Crown Prince of Dubai inaugurates 6th IAP Middle East and Asia Pacific Regional Conference

Convened under the theme of "Public Prosecution in the 21st Century," the conference, held under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, is being hosted by Public Prosecution - Dubai with the participation of 164 public prosecutors from around 60 countries. Prominent personalities, members of the legal fraternity in the UAE as well as diplomats from different countries attended the opening ceremony.

Welcoming the dignitaries and participants, H.E. the Counselor Essam Al Humaidan, Attorney General, Emirate of Dubai, pointed out that the UAE has chosen to play a proactive role in the new environment and interact with the world without contradicting its beliefs, values and principles that are deeply rooted in the society.

"Our interaction with the world from east to west means that we are prepared to deal with the consequences of such interaction and challenges affecting various aspects of our life, including those of security and judicial systems," he said.

"The revolution in technology mandates a change and an update. Crimes today are neither isolated nor their impact and danger limited to a certain region or country; any crime that takes place in any part of the world echoes across the whole world," he added.

"Moreover, crime in our contemporary world has taken new forms and dimensions. It has become transnational in nature. This in itself is one of the biggest challenges that require solidarity of efforts to combat crime.

"It is significant that at a time when the UAE has taken a lead position in ushering in a transparent society, we are playing host to the 6th IAP Middle East & Asia Pacific Regional Conference under the theme "Public Prosecution in the 21st Century". We will be discussing two important issues: Use of Information Technology in the Prosecution Process, and Risk Management.
"This international dialogue on the challenges facing public prosecutors everywhere is an opportunity to exchange experiences and find solutions that will lead to more efficiency in the performance of Public Prosecutors.

"Our hosting of this event underlines the UAE's resolve to achieve excellence in everything we do, its forward-looking approach to issues and keenness to be a key player in this field."

Recalling the most recent words of HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Al Humaidan said: "The people of the UAE are known for their ambitious and visionary outlook for the future, towards which they move with steady steps. Hard work is their motto and they have firm belief in the Almighty God. They are supported by self-confidence and a capability that is strong enough to tackle challenges that would seem impossible to others.

Addressing HH Sheikh Hamdan, the Attorney General of Dubai said:

"Your kind gesture in inaugurating this conference underlines the trust you have bestowed upon us and motivates us to work closely with our counterparts from around the world to achieve the goals of security and peace you aspire to on behalf of the UAE.

"Ensuring the sovereignty of the law and independence of the judiciary is a framework to guarantee rights, as well as a basic requirement for economic stability, trust and safety, all of which will reflect positively on investments.

"These are objectives laid down by our wise leadership. They act as the beacon that guides us towards achieving justice for all, respecting the rights of nationals and expatriates, and reaffirming our commitment to international laws."

François Falletti, President of IAP, and Prosecutor General of the Court of Appeal, Aix en Provence, France, expressed his warmest thanks to His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum for so generously hosting this event which provided prosecutors from so many different countries with the opportunity to exchange practical information and enhance the level of the cooperation between them in dealing with transnational crime.

Falletti expressed his admiration to Dubai describing it as "the right place to talk about the role of prosecutors in the coming times, given the recognition that the Public Prosecution- Dubai received an ISO certification, a signal of quality and a testimony to continual improvement."

He added: "The International Association of Prosecutors is confident that this event will follow in the footsteps of the excellent 5th conference held in Seoul (Korea) in June last year, which dealt with the fight against "corporate crime.

"We shall discuss during the coming two days crucial issues, such the use of new technology, management, anticorruption measures and security for the accused persons, witnesses and prosecution personnel and property. We shall no doubt accumulate a considerable amount of background information, material and useful references to take back to our domestic practices."

Falletti stressed in his speech that many of the topics discussed during the sessions in the coming days would coincide with the main conclusions of the annual conference in Kiev, which included the crucial need to establish efficient processes to train and develop prosecutors. "This is precisely one of the topics on the agenda of the next UN Crime Congress that will take place in Brazil next spring," he said.

"I am convinced that this regional conference will be a fruitful experience for all the delegates," he added. "It will also be a chance for many of them to either discover, or experience again, the magic of the desert and the blue sea of the Gulf. This land has for centuries been crossed by many travellers from the Far East, the Mediterranean, Africa and Central Asia, and if for no other reason, that is why the IAP is happy to be here."

In the coming two days, the conference will cover two major topics: Use of information technology in the prosecution process, and Risk management.

The first topic will highlight best practices in investigation techniques, E-service for use by each party in case, and E- case management.

The second topic will highlight anti-corruption measures for the prosecution service, protection for parties (accused/victim/witness) in a case, personal protection of prosecution staff, data protection and security, internally, externally and internationally, and security of prosecution property, documents and evidence.

The conference will have high-level participation from countries such as USA, UK, Ireland, Canada, Australia, France, Netherland, Denmark, China, Maldieve, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, India, Chinese Taibe, Niger, Thailand, Hong Kong, Sri Lanka, Cyprus, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Tanzania, Fiji, Khazekstan, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Yemen, Palestine and other countries.