Government will use its attendance at the 90th Session of Interpol’s General Assembly to hold a series of bilateral discussions on mutual assistance with various countries in a bid to strengthen and promote cooperation.
Police Deputy Minister, Cassel Mathale, said cooperation in this regard will be in the areas of fighting transnational organised crimes such as kidnappings, drug trafficking and financial crimes.
Capacity building in the form of skills transfer to enhance police capabilities will also form part of discussions.
This year’s General Assembly is being held in New Delhi, India.
“We are representing the country’s interest. Let’s do what we can for the benefit of our citizens. We look forward to robust discussions and may we depart having gained improved cooperation and mutual understanding with the various countries,” the Deputy Minister said in a statement.
Other key role players attending this meeting include Ministers, police chiefs of different countries, heads of National Central Bureaus (NCBs) and senior police officers.
The Annual General Assembly (AGM) session will culminate in key decisions being adopted in the form of resolutions to bolster transnational organised crime fighting initiatives.
Mathale, together with the National Commissioner of the South African Police Service (SAPS), General Fannie Masemola, is leading a delegation of senior police officers to the session.
Interpol is the world’s largest international police organisation, with 195 member countries, including South Africa. The organisation enables cross-border police cooperation, supports and assists law enforcement authorities, whose mission is to prevent or combat transnational organised crime.
The AGM meets once a year and takes major decisions concerning policy, resources needed for international cooperation, activities and programmes to be undertaken to prevent and combat international crime.
The delegation, consisting of senior officers within the operational environments in the SAPS and the Directorate for Crime Priority Investigations (DPCI), will form part of various discussions in financial crime, cybercrime, crimes against children, and a host of other transnational organised crime related matters. – SAnews.gov.za
