On November 7, 2018 in La Paz, the Government of Bolivia and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) signed the letter of understanding for the implementation of the CRIMJUST Project in Bolivia.
CRIMJUST is a project implemented by UNODC within the framework of the European Union Cocaine Route Programme (CRP). With a strong focus on criminal investigation and criminal justice cooperation in Latin American, Caribbean and West African countries, CRIMJUST complements the existing projects of the CRP. The implementation of the project facilitates cooperation and exchange of information among criminal justice agencies to allow effective action in cases of transnational organised crime and drug-trafficking. Moreover, it supports the authorities responsible for law enforcement and the judicial institutions to strengthen integrity, accountability and resilience against corruption and the influence of organised crime.
Implementing CRIMJUST in Bolivia will allow the officers of the criminal justice system to be trained in post-seizure investigations. Three training events to strengthen the implementation of Law Number 913 to fight against the illicit traffic of controlled substances have already taken place within the framework of the project. The first event related to regional and international cooperation, the second was about asset recovery and the last related to the use of human intelligence sources.
Participants of the first workshop on international cooperation made several suggestions regarding activities which might be deployed within the framework of CRIMJUST. For instance, the organisation of an inter-agency work team between the relevant bodies of the executive board and the criminal justice system operators to develop a manual on international cooperation. Furthermore, in cases involving transnational links, CRIMJUST will provide support to Bolivian investigators so as to allow travel in support of investigative collaboration. Finally, a platform of shared information concerning the capacities, experiences and best practices of Bolivian professionals is to be created.
Picture: Mr. Carlos Romero Bonifaz, Minister of Government, Mr. Thierry Rostan, Representative of the UNODC Country Office in Bolivia
