OPENING REMARKSYAMASHITA Terutoshi *Honourable guests, distinguished experts and participants, ladies and gentlemen,Good morning. I am YAMASHITA Terutoshi, Director of UNAFEI.
First of all, I would like to apologize for not being able to attend the seminar this year.
Personally, I have deep interest in this seminar in Jakarta because I had made theacquaintances of many criminal justice officials including many Indonesian practitioners
when I was a faculty member of UNAFEI for three years beginning in 1995. Also, I
conducted research on the judicial system of Indonesia as a member of a JICA research groupin 2002 and published a research report on the Indonesian justice system in Japanese. I
believe that the report has led to JICA projects in the field of Indonesian civil and commercial
law. So, I am filled with fond memories when I reflect upon those days.
As for this seminar, its main theme is “Current Challenges and Best Practices in theInvestigation, Prosecution and Prevention of Corruption Cases – Sharing Experiences andLearning from Actual Cases”. Not only legal systems but also actual practices are importantwhen considering the criminal justice response to corruption. Sharing actual cases is the mosteffective way for practitioners to learn the current situations and challenges in each country.
In this seminar, you will focus especially on the following two sub-topics: The first is“Mutual Legal Assistance and Recovery of Proceeds of Corruption” and the second is“Public–Private Partnership to Prevent and Detect Corruption”. Nowadays corruption crosses
international borders easily, and criminal justice officers need to cooperate with foreignauthorities in collecting evidence during the investigation and prosecution of corruption cases.
We are expected to rapidly identify, trace, freeze, confiscate and repatriate illicit proceeds ofcorruption that have poured out to other countries. So, importance should be placed onstrengthening cooperation with authorities in other countries through mutual legal assistanceand informal information exchanges.
On the other hand, investigative and prosecutorial authorities to detect and punish
corruption have faced difficulties because the modus operandi of corruption is becoming
more complicated and sophisticated. Cooperation with the private sector must also be
strengthened in order to prevent and detect corruption effectively. We need to improveinformation sharing related to corruption cases from the private sector through effective
whistle-blower protection programmes, witness protection programmes and so on. It is
important to collaborate with private companies and the general public before corruption iscommitted. Eradication of corruption is difficult unless we take general and comprehensive
countermeasures not only from the perspective of law enforcement but also from theperspective of prevention. I hope this seminar will enhance and improve the practices ofinvestigation, prosecution and prevention of corruption in Southeast Asian countries through*Director, United Nations Asia and Far East Institute for the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment ofOffenders.

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Before concluding, I would like to take this opportunity to express my deepest
appreciation to the government of Indonesia, especially to the Attorney General’s Office ofthe Republic of Indonesia and the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), for their great
contribution and assistance in co-hosting this seminar.
Thank you very much for your attention.

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