126TH INTERNATIONAL SENIOR SEMINARREPORTS OF THE SEMINARGROUP 2ECONOMIC CRIME IN A GLOBALIZING SOCIETY~IT’S IMPACT ON THE SOUND DEVELOPMENT OF THE STATE
Chairperson
Co-Chairperson
Rapporteur
Co-Rapporteur
Members

Mr. Daisuke Moriyama
Mr. Simon Kauba
Mr. Ian M. Queeley
Mr. Dilli Raman Acharya
Mr. Amarsaikhan Delegchoimbol
Mr. Isidro Castillo Perez Jr.
Mr. Yuji Saito(Japan)(Papua New Guinea)(Saint Christopher and Nevis)(Nepal)(Mongolia)(Philippines)(Japan)Advisers

Prof. Yasuhiro Tanabe
Prof. Kenji Teramura
Prof. Tamaki Yokochi(UNAFEI)(UNAFEI)(UNAFEI)

I. INTRODUCTION AND THE CURRENT SITUATION AND THE PROBLEMS OF
SERIOUS ECONOMIC CRIME IN PARTICIPATING COUNTRIES
A. Introduction
This group was assigned the task of deliberating on the issue of the current situation and problems ofserious economic crime in the participating countries. Further, the problems and countermeasures in regard
to the investigations and trial were discussed at length, as seem to be the core to reducing the spread of
economic crime.
In view of the challenges posed by globalization, and technical developments, the reinforcement of multilateral cooperation is essential. All nations over the world should therefore be actively involved in theframing of new international regulations aimed at securing the smooth operation of financial markets, and inparticular at combating economic or financial crimes. We may also need to launch more initiatives targetingthe enhancement and effectiveness of the international fight against financial crimes.
The politico-financial history of the last thirty years reveals a worrying correlation between financial
crimes, indebtedness and poverty. At the moment, it may be impossible to calculate the financial losses todeveloping countries associated with offshore activities. Tax havens may seem far removed from the
problem of poverty, but we must bear in mind that they are intimately connected. Unlawful debt andeconomic crime against human developments definitely undermines the interest of developed countries
much less the poor or developing countries. Faced with this scarcely encouraging situation, the question thatremains to be answered is: will the twenty-first century eventually see justice prevail over the
institutionalized accumulation of fraudulent wealth?
Thus, the establishment of international financial justice has really become essential for all the nations toexist. This involves juridical-economic changes at the national and international levels. In this environment,
the most sophisticated institutions realize the need to upgrade skills and techniques in this area. They alsoneed to share and disseminate knowledge and best practices. In this context, effective models must be
developed for international cooperation between regulators and judicial investigative authorities around theworld. As a significant step to tackle economic crimes, we must be able to provide a coordinated approach tocombating serial, complex and multi-jurisdictional financial economic crimes.
All the governments will have to continue to work with the relevant stakeholders and other countries toprevent, detect and prosecute those who seek to commit economic crimes. In doing this, all concerned must
reaffirm their commitment to work with the law enforcement agencies and the international community toachieve this. Therefore, it goes without saying that the approach for the eradication of economic crimes
imposes the need for creating an organized, mutual approach and cooperation of the authorized investigative
services for the exchange of data and information.

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We are about fighting economic crimes, but we lack the data, the analysis, agreed priorities andorganizational structure to tackle this type of crime effectively. Therefore, if we are really to make any
progress, we need to be able to access the data and better analyze which economic crimes cause the greatest
detriment in terms of their impact on society.

B. Current Situation
For the purpose of the group workshop sessions the course was divided into three 3 groups
alphabetically. Each group comprised of representatives from six different countries, in order to add variety
and diversity to the discussions. This group consisted of participants from Japan, Mongolia, Nepal, Papua
New Guinea, the Philippines and St. Christopher and Nevis. Each participant gave a summary highlighting
the current situation and problems encountered as a result of serious economic crimes in his/her country as
outlined below:
Japan
The number of persons who commit economic crimes shows a general upward trend, and its’ modus
operandi is becoming sophisticated and well organized. We therefore, need further legislative adjustment totackle them effectively.
The problems are as follows: As we face difficulties in getting the information that leads us to serious
economic crimes or corruption acts, we need effective legal methods to get the reliable information such asutilizing whistle-blowers that is now under discussion. We also face difficulties in securing testimony in theinvestigations; “Witness Immunity” would be a very useful method to adopt.

Mongolia
The Republic of Mongolia has undergone a transition period from a so-called closed society to an open
society. During the last few years, the country experienced an increased number of cases that are considered
economic crimes such as corruption, bribery, and tax evasion. However, it is really difficult to investigate
such crimes because some of the prosecutors and even some of the judges are corrupt.
Other contributing factors in dealing with those economic crimes are the apparent inability ofinvestigators because they do not posses the necessary skills and knowledge in those fields; lack of physicalequipment and resources; the absence of a sound legal framework; and the inadequate compensation
packages offered to the judiciary, prosecutors and law enforcement officials, which makes them so vulnerable
to be bribed or get involved in corrupt practices.

Nepal
Nepal is facing serious problems caused by major economic crimes like corruption, tax evasion and illicit
drug trafficking. Corruption, the most prevalent of the economic crimes in Nepal is deep rooted in all facetsof the society. Reasonable investment toward development activities are allocated every year, but the output
in terms of benefit is worsening and decreasing.
The new Prevention of Corruption Act, 2002, New Special Court Act, 2002, and Commission for theInvestigation of Abuse of Authority Act 1991 (Amendment 2002) made the CIAA powerful and active, but
still there are some problems in combating corruptions in Nepal. These are: protection (enjoyed by thecorrupts’), lack of accountability and transparency in the service delivery system, social prestige for those
who gain materially, ineffective internal management audits in the concerned agencies and lack of a rewardand punishment system.

Papua New Guinea
The investigation of Economic Crime in Papua New Guinea is still very challenging to law enforcement
officials. Despite international Conventions and seminars and the best of police cooperation, the obstacles ofthe legal system, police practices and sovereignty are brought into the equation, and this makes it moredifficult to bring offenders to justice or recover lost assets.
Police have tried desperately in the past to bring the situation to a manageable level, and it has now
proved to be too difficult without the cooperation of the community, thus forcing the Police to embark upon
community policing.

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Philippines
In the Philippines today, the most serious economic crime, so far, is graft and corruption. Of course, thisis not to say that other forms or types of economic crimes like stock market manipulation, insider trading,and computer and cyberspace crimes, do not really exist within the territorial jurisdiction of the country.
As a result of the inefficiency in the collection of the much needed revenues brought about by the serious
problem of corruption, the country is now facing a budgetary deficit which is likely to affect the socioeconomic and political development of the country.
The anti-graft bodies, particularly the Ombudsman and Sandiganbayan are seemingly confronted withdifficulties in the prosecution of the cases, due to several factors and unforeseen events thus, requiring
direct intervention from the executive department.
In response thereto, the present administration has launched an intensive campaign against corruptionthat has resulted in the dismissal from the services and imposition of heavy administrative sanctions against
those public officials involved, especially those in the Department of public works and Highways (DPWH),
Bureau of Customs (BOC) and the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR).

St. Christopher and Nevis
As a young country, thriving in less than favourable economic conditions worldwide, it is very difficult toprotect our economic image. Gravitating towards a tourism and financial services based economy, economic
crimes, have been the focus of law enforcement officials in recent times.
In this era of globalization, and the advent of technology, we are no longer only experiencing the
traditional economic crimes such as embezzlement, drug trafficking and common fraud, but we areconfronted with modern economic crimes that occur at the touch of a button and have no boundaries, such as
Money Laundering, Credit Card Fraud and other Financial Crimes. However, lack of resources, skills andknowledge has made it rather complicated in some instances to successfully investigate and prosecute theperpetrators. Consequently, the necessary machinery has been initiated based on specific legislation,
education of the relevant stakeholders and the establishment of specialized investigative arms, such as the
Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), and the soon to be office of the Ombudsman.

II. PROBLEMS AND COUNTERMEASURES IN REGARD TO THE
INVESTIGATION AND TRIAL OF ECONOMIC CRIMES
A. The Investigative Apparatus
In the workshop each participant discussed the problems of investigation and trial of serious economic
crimes in their various countries and shared the experiences in a detailed manner. This aspect “theInvestigative Apparatus” was chosen because it was recognized that this is an integral part of themechanism required to initiate meaningful changes in order to combat economic crimes. In addition, an
efficient investigative apparatus was seen as a preventive measure to serious economic crimes. During thediscussions the advisors raised different, but relevant issues to the participants’ problems regarding theInvestigative Apparatus. Problems on the investigative systems varied and were different from country tocountry, but it was evident that we all had common problems.
Each country to some extent is affected by serious economic crimes, such as corruption, bribery, tax
evasion, market manipulation, money laundering, illicit drug trafficking and credit card fraud. From amongst
the economic crimes highlighted and discussed, it was clear and unambiguous that corruption was the mostprevalent crime. Corruption is rampant in four of the representative countries, Japan, Mongolia, Nepal and
the Philippines. The other two countries, Papua New Guinea and St. Christopher and Nevis do not have sucha serious problem of corruption, but money laundering is fast becoming a worrying issue for them and theappropriate preventative measures are instituted.

B. Overview of Existing Apparatus
It was also discovered that of the six participating countries of the group, in two countries namely
Mongolia and Papua New Guinea, the Police were the sole investigative body for economic crimes. The
remaining four countries, Japan, Nepal, the Philippines and St. Christopher and Nevis all had separate and

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specialized agencies, in addition to the police that dealt with serious economic crimes. The breakdown canbe seen in the Appendix.
The success of investigations of economic crime depends largely on the independence of theinvestigative agencies involved. From within the group it was discovered that some countries already havesuch apparatus in place guaranteed by law and constitution. These include Japan’s SID of the PPO, Nepal’s
CIAA, Philippine’s Ombudsman and St. Kitts and Nevis’s FIU. However, in Papua New Guinea, there is an
ombudsman commission, which is not really an investigative apparatus, but rather plays an integral part in
imposing accountability on the country’s leaders.

C. Common Problems
During the discussions, it was revealed that common problems existed within each country. These
problems are outlined below, together with suggested countermeasures.
1. Lack of Skilled Manpower
As a result of globalization and information technology, fighting economic crime has become increasingly
difficult. Consequently, the criminal justice officers’ must be equipped with the requisite competencies,
knowledge and skills, in order to stay current or even ahead of criminals. Specialized skills in forensic
accounting and auditing, computer science and new methods of detection of these crimes should beprioritized. This can serve both as a deterrent and at the same time enhance efficiency and the detectionrate.
In view of the foregoing, the following recommendations were presented to reduce the effects of a lack ofskilled manpower within the participating countries:• International cooperation, such as AUS-Aid - where funds are provided to train prosecutors,
detectives and lawyers (e.g. Papua New Guinea)• Incorporating skilled persons in specialized fields from other entities (from both the public andprivate sectors)• Provide specialized training for law enforcement personnel and criminal justice officials.
2. Lack of Financial and Physical Resources
It is accepted that all governments have restrictions as it relates to the allocation of its financial
resources. However, in light of the consequences that can follow as a result of the prevalence of economic
crimes in any society, it is deemed necessary to allocate adequate resources to the cause of fighting theepidemic of economic crimes. As a result of budgetary constraints, it impacts on the human resources
requirement, in that the appropriate number of investigators cannot be appointed to carry the workload. The
end result is that the investigators are overworked, which leads to undue and unnecessary delays andultimately a poor quality or sub-standard investigation of the cases.
The lack of human and other physical resources also limits the scope and efficiency of the investigating
agencies. It is also believed that due to their vested interests the government deliberately does not allow thecriminal justice officials to become efficient and capable of effective investigations. As it relates to theexisting workforce, it has a direct impact on the education and training of investigators and judiciary officials.
There are also implications on the low pay packages offered in some of the participating countries such as
Mongolia and Nepal, where the abnormally low pay structures for very senior public officials ultimately leads
to a perverted justification of corrupt practices of public officials.
The appropriate physical infrastructure and equipment are needed to tackle the problems associated withserious economic crimes. It is imperative therefore that adequate building/office space is provided,complimented with the necessary technical infrastructure including laboratories where needed, fully
furnished and equipped. Such equipment should include photocopiers, fax machines, computers withinternet access, communication and surveillance/intelligence equipment, etc.
This problem depends largely on the state of the economy and political situation of the country at thematerial time. However, it was recognized by the participants that for this to be successful the following
must be instituted:• Strong political will and commitment by the government; and• Increased public awareness and sensitization to the issues.

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3. Insufficient Coordination Between Enforcement Agencies
In order to fight against economic crimes, we must start a unified front. It was discovered that in somecountries the cooperation among relevant agencies is inadequate and quite frankly below an acceptable
standard. Therefore, the timely dissemination of information and ideas is essential for the successful
investigation of serious economic crimes. Such uncoordinated efforts often result in the waste of the alreadyscarce manpower and “turf wars” amongst the investigative agencies. Furthermore, the absence of an
integrated information system makes it difficult to collaborate with other independent investigative
agencies.
In order to alleviate this problem, all criminal justice officials should recognize the importance ofcooperation and coordination both nationally and internationally and endeavour to work in harmony. Most ofall, they should also acknowledge the fact that they are all working towards a common goal.
4. Lack of Effective Management Audit Systems
Most of the developing countries do not have sound management audit systems to monitor the activities
of different government agencies. Thus, the opportunity is created for corrupt practices to go undetected
because of the lack of transparency in framing policies and taking administrative decisions to thegovernment in the matter of allocation of contracts, the procurement of goods and supplies and theappointment of officers, etc. In this context, for the effective investigation of economic crimes, there should
be a good system of monitoring the activities of their subordinate apparatus. Most of the participating
countries agreed that each country should create an effective independent management audit system withthe capability to raise the red flag to signal fowl play. On completion of the report, it should be published andmade available for public scrutiny and recommendations for sanctions for misappropriations be forwarded to
the Public Prosecutors Office to take the necessary action.
In some of the participating countries, Transparency International, an International Non Governmental
Organization (INGO), and other non governmental organizations are acting as watchdogs for corruption andmalpractice behaviours by public officials and it’s proving to be effective.
5. Lack of Legislation on Economic Crimes
In order to establish the specialized agencies for tackling the investigation of serious economic crimes,
there should be substantive legislation in the country. In addition, to legislation, procedural andadministrative regulations should be included clearly outlining the structure of the organizations, qualifying
and defining the roles of the persons so employed, the security of independence and the necessary powers
to investigate and prosecute offenders. Some of the participating countries do not have any legislation for
combating economic crimes (e.g. Nepal has no substantive laws to deal with the offences of money
laundering and cyber crime). Therefore, necessary legislation should be enacted to give the investigating
agencies the “teeth” required to investigate those serious crimes.
6. Other Problems
Notwithstanding the common problems highlighted earlier, individual countries have other problems
noteworthy of mentioning. In Mongolia, corruption is so rampant that even criminal justice officers fall preyto the corrupt practices. This continues to ‘deal’ a big blow to the investigative apparatus and even pose athreat to the rule of democracy in that country.
Suggestions for Mongolia to alleviate this problem include:• Strong political will and public awareness• Establishment of separate investigative agencies (e.g. the office of Ombudsman)• Involvement of NGOs, INGOs (e.g. T I) and civil society as a watchdog
In Nepal, the CIAA is working well to combat corruption as an independent investigating and prosecuting
agency. But there is no direct involvement of prosecutors in corruption cases. So the law should be amended
accordingly. Other participants agreed with this fact.
In the Philippines, there is the office of Ombudsman that is guaranteed independence from thegovernment. However, it does not work effectively due to a lack of budget and manpower.

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Suggestions regarding this problem were given indicating that raising public awareness and involvementof an NGO should be considered.

III. PREVENTION OF ECONOMIC CRIME
A. Regulation of Economic Activities
Prevention of economic crime was the aspect of the discussion that generated the most energy.
Accordingly, we saw the need to deliberate on sections (A) and (E), namely, the Regulation of Economic
Activities and Public Awareness respectively. Civil and administrative sanctions as well as laws are in effectnot only to protect consumers but also to act as deterrents to economic crimes. This confirmed our belief
that the presence of regulatory bodies, sound regulations and the enforcement of these regulations are
essential to the prevention of economic crimes. The results of the discussions are hereunder summarized.
Economic Crime is a complex phenomenon, acquiring greater significance in this global era. The
offenders do not commit these crimes on the impulse of the moment, but rather they do so in a carefullyplanned and well-orchestrated manner, so as to leave no trace of their execution. Present day technology
also facilitates the opportunity allowing them to do so transnationally without great difficulty. It is imperative
therefore, that governments the world over contribute to the fight by taking a unified stance and collaborate
by putting in place similar mechanisms to regulate the way business is done in each country. Such regulatory
agencies may be strengthened to play a more proactive role, whether formal or informal.
Crime prevention enlists the private sector and citizens in their campaign to fight economic crimes. The
preventive measures need not be elaborate, excessively expensive or for that matter too ‘high tech’. The
government’s proactive activities, coordination with the private sector, and international cooperation
regionally and internationally are essential tools for the prevention of economic crimes.
1. Establishment of Sound Regulations for Economic Activity
A key component in combating economic crime is effective regulations. Regulations help to suppress
some practices that conceal fraud. They also deter migration of trust or substantial financial responsibilities.
In some countries, corporations are responsible for setting and maintaining the standards for the bestpractices and good governance within the industry. Companies and corporations are mandated to have built
in mechanisms to monitor and detect irregularities of the executive board and members and regulate with aview to preventing illegal activities and malpractices. For example, in Japan the implementation of a
“Corporate Governance Policy” has proved to be very effective. Statutes provide for this self-regulation
practice and sanctions are levied for non-compliance. In St. Christopher and Nevis however, the law
stipulates that the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) shall be empowered to regulate all financial
institutions within the Federation. This system has been working well, as non-compliance with the industry
standards can lead to fines and in some cases suspension of services and ultimately closure. In addition, thefact that the compliance officers of the ECCB can at anytime visit and carry out inspections serves to keep
the institutions in check.
Although having sound regulations is important, deregulation has also proved to be equally important.
Deregulation not only ensures fair competition amongst corporations but also assist greatly in reducing thetrend of public officials becoming corrupted as it reduces each ministry’s power. The Japanese Government
now endeavours to reform regulations in various private sectors by abolishing unnecessary regulations as
this has worked to their advantage. However, in the Philippines, the obvious absence of sound legislation has
lead to the shortcomings brought about by the implementation of the deregulation process. This has
impacted the country adversely and has resulted in increased prices of commodities and basically affects theoverall quality of life.
2. Enforcement of Regulations
Enforcement of such regulations plays a vital role in the prevention of economic crime. In some countries
however, this is not forthcoming and as a result the involvement of Non Governmental Organizations andthe private sector have proven to be effective. They monitor the activities and make recommendations to
the government continually, and then coordinate the implementation of the regulations to effect smoothfunctioning. For instance, the National Vigilance Centre in Nepal makes guidance policy, good governance,transparency and accountability programmes. And the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, which is a selfregulatory body in Papua New Guinea, looks after and monitors the activities of public sectors. In this202

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context, a self-regulating system such as Due Diligence including the “know your customer rule” andCompliance Programmes by companies and corporations is recommended.
3. Coordination between Regulatory Agencies and the Private Sector
The presence of government regulations is an important step in helping to protect the various industries
or sectors of a county’s economy. To maximize the benefits of regulations, however, another dimension must
be added. That is coordination and cooperation with law enforcement agencies and the private sector. In
other words, this has a direct correlation between the regulatory bodies, law enforcement agencies and the
Chamber of Industry and Commerce and other NGO’s within the community. The result is that therelationship amongst them has to be enhanced significantly.
In many countries the private sector dictates the pace at which the economy grows and without thenegotiations and lobbying government may be weighed in the balance and found wanting. Therefore, it isincumbent that governments exercise their best efforts to interact with the law enforcement community, theprivate sector and civil society as a whole in order to regulate the necessary activities. In an open market
economy system the private sector should play the leading role with reference to the conduct of businessand trade.
It was suggested that international cooperation is also important and should also be incorporated into thegeneral sphere of operations. It was highlighted that by referring to and conforming with international
standards relating to regulations for the prevention of economic crimes the outcome would be much moreencouraging. This can be achieved by comparing each other’s regulations and harmonizing them amongst
countries for enabling legislation in a global context.

B. Public AwarenessAs a preventive measure, it is evident that increasing public awareness will play an important role
especially in the case where regulations are not well enforced. However, the question is how to achieve thatgoal? Some countries pointed out that this question must be linked with the socio-economic and politicalsituations that exist in their country. It is essentially important for the government to have a clear concept,
proper structure, and process of enforcement for increasing public awareness. For example, in Nepal,
problems of poverty and low rate of literacy are obstacles, because when the information is disseminatedpoverty may hinder the message from reaching the intended target audience, and if it does, it will not becomprehended by the majority of the population. In this context, it is suggested that we develop a soundpublic education system, as a first step, with the institutional capacity to sell the idea to the layman on thestreets and convince them of the benefits that can be derived.
It is recognized that the public awareness activities by law enforcement authorities should be backed up
by industry. The National Police Agency in Japan enjoys a cordial relationship with private companies andhas held several meetings and distributed brochures with a view to raising awareness in order to prevent
malpractice or illegal activities. In Papua New Guinea, the Police visit the private sector and explain theirpolicy. This policy and campaign is based on the newly adopted Community Policy Initiative by thegovernment.
The building of institutional capacity within organizations charged with the duties of delivering the publicawareness programmes should be strengthened. In St. Christopher and Nevis, a senior police officer is
attached to each school as a liaison officer, and charged with the responsibility of sensitizing the children at
an early age of the corporate plan within the Police Force and how they can play a part in preventing andreducing criminal activities. In addition, the use of the print and electronic media has been used as aneffective tool to increase public awareness. Police representatives from the public relations office (PRO)regularly participate in panel discussions and write articles in the newspapers, providing useful insights tothe public. Although the media has been utilized effectively in some participants’ countries, in others theefforts by the government to inform and distribute its policy are seen as insufficient.
The Public Awareness programmes should be linked and coordinated with other regulatory agencies,
INGOs, NGOs and the civil society to have maximum effect when attempting to educate the public. For
example, in Nepal, the NGOs and the civil society have played the role of the watchdogs in corruption cases.

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IV. STRENGTHENING THE LEGAL FRAMEWORK AND COUNTERMEASURESOF ECONOMIC CRIMES
Economic Crimes are non-violent in nature but they have the propensity to cause serious harm to any
society, nation or the world as a whole. As a result of the grim and startling reality of this menace,internationally recognized bodies’ including the United Nations have frowned on these crimes and instituted
measures to combat them. It is also clearly manifested that in this globalizing society the legal frameworkhas to be strengthened and new legislation adopted, if we are to make the world a safer place for all.
The United Nations convention on corruption offers good reason to look at the future with optimism. It isindeed an act of faith and offers all countries a comprehensive set of standards, measures and rules that canbe applied to strengthen their legal and regulatory framework to prevent and combat corruption. It is hopedthat similar conventions can be ratified relating to all economic crimes.
We recognized that the legal framework within our countries can be significantly strengthened if: therecovery of assets as a result of economic crimes; increased international cooperation through mutual legal
assistance in criminal matters and extradition treaties; and obstruction of justice measures are included in
the framework. We also saw the need to introduce and implement countermeasures to act as deterrents.
Therefore, we focused in this section on the above mentioned aspects and presented our desired
countermeasures.

A. Asset Recovery
Our group decided to discuss some critical issues relating to the ratification of the UN Convention
against Corruption. This was chosen because as stated earlier, corruption is the economic crime that affects
most of the participating countries of the group. Corruption is now a transnational phenomenon, and for thisreason it is necessary to harmonize the criminal law and procedure of each country, as well as enhanceinternational cooperation in order to combat it effectively. In this context, each country has to review its
domestic legal framework, as some of the legislation that currently exists is not adequate to address theissue of asset recovery. In addition, they must as a matter of urgency ratify the Convention. From within thegroup, Japan, Nepal and the Philippines have already signed the Convention, and Mongolia, Papua New
Guinea and St. Christopher are expected to do so in the near future.
We found that the issue of recovery of assets is one of the most important issues highlighted in thevarious provisions of the Convention. The proceeds of crime derived from economic crime, including
corruption, are often transferred beyond the reach of domestic authorities, and also laundered and hidden ina sophisticated manner. It is also pointed out that in some cases, accomplices pretend to be bona fide third
parties, and thus necessary laws and measures should be introduced for the purpose of preventing anddetecting such disguising activities. There are countless cases whereby corrupt officials transfer their illgotten gains to some foreign countries. There are also cases where even political leaders are involved, forexample the former President of the Philippines, Mr. Ferdinand Marcos. He illegally deprived the country of
its national assets and transferred them to a bank in Switzerland. However, they encountered difficulty ingetting the assets returned from Switzerland because there are no international agreements with
Switzerland (bilateral or multi-lateral) and no national legislation in place. In Papua New Guinea, there was asimilar case where the suspects transferred assets to Australia and Singapore, but again there is no domestic
legislation to apply and make any request to that country other than through diplomatic channels. The
perpetrator has since been extradited back to Papua New Guinea and is facing trial.
On the other hand many such cases go uncovered and undetected. Unfortunately, universally the successrate in this area has been very low; moreover, there have been no cases of asset recovery in the participating
countries of this group. It is therefore important to enhance international cooperation in this field, so as toincrease our chances of success. We should also be aware of the fact that substantial loss of resources of thevictim countries can undermine its sound economy and development.
In all of this, the participants recognized that there are some inhibiting factors which impede the asset
recovery process, such as:• The lack of appropriate legal framework which allows the return of assets;• The lack of political will or arbitrary political influence;•
Ineffectiveness of international cooperation;

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Difficulties in tracing and identifying assets in foreign countries.

However, in some counties such as Japan and St. Christopher and Nevis, there is legislation by which
tainted property can be confiscated, but there are no provisions for the recovery of those assets uponconviction. In fact, the trial jurist will determine what should be done with the assets and in most cases they
are forfeited to the crown and go to the national treasury. They are subsequently, included in one account as
national revenue, and therefore it is difficult to return the particular assets to other countries.
Chapter V of the Convention provides for comprehensive mechanisms and measures to be put in place toensure the recovery of assets, which gives us clear guidelines to address this issue. In particular, Article 57(2) requires a State Party to adopt necessary measures to enable its authorities to return confiscatedproperty.

B. International Cooperation
In this era of globalization, international cooperation is deemed one of the most important mechanisms in
the holistic and multi-disciplinary approach needed to tackle and control economic crimes. All nations must
be concerned about the seriousness of the problems and threat posed to the stability and security ofsocieties, undermining the institutional and ethical values, justice, jeopardizing sustainable development andthe rule of law. Economic crimes are no longer national, but rather a transnational phenomenon that often
involve vast quantities of assets, which in some instances may constitute a substantial proportion of theresources of the state and subsequently threaten political stability. Convinced that the illegal acquisition of
personal wealth can be detrimental to democratic institutions and developing nations, soliciting technicalassistance from the international community plays an integral part in enhancing the ability of States,
including the capacity and institutional building required to combat economic crimes.
Bearing in mind that the eradication of economic crimes is the collective responsibility of all States, eachhas to make a concerted effort to cooperate with one another, with the support and involvement of
individuals and groups outside the public sector, such as civil society, non-governmental organizations andcommunity based organizations. In addition, they must manifest the will to prevent, detect and deter in amore effective manner international transfers of illicitly acquired assets and to strengthen international
cooperation in asset recovery, sharing or return. However, in all this we must acknowledge the fundamental
principles of due process of law in criminal proceedings and in civil administrative proceedings in the
adjudication of property rights.
Regional and International cooperation should not be limited to cooperation between governments andNGOs, but should also include the persons actively involved in the investigations, such as the law
enforcement and criminal justice officials. They should be able to liaise with each other and work closely,familiarizing themselves with, and respecting, the relevant legislative framework and administrative
systems to facilitate smooth, harmonizing and effective investigations.
This can only be done if they:• Create and maintain communication links that will allow the appropriate authorities and agencies toexchange secure, rapid and timely information in connection with the crimes committed orsuspected of being about to be committed.
• Determine the identity, whereabouts and activities of persons suspected of being involved ineconomic crimes.
• Determine the movement of proceeds of crime or property derived from the commission of suchcrimes.
• Determine the movement of property, equipment or other instruments used or suspected of being
used in the commission of such crimes.
• Provide necessary items or quantities of substances for analytical or investigative purposes.
• Promote the exchange of personnel and experts to consolidate their resources to respond to offences
committed through the use of modern technology.
Finally, when the crimes extend to more that one country, there should either be bilateral or multilateralagreements, conventions or even just mutual consent, so as to be able to form strategic alliances by
establishing joint investigative bodies to maximize their efforts. Sadly, this type of legal framework does notexist within the participating countries.

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Extradition
The issue of Extradition is also discussed in chapter IV (International cooperation) of the UN Convention
against Corruption. With globalization comes the global criminal. This has caused serious economic crimes
to transcend beyond national borders, thus becoming globalized as well. The extradition of criminals back to
the country where they committed the crimes is therefore imperative, as it could eliminate safe havens forcriminals to hide after committing their illegal criminal activities.
There are two approaches for extradition amongst countries. Some countries such as Mongolia, Papua
New Guinea, the Philippines and St. Christopher and Nevis require an international treaty to extradite, whileothers may however, grant extradition in the absence of binding international obligations. It should also beborne in mind that in cases where there are no formal treaties, there are circumstances, such as theprinciple of reciprocity and dual criminality, that foster cooperation in extradition matters. However,exceptions of some crimes for dual criminality are dealt with under Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal
Matters treaties.
Examples of when extradition may be granted in the absence of international obligations are Japan and
Nepal.
Both systems have advantages and disadvantages. An advantage of the former is to be able to impose an
obligation on the requested country to execute an extradition warrant and to exclude the circumstances thatexist. On the other hand, the latter is flexibility, in that it permits governments to extradite based on mutual
agreements, common understanding and the principle of reciprocity. However, in the case of Japan, aJapanese citizen cannot be extradited to another country unless there is a current bilateral treaty in effectwith the requesting country.
Most of the participants’ countries have concluded bilateral treaties with some other countries. Japan has
such with United States and Korea; Nepal with India; Papua New Guinea with all Pacific islands and Australia
and New Zealand; Philippines and St. Kitts and Nevis with the United States. Mongolia does not have atreaty with anyone, but usually gets assistance informally, as a result of a common understanding with
Russia and other neighbouring countries. However, in view of fostering international cooperation throughextradition, it is recognized that we need to, as soon as possible, ratify multilateral treaties such as the UN
Convention on corruption.

C. Obstruction of Justice
We discussed also the issue of criminalization of certain breaches within the criminal justice system,
especially obstruction of justice stipulated in chapter III of the UN Convention, as these acts may thwart theefforts of carrying out investigations and trial of serious economic crimes. Actually, for example in Nepal,
there are many acts of obstruction related to corruption, especially the case where influential persons suchas Parliamentarians or high-ranking officials are involved. However, it is unable to tackle this phenomenon
due to a lack of legislation.
The Convention provides the way to criminalize such an act as the use of physical force, threats, orintimidation or the promise, offering or giving of an undue advantage to induce false testimony or tointerfere in the giving of testimony and so on.
In some participants’ countries such as Japan, Mongolia and Nepal, an act of physical force or intimidation
to witnesses is criminalized; however, they do not have specialized legislation, for example, that makes anact of offering or giving an undue advantage a criminal offence. On the other hand, other countries such as
the Philippines, Papua New Guinea and St. Kitts and Nevis have legislation, such as the Financial
Intelligence Unit Act, in cases of money laundering and other financial crimes. Nevertheless, someparticipants pointed out that the legislation available to them does not work well in their countries because
they are suffering from political influence in enforcement of the legislation.
It is suggested that we need to legislate specifically for obstruction of justice in order to execute criminal
sanctions properly and effectively. And it is also suggested that the establishment of a proper witness
protection programme is needed for the physical protection of key witnesses and, if necessary, their
immediate family and to guard against undue influence. Furthermore, to increase public awareness with aview to harmonizing legislation and preventing the offence is needed.

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