Regional Conference Highlights Border Security Issues in Asean
Jakarta. The government of Thailand and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, or UNODC, hosted a regional conference for Southeast Asian countries on Tuesday (02/05), addressing challenges in regional integration and crime, as well as efforts to improve border security.
According to a press statement received by the Jakarta Globe, officials from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) will take part in high-level policy discussions at the conference aimed at enhancing cooperation in regional security, which conference organizers believe is becoming more and more crucial as Asean "evolves and becomes more interconnected and integrated."
"A key objective of the conference is to build momentum for improving regional border management in order to mitigate threats from transnational crime and terrorism, which are expanding and evolving as the region integrates," UNODC deputy executive director Aldo Lale Demoz said in the statement.
In 2015, Asean economy was the fifth largest in the world. The region is now one of the fastest-growing trading blocs, and member countries are upgrading border controls as part of an effort to increase cross-border movements of labor, capital and goods.
While these developments are opening up new opportunities in the region, they also highlight differences and disparities between Asean member countries, especially in their ability, or lack thereof, to address security challenges, especially from transnational organized crime.
In an interview with the Jakarta Globe, UNODC regional representative Jeremy Douglas said that public security systems have not kept pace with the quick integration of Asean.
"We are now at a point where we urgently need a regional policy and strategic response that brings the public security and border management agenda up to speed with the integration agenda," Jeremy said.
According to Jeremy, the agendas must not remain separate as they are now to prevent organized crime and terrorist groups from taking advantage. This is especially important to help more vulnerable Asean countries.
The conference should open up new initiatives for integrated law enforcement strategies. Demoz said the results of the discussions on Tuesday will be not only be taken to relevant decision-making bodies within Asean, but also to the UNODC to let the UN body design a supporting program in partnership with Asean.
"[...] We have no choice but to look for cross-border solutions. We simply have to work together much more effectively than we have in the past when crime and security challenges were more localized," Somchai Seangjai, an advisor to Thailand’s Minister of Justice, said.
In a joint statement issued following the Asean Summit last week, leaders of the 10-member bloc put border management into their list of priorities.
"This is a first for Asean. We hope it's a sign that the region will start to prioritize border cooperation to fight transnational crimes," Jeremy said.
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