1. The High Level Meeting Outcome Document on the Rule of Law of 2012 acknowledged the relationship between the Human Rights, the Rule of Law and development. And it also specifically features crime prevention and criminal justice as core elements of the Rule of Law.
2. The General Assembly in this session, with its Resolutions 68/188 and 68/193, continued to build in the direction of increased relevance of Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice for the establishment of the Rule of Law and for the role of Rule of Law in framing the development Agenda.
3. We must keep building on strategies and synergies which have already been in place, and this event is part of this “Team Work”. Together with our excellent partners of Qatar and Thailand, and with the leading UN agency in the fight against Organized Crime (UNODC), we are fully committed to this task. The idea is simple – the stimulus is to make better use of what exists and work together to make it more effective.
4. There are few issues on the UN agenda as global as the fight against transnational organized crime. Crime directly impacts all Member States without discrimination and weakens their ability to provide well being of their citizens. It affects human welfare, state stability and security, economic growth and social development, human rights. Crime and violence are, in many respects, a development issue. And we need a common, holistic and global response to this scourge. International action must be accompanied by a strong Human Rights and Rule of Law perspective, with solid links to the development agenda in order to be sure to have a balanced approach.
5. Promoting justice and the Rule of Law, while combating the threats that undermine them, in particular transnational organized crime, illicit trafficking and corruption, should be reflected in any post 2015 development agenda if we want to make effective progress.
6. A people centered development agenda necessarily has to reflect the multifaceted reality of Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice and more broadly it must include a Human Rights approach. Some elements such as: the standards to be applied to persons in custody; the specific problems of juvenile justice; arrangements for international cooperation, including in the area of tracking financial flows linked to the perpetration of crimes; as well as increased attention for victim issues; access to justice, in particular by women; increased attention for vulnerable groups; the independence of the judiciary and the integrity of criminal justice personnel; and the list could continue.
7. In this respect it is clear that States will have to cooperate with each other. Italy, for example, with partners in Central America has organized a “training the trainers project” with the Countries of SICA in the areas of border police and custom control. And also let me share another example: we recently established a 5 million Euros cooperation-programme in El Salvador to tackle the issue of crime by juveniles, particularly focusing on prevention and rehabilitation. Young people who commit crimes should be helped to be able to break the vicious cycle that can end up fostering organized crime and continue to hinder development by stealing the future to youth. The challenge is to create opportunities for change and avoid that they remain entangled in the net of organized crime, drug trafficking and violence.
8. This – I believe, and I conclude – is Rule of Law in action which contributes to the fight against poverty. The various specific aspects I just mentioned earlier and the many more that will be raised here today must be included in the post 2015 development agenda in order to give it a proper fully fledged people oriented dimension.
Thank you
