12 April 2015 – As the 13th United Nations Crime Congress opened in Doha, Qatar, on Sunday, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and other high-level UN officials said that preventing crime and promoting the rule of law are crucial to support sustainable development.
“All societies need fair criminal justice systems, effective, accountable institutions, and access to justice for all”, Mr. Ban said in a keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the Crime Congress. “Accountable security services can go a long way toward ending cycles of violence. Strengthening legal rights helps to address inequalities”.
“There can be no sustainable development without human rights and the rule of law”, the Secretary-general added.
Hundreds of policymakers and practitioners in the area of crime prevention and criminal justice, as well as individual experts from academia, representatives of inter-governmental and non-governmental organizations, specialized agencies and other UN entities, and the media are attending the forum, which is held every five years.
The Doha Crime Congress, which will take place until 19 April, was opened by the Prime Minister of Qatar, Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani. It is happening a few months before a major summit in New York in September on the future global development agenda. The Congress is expected to adopt the 'Doha Declaration', a political document that will put an emphasis on important aspects of fighting transnational organized crime and strengthening criminal justice systems and crime prevention.
“This September, Member States will consider a post-2015 development agenda that can pave the way to a better future for billions of people”, Mr. Ban said. “Success requires that the new agenda and sustainable development goals reflect the centrality of the rule of law”.
The UN Secretary-General said that “international cooperation and coordination are critical, particularly in areas such as combatting transnational organized crime and terrorism”.
“I encourage every country to ratify and implement the conventions against drugs, crime and corruption, and the international instruments against terrorism, and to support the important and varied work of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime”, he added. “We must also adapt to changing times. Cybercrime has now become a business which exceeds billions of dollars a years a year in online fraud, identity theft, and lost intellectual property. It affects millions of people around the world, as well as businesses and Governments. We must also address the growing links between organized crime and terrorism”.