Africa must work together to deal with crimes — Speakers

Speakers at a conference on fighting transnational crimes have underscored the need for African states to work together and strengthen their collaborations to deal with the problem on the continent.

They also called for justice for victims of transnational crimes through an effective justice system in Africa.

The speakers included the Chief Justice, Mr Justice Kwasi Anin Yeboah; a Deputy Attorney-General, Mr Godfred Yeboah Dame, and the Inspector General of Police, Mr James Oppong-Boanuh.

Transnational organised crimes are cross-border crimes that entail illicit activities such as cybercrime, drug trafficking, environmental crime, smuggling of cultural artifacts, wildlife crime and weapon trafficking.

Conference

The two-day international conference, organised by the Attorney General Alliance (AGA)-Africa, a US-based organisation, is on the theme: “Tackling the reality of transnational crime in Africa — Cross-border solutions and international cooperation”.

It is being attended by six attorneys-general, law enforcement officers and lawyers from the United States of America and some African countries.

Globalisation

Mr Justice Anin Yeboah said globalisation, technological advancement and the advent of e-technology meant that the nature and form of transnational crime had changed, hence the need for more collaboration among nations to fight crime.

In an address read on his behalf by a Justice of the Supreme Court, Nene Amegatcher, the Chief Justice likened the phenomenon to the proverbial unruly horse which was difficult to contain, unpredictable in nature and character and a risk to democracy and the rule of law, not only in Africa but also across the world.

“Africa’s rapid technological development has been both a blessing and a source of some level of trepidation for African states. Increasing Internet penetration, leading to a proliferation in the use of mobile technologies, has come with a proliferation in cybercrime and illicit online activities,” he said.

The Chief Justice said Africa’s weak Information Technology infrastructure made nation states vulnerable to threats, including ransomware, malware and social media scams, saying there was a race to develop proactive mechanisms to counter the threat of transnational crime in all its manifested forms.

Strides

Mr Dame said Ghana was making substantial gains in the fight against transnational organised crime.

“We have revamped our effort to become compliant with the minimum standards to combat trafficking in persons under the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of US. Under the act, Ghana is currently a tier-two country, meaning that while we do not yet fully meet the act’s minimum standards to combat human trafficking, the country is making significant effort to become compliant,” he said.

The Attorneys-General of Nevada and Minnesota, Messrs Aaron Ford and Keith Ellison, also emphasised the need for countries to work together to deal with transnational crimes.

In a speech read on his behalf, Mr Oppong-Boanuh pledged the support of the police in the fight against transnational crime.

We are also improving the capacity of the Cyber Crime Unit to confront and neutralise criminals and the dark underbelly of modern technology and the cyber world.

“We have built collaborations with other law enforcement agencies in Africa in the fight against crime through the National Central Bureau of Interpol, which is a unit of the Criminal Investigation Department of the Ghana Police Service,” the IGP added.

Significance

The Executive Director of AGA-Africa, Karen White, said the organisation established relationships with justice and law enforcement agencies to forster increased international collaboration in support of the rule of law to deal with transnational crimes.

She said the organisation also provided opportunity for people to undergo internships with law enforcement institutions.