Phl Aussie police sign MOU against transnational crime

By Mar T. Supnad

To combat Transnational Crime and further develop close police cooperation between the two countries, the Philippine National Police and the Australian Federal Police (AFP) had forged a Memorandum of Understanding between the two agencies.

Supt. Harris Fama, Deputy Police Relations Group director, said PNP Chief, Director General Nicanor A Bartolome and AFP Commissioner Tony Negus signed the PNP-AFP accord in Canberra, Australia on Tuesday setting into motion a more specific understanding between the PNP and AFP on international security issues involving terrorism and transnational crime.

“This agreement marks a new beginning in bilateral relations between the police forces of the Philippines and Australia under the spirit of international cooperation among police agencies in the Asia-Pacific region,” said Fama.

Bartolome led a 6-man PNP delegation to Canberra for the official signing of the agreement.

Other members of the PNP delegation are: Director Ager P Ontog, PNP Director for Intelligence, Senior Supt Cesar Binag, Senior Executive Assistant of the Office of the Chief PNP, Sr. Supt William Macavinta Chief of the Case Monitoring Division (CMD) of the Directorate for Investigation and Detective Management (DIDM) and Chief Insp. Marlon Villanueva and NUP Josephine Quieta of the Directorate for Plans.

The MOU recognizes the need to strengthen international law enforcement cooperation at all levels in combating transnational crime, including terrorism in a comprehensive manner.
           

It also acknowledges the importance of respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of both countries with due consideration of the fact that cross-border criminal activities between Philippines and Australia may pose a very real danger to the stability and security of the peoples of the two countries.

The Canberra accord was the final version of a series of draft agreements refined by the two agencies since 2010 under the guidance of the Department of Foreign Affairs.

The current existing MOU was signed between the NAPOLCOM and AFP in 2003 and since then, both PNP and AFP sought to create a more specific MOU between the two agencies.

The areas of cooperation for cooperative activities defined in the MOU are: terrorism, illicit drug trafficking, piracy and sea robbery, money laundering, cybercrime, transnational economic crime and fraud, trafficking in persons, child protection operations, illegal trafficking of weapons and ammunition, illegal acquisition of and import and export of cultural or historic treasures, identity fraud, and other areas as may be mutually determined by the parties concerned.

The MOU seeks to develop sound law enforcement criminal intelligence capabilities to provide opportunities for the sharing of information concerning these areas of cooperation.