ASEAN And Japan Agree On Work Plans To Handle Transnational Crimes

LABUAN BAJO - 17th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Transnational Crime (AMMTC) in Labuan Bajo, West Manggarai, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) agreed on a joint work plan with Japan to deal with transnational crimes in 2023-2027.

This was previously agreed upon at the 19th SoMTC+Japan meeting in Yogyakarta in June 2023.

The Head of the National Police's International Relations Division, Inspector General Krishna Murti, explained that the work plan covers five priority fields, namely terrorism, cyber crime, drug trafficking, piracy, sea, and criminal acts of trafficking in persons, without narrowing the scope of ASEAN-Japan's previous cooperation.

The work plan on terrorism includes efforts to prevent dangerous extremism and arms smuggling. Both sides agreed to support each other in fighting the threat of terrorism that could undermine regional peace and stability.

Furthermore, it is cybercrime that emphasizes collaboration in the face of cyberattacks and designs a joint strategy to protect critical infrastructure.

The following work plan regarding drug trafficking is to sharpen cooperation in preventing and enforcing the law on drug trafficking that damages the younger generation and disrupts social structure.

The fourth work plan is piracy at sea. In the work plan, the countries involved address the threat of piracy and robbery at sea that harms trade and maritime security by focusing on strengthening law enforcement capacity and cooperation in joint waters.

Finally, the work plan on the Crime of Trafficking in Persons is to deal with human trafficking which robs the dignity and human rights with preventive measures and protection for victims.

Krishna explained that the work plan was also the result of the implementation of a joint declaration between ASEAN and Japan to work together to fight terrorism and transnational crimes as agreed in ASEAN-Japan Summit 12 November 2014 in Myanmar.

Through these joint efforts, ASEAN and Japan affirm their commitment to building a peaceful, safe, and stable region for future generations.

The implementation of the work plan will be monitored and reported regularly in the Annual Consultation at both the technical level at SOMTC+Japan and the strategic level at AMMTC+Japan to ensure concrete steps from the implementation of the agreed work plan.