Secretary-General, Irwin LaRocque, has called on CARICOM to counteract the threat of crime and violence, when he addressed the opening of the 29th Inter-Sessional Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government, Monday in Haiti.
He told the regional leaders that as they pool their resources and strategise to combat the damaging effects of climate change, they need to also counteract another threat, referring to the effects of crime and violence.
The SG pointed to the toll on societies through “loss of lives”, “injuries” and the “psychological trauma” and observed that the greatest impact was on families.
“It was within that circle the battle against the scourge must begin”, he said.
At the regional level, the Secretary-General suggested revisiting the CARICOM Crime and Security Strategy (CCSS) signed five years ago in Haiti to identify areas for improvement in order to make it more effective.
He pointed also to a number of legal instruments which he said were significant additions to the Community’s armoury against trans-border crime.
In this context, he singled out the CARICOM Arrest Warrant Treaty and the Agreement on the Return or Sharing of Recovered Assets, stating that he looked forward to the “Treaty being ratified as soon as possible” and to the completion of the negations for the Agreement.
The CARICOM Arrest Warrant Treaty simplifies the procedure of returning fugitives to the country where charges have been laid, while Agreement on the Return or sharing of Recovered Assets provides a framework for the return or sharing of criminal assets which have been moved to another jurisdiction.
The Secretary-General reminded that the issue of crime and violence was regional problem demanding a regional solution and that it required the full cooperation of all the national and regional agencies charged with the responsibility for addressing crime and security.
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