The 1st International Training Course on Building Inclusive Societies (Online) "Protection of the rights of crime victims including children" 1. Duration and Participants . From 2 March to 17 2022 . 13 overseas participants from 8 jurisdictions
2. Programme Overview
Goal 16 of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (SDGs) seeks to achieve peaceful and inclusive societies, and this training course aimed to promote the role of criminal justice in achieving such societies. This programme offered participants an opportunity to share experiences and knowledge on effective measures to protect the rights of crime victims including children. This programme was exclusively conducted online due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
3. The Content of the Programme
(1) Lectures
The participants were from a wide range of time zones, including Asia, Africa and Latin America, and they needed to continue their professional and family duties during the seminar. Therefore, all lectures were recorded in advance and broadcast on-demand in order to allow participants to view lectures at their convenience. After watching the on-demand lectures, participants were required to submit questions or comments via an online learning management system, and their questions were answered in Q&A sessions with the respective lecturers. This way, we tried to ensure both convenience and interactivity in lectures. In addition to the lectures delivered by UNAFEI professors on the protective measures for crime victims including children in the criminal justice system of Japan, the lectures were delivered by the specialist lecturer and ad hoc lecturer, followed by Q&A sessions. As part of ad hoc lecturer's lecture, the participants took part in a role- playing session on forensic interviewing techniques. During the role-playing session, each participant took the role of interviewer, interviewee or support staff, and then experienced a forensic interview with a teenage witness. . Specialist lecturer . Dr. John P. J. Dussich Professor Emeritus California State University, Fresno "International Victimology: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow" Ad hoc lecturer . . Dr. NAKA Makiko Professor Research Organization of Open Innovation and Collaboration, Ritsumeikan University witnesses: “Interviewing  vulnerable Introduction Forensic/ to Investigative Interviews" (2) Group Workshops Participants were divided into two groups considering their time zones.んIndividual Presentations Participants shared the practices and the challenges in their respective countries regarding the theme of the training course through their individual presentations. All the presentations were recorded and uploaded online so that participants in other groups could watch them afterwards. ♪ Discussions Built on the knowledge gained through lectures and individual presentations, the participants engaged in live discussions to explore more about the theme of the training course. The participants shared challenges and good practices in their respective jurisdictions and discussed the root causes and necessary actions to address common challenges. During the discussions, participants pointed out the usefulness of forensic interviewing using a multi-agency approach as a preventive measure against secondary victimization caused by multiple interviews. The participants also shared the importance of providing crime victims with information on the status of ongoing criminal justice procedures, as well as continuous capacity-building on implementing victim protection measures, including forensic interviewing. A Based on the lectures, discussions and presentations, the participants delivered their final presentations on the current challenges in their jurisdictions and possible solutions thereto.
4. Feedback from the Participants
At the end of the training course, we invited feedback from all participants. They said that, even though conducted online, they learned a lot from the lectures and group discussions. They also indicated that, if it were conducted in person, they would learn more about the Japanese system and practice by visiting relevant institutions in Japan.
5. Comments from the Programming Officer
The protection of the rights of crime victims including children is one of the most important issues in criminal justice systems in all jurisdictions, and efforts should be made continuously to improve victim protection measures and implementation thereof. The participants in this training course were highly motivated to learn from the experiences of other countries and the lecturers. They showed great discernment in analysing their current systems and practices, as well as recognizing the need to review their systems and practices. I also learned a lot from the participants. I hope that the participants' experiences in this training course will help them contribute to improving the protection of the rights of crime victims including children in their jurisdictions.