BASSETERRE, Nevis – LEGAL experts from around the Caribbean have assembled at the Marriott Resort and Royal Beach Casino to discuss ways of improving regional counterterrorism and terror prevention mechanisms.
Judges, prosecutors and law enforcement officials from each of the nine OECS member states are in St. Kitts for a specialised workshop on the “Prevention and Fight against Terrorism and its Financing for the Caribbean sub-region”. The four-day seminar (Feb. 9-12) is facilitated by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the Organisation of American States (OAS) and the federal government.
The 30 participants will share their countries’ respective experiences in the ratification and implementation of the universal legal framework against terrorism and its financing. They will elaborate on legislative advances with special reference to their experiences in the fight against terrorism and related criminal offences.
The collection of evidence and investigative strategies, terrorist financing, interdiction and cross-border smuggling of cash and goods are also on the delegates’ agenda.
“Since the 9/11 US attacks, nations have witnessed increasing terrorist attacks which have impacted on the Caribbean. My organisation and the Inter-American Committee against Terrorism have joined forces to promote cooperation among countries in the Hemisphere in the Prevention and Fight against Terrorism and Its Financing,” said the UNODC’s Fernanda Lombardi.
“This workshop is a follow-up to the commitment made by Caribbean countries in Santo Domingo in 2007 to ratify and implement effective terrorism-fighting instruments. They requested UNODC help to sustain and strengthen the execution of the global counterterrorism strategy. This is the 11th of a series of capacity-building initiatives on matters of investigation and prosecution, and other workshops of this magnitude will follow,” Lombardi added.
Newly appointed General Counsel to the federal government, Dr. Dennis Merchant, briefly outlined how St. Kitts-Nevis had and would continue to do its part to combat terrorism, stressing that the government was always “eager” to broaden its expertise in the matter.
“The Federation was one of the first English-speaking Caribbean countries to pass legislation criminalising terrorists for terrorist acts. That was the Anti-Terrorism Act in 2002. Since then, we have constantly revisited and amended that legislation. We have also produced a draft Prevention of Terrorism Finance legislation that is now being reviewed by a specialised committee,” he noted.
On the final day of the workshop (Friday), there will be a dialogue on good practices and regional and international cooperation efforts in criminal matters. OECS legislation on terrorism and related issues will also be highlighted.
