The Permanent Mission of Malta to the United Nations in Vienna participated in the 31^st session of the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (CCPCJ) of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), which was held between 16-20 May 2022. The theme of this year’s Commission focused on strengthening the use of digital evidence in criminal justice and countering cybercrime, including the abuse and exploitation of minors in illegal activities with the use of the Internet.

Permanent Representative of the Republic of Malta to the United Nations in Vienna, H.E. Ambassador Meli-Daudey delivered a national statement during the General Debate of the Conference. In her speech, H.E. the Ambassador welcomed the timely discussion about the development of use of digital evidence and highlighted Malta’s own initiatives to build the capacity of law enforcement and criminal justice actors to enhance the prevention, enforcement, and judicial prosecution of cyber-related crimes. The statement also strongly condemned Russia’s actions in Ukraine, underscoring the correlation of the rise between crimes including human trafficking and gender-related criminal activity in conflict scenarios such as Ukraine and Afghanistan. The conflict in Ukraine was raised in a number of interventions, as the international community underscored that it could not proceed with business as usual in the face of unjustified Russian military aggression against an independent and sovereign country.

The Commission successfully negotiated and adopted four resolutions by consensus. Malta joined its fellow EU member states in co-sponsoring three of these resolutions, which focused on (i) the International Crime Congress; (ii) rehabilitation and reintegration of offenders; and (iii) protecting children from sexual exploitation and abuse.  These agreed texts will assist the international community in consolidating efforts to prevent crime and strengthen criminal justice, in the face of the fast pace of criminal innovation. The Commission also featured thematic discussions on strengthening the use of digital evidence, which allowed for an intensive exchange of views and best practises, between the 130 participating countries.

In the margins of the CCPCJ, the Permanent Mission hosted a virtual side-event on 17 May 2022, entitled, “Combatting and Criminalizing Gender-Based Violence and Femicide”. The event generated significant interest amongst the international community in Vienna, and was co-sponsored by Argentina, Australia, Canada, Colombia, El Salvador, Italy, the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Norway, Paraguay, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, the United States of America and the UNODC Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Section and the UNODC Research and Trend Analysis Branch.

Introductory remarks were delivered by H.E. Ambassador Natasha Meli Daudey, who spoke about ongoing efforts to stem Gender-Based Violence and introduce Femicide into Malta’s Criminal Code, paying respect to Paulina Dembska’s memory, together with all victims of such heinous crimes. This was followed by a panel discussion featuring Lara Dimitrijevic, lawyer and women’s rights activist (Malta), Marie-Therese Prantner, Head of National Coordination Body on Violence Against Women, Head of Violence Prevention and Protection, Federal Chancellery of Austria (Austria), Gian Beeli, Head Domain Violence, Federal Office for Gender Equality, Federal Department of Home Affairs (Switzerland) and Kathleen Coogan, Senior Advisor for Criminal Justice Integration and Gender, U.S. Department of State, Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (USA) and was moderated by Angela Me, Chief of the UNODC Research and Trend Analysis Branch. The insightful panel discussion delved into the causes and consequences of Gender-Based Violence and Femicide, including entrenched and cross-cultural gender norms. The panel also elaborated on what should be done in order to address such crimes, underscoring the importance of legal definitions and data collection.