For information only - not an official document
UNIS/CP/612
18 April 2010
UNODC Launches Digest of Terrorist Cases
SALVADOR, 18 April (UN Information Service) - Today, at the 12th United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) launched its first-ever Digest of Terrorist Cases.
The Digest of Terrorist Cases is a specialized tool developed by UNODC's Terrorism Prevention Branch, with the support of the Governments of Colombia, Germany and Italy, in line with its mandate to strengthen the legal regime against terrorism. It draws upon actual investigations, prosecutions and legal experiences concerning terrorist cases reviewed and commented on by national experts involved.
The Digest is organized around seven thematic chapters, each referring to several legal cases. The themes covered are: Offences for terrorist acts already committed; Offences to prevent terrorist acts; Relationship between terrorism and other forms of crime; The statutory framework for terrorism prosecutions; Investigation and adjudication issues; International cooperation; Innovation and proposals.
"This first digest analyzes terrorist cases. Juris prudence is still developing in this field, and it is useful for practitioners to compare experiences. A similar digest of organized crime cases would also be useful", said UNODC Executive Director Antonio Maria Costa when launching the publication together with high-ranking authorities from Italy, Colombia, Spain, Germany and Algeria.
The Digest is the product of an expert working group made up of judicial, prosecution and law enforcement experts in terrorism. In a series of meetings facilitated by UNODC, the experts exchanged judicial experiences related to cases involving terrorist acts that have occurred in their countries, focusing on methods of investigation and prosecution, judgements and judicial verdicts.
This handbook, translated into the six official languages of the United Nations, complements other technical assistance tools developed in the field of preventing and countering terrorism, which are available through the UNODC website.
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For further information:
To download the press kit and other information (also in Portuguese), visit:
www.unis.unvienna.org/unis/en/events/2010/12th-crime-congress.html
www.un.org/en/conf/crimecongress2010/
For live webcast: www.un.org/webcast/crime2010
UNODC website: www.unodc.org
