undertaken, in cooperation with Greece and Belgium, a leading role in facilitating negotiations on the organization of the UN General Assembly High-level Meeting on the appraisal of the Global Plan of Action to Combat Trafficking in Persons. The State of Qatar has called on all Member States to implement all the commitments and recommendations contained in this Declaration, which was agreed upon thanks to the political will of Member States to take concerted and decisive action to implement the Plan of Action and put an end to this heinous crime.
Concluding, the statement affirmed the commitment of the State of Qatar to the fight against crime and drugs, the promotion of criminal justice at all levels and the continued support of the United Nations efforts to combat crime, drugs, human trafficking, corruption and terrorism, by addressing the root causes.