Participants at the 3rd ASEAN Conference on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (ACCPCJ) vowed to enhance cross-sectoral collaborations and promote youth engagement in criminal justice system reform as part of the regional effort to recover from Covid-19 pandemic.
Speaking at a press conference at the end of the 3rd ACCPCJ, representatives from the ASEAN secretariat and member states, ex-offenders, and youth shared their takeaways from the three-day conference, which was held between 22-24 August 2022 in Bangkok,Thailand.
Sendy Hermawati, Assistant Director and Head of Treaty Division, Legal Services and Agreements Directorate, ASEAN Secretariat, hailed the 3rd ACCPCJ a success as the event came up with cross-sectoral and cross-pillar solutions to the challenges the ASEAN member states were facing.
“The ACCPCJ has been proven as one of the most effective forums in the ASEAN to bring together all the expertise, not only from the government sector, but also the private sector, who can come up with very innovative and creative ideas involving issues and challenges from their point of views,” Sendy said.
“On top of that, we have representation from the youth, who have a lot of brilliant ideas and advanced thinking,” she said.
Dr. Yanuar Nugropho, Expert Coordinator at the National Secretariat of SDGs Implementation, Ministry of National Development Planning of Indonesia, said in his perspective, key takeaways from the 3rd ACCPCJ were making sure that no one is left behind; enhancing collaboration with non-state actors; and using the technology wisely.
He said one of the main principles of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is
“Leave No One Behind”. This principle, Dr. Yanuar suggested, should be adopted in the policy-making process including policies involving crime and justice.
He highlighted the importance of working with non-state actors, especially civil society organisations, private sector, media, and young people “as it had been clear that the government alone could not do everything.”
Dr. Yanuar said his takeaway on the issue of technology advancement, which was widely discussed at the 3rd ACCPCJ, was that we had to use the technology wisely and not be enslaved by it.
“The technology is there to help us, not the other way around. We need to understand that there are things that cannot be replaced by online technology. Justice system is one of them,” he said.
George O. Ortha II, from the Philippines’ Department of Justice and leader of the Philippines delegation at the ASLOM lauded the TIJ, the organiser of the 3rd ACCPCJ, for having a good balance of resource persons participating at the conference.
The good mix of participants from different backgrounds and expertise, he observed, reflected that crime and justice was not just an issue for the government.
“While crime and justice may give us the impression that it is only about the lawyers and law enforcers, it's not that. We have seen [from the 3rd ACCPCJ] how the public, private, civil society, non-governmental organisations and youth address issues regarding crime and justice,” George said. “This is evidence that in order to address whatever we are facing now, we need the whole-society approach, not the whole-government approach.”
George said he was impressed by youth representatives at the conference as they proved to be very knowledgeable when it came to the issues of the internet, cybercrime, and cyber security.
“We can see their confidence and eagerness to share the experiences, knowledge and recommendations and their willingness to be a part of the solutions,” he said.
Bruce Mathieu, an ex-offender from Singapore, said it was a “bold move” for the 3rd ACCPCJ organiser to invite him and his fellow ex-offenders to give opinions on criminal justice and prison management.
Bruce, who currently works as a street journalist at a Singapore-based production house, voiced his support for “restorative justice,” which was one of the ideas discussed at the conference.
Restorative Justice provides opportunities for victims and offenders to communicate about the causes, circumstances, and impact of that crime, and to address their needs. It aims to enable both victim and offender to move forward with respect and dignity, and be re-integrated into the broader community.
“I wish that relevant ministries in the whole ASEAN region adopt this [restorative justice] policy. It will do great to help ex-offenders to finally find peace and closure in the things that they have done,” Bruce said.
He commented that many social reintegration programmes were not fully successful because offenders do not feel accepted in the society.
“If we are accepted, it will make things a lot easier for us, but if we are not [accepted], the chance of committing an offence and going back to prison is very high,” Bruce concluded.
Celine Lee Ka Leen, a Singaporean student representing the Asian Law Students’ Association (ALSA) said that after taking part in the discussions and listening to the views of legal experts and policymakers at the 3rd ACCPCJ, she and her fellow youth representatives were “enlightened on how policies can be driven from dialogue.”
“Exposure is very important for us to see how policy can be driven from in the real-life situation. It’s not just learning about them in the classrooms, without much context of how global issues are being addressed and discussed,” Celine, who is a third-year Global Affairs student at Yale-NUS College in Singapore, told the press conference.
Celine said as the 3rd ACCPCJ came to the conclusion, the youth participants would now go back to their own countries with key takeaways, inspiration, as well as questions they needed to ponder on.
“The questions are: How can we make an impact? How can we initiate legislation change? How can we go back to our countries to facilitate more dialogues and turn them into actions and solutions?,” she elaborated.
In concluding her remark, Celine said on behalf of the Generation-Z people, she would like to call on authorities and experts in all sectors “to continue doing the work that you have been doing; continue to listen to what youth have to offer; and be inspired on how young people are very hopeful for the future.”
Vongthep Arthakaivalvatee, the TIJ’s advisor, said youth engagement was the “unique feature” of the ACCPCJ platform as the TIJ and its partners believed that crime prevention and criminal justice reform could not be achieved without collaborations from all sectors in the society including youth.
“The ACCPCJ has always acknowledged the indispensable role of young people in crime prevention and criminal justice reform,” Vongthep said. “The ACCPCJ aims to create a better future for the ASEAN region and youth is our future. So, we need to ensure that their voices are heard and provide them the opportunity to formulate their own agendas.”
The 3rd ACCPCJ was organised by Thailand Institute of Justice (TIJ) under the theme “Responding to Crime and Justice Challenges amidst ASEAN Recovery from the Covid-19 Crisis” with particular focus on the issues of cybercrime; international cooperation; and justice reform. The conference aims to promote the exchange of views and good practices among key stakeholders to enhance cross-sectoral cooperation in crime prevention and criminal justice.