Doha Declaration event at UN focuses on Education for Justice
The Education for Justice (E4J) initiative has inspired children and youth in the spirit of innovation to create a society free from drugs, crime and extremism, HE the Secretary-General of Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dr Ahmed bin Hassan al-Hammadi, has said.
He made the observation while speaking at a high-level event at the United Nations headquarters in New York City on Tuesday.
Held within the framework of the Global Programme on Doha Declaration supported by Qatar, the event featured a panel representing Unesco, the United Nations (UN) youth envoy, Qatar’s mission to the UN and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
The theme was ‘Education as a Source of Drug Security, Crime and Terrorism’ as one of the four main themes of the Doha World Declaration, in the context of a partnership with Unesco to develop a range of creative tools to support primary, secondary and tertiary education for children and young people.
The meeting was aimed at promoting a culture of lawfulness in education systems to make the world safer from crime, according to a statement issued in Doha by the Ministry of Interior.
Speakers from Qatar and the UN highlighted efforts in the E4J initiative to enhance security from drugs, crime and terrorism and to contribute to the rule of law through change and the modernisation of education, the official Qatar News Agency (QNA) reported.
HE the Permanent Representative of Qatar to the United Nations Sheikha Alya Ahmed bin Saif alThani welcomed the guests and delegates and moderated the discussion.
Yuri Fedotov, UNODC executive director, lauded Qatar for its support to the Global Programme of the Doha Declaration and stressed the necessity of providing education for all children and youth as it would be fundamental to the prevention of crime and corruption, and to the promotion of a culture of lawfulness that supported the rule of law and human rights.
Marie Paule Roudil, director of the Unesco Liaison Office New York and also the representative of Unesco, said she was particularly happy at the partnership between Unesco and UNODC for fostering a culture that respected the rule of law.
“I am proud of our partnership to promote a culture of respect for the rule of law for more resilient societies,” said Roudil. She added that Unesco and the UNODC were working towards the goals of the 2015 Doha Declaration, integrating crime prevention and criminal justice into the broader agenda of the UN.
Flagging Qatar’s support for education and the rule of law, Maj Gen Abdullah al-Mal, adviser to HE the Minister of Interior, highlighted how the Doha Declaration has contributed significantly in directing international efforts towards building just and humane criminal justice systems. Maj Gen al-Mal, who is also chairman of the Doha Declaration Follow-up Committee, thanked the UNODC and Unesco for their efforts to strengthen criminal and human rights systems.
He noted that the period from 2015 to 2018 has been marked by significant achievements for the Doha Declaration on Education for Justice, noting that the latest UN statistics indicate that the number of countries benefiting from projects of the Global Programme for the Doha Declaration since its adoption in 2015 amount to 166. A total of 4,862 people benefited from the awareness and education activities and its various initiatives, along with 3,467 beneficiaries in the technical support area.
“Qatar’s support for the Doha Declaration in partnership with the United Nations is part of its ongoing efforts to assist states, particularly developing countries, to address organised crimes, to build effective, fair, humane and accountable criminal justice systems, to consolidate the rule of law and to achieve sustainable development and also to make a positive impact on international peace and security,” he added.
Maj Gen al-Mal said Qatar had started discussions with the UNODC in Vienna and it was agreed to implement the declaration, with its different pillars, among young people through sports, according to QNA.
He said the cost of these pillars was estimated at $49mn. The government of Qatar fully covered the amount in agreement with the UN and set up a four-year programme that would end before the start of the 14th Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice to be held in Japan in 2020, he added.
The UN Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth, Jayathma Wickramanayake, highlighted the importance of young people in preventing crime. Basketball legend and humanitarian Dikembe Mutombo, CEO and president of The Dikembe Mutombo Foundation, highlighted the E4J resources and added that through support from Qatar, a series of creative tools have been developed to promote education on crime prevention and criminal justice.
The Doha Declaration is a synopsis of the outcome of the 13th United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice held in Doha in April 2015, one of the largest programmes to be implemented bilaterally between the UN and one State.