This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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International Bar Association conference
24/05/2003
Lord Advocate Colin Boyd QC this weekend called for the
bureaucracy of international co-operation to be reduced to
help domestic courts prosecute terrorists and those who
commit other crimes against humanity.
Speaking at the 6th International Bar Association
conference in Brussels, Belgium, he said:
"The aim should be to reduce the formality and
bureaucracy that are associated with international treaties
and conventions that govern mutual legal assistance. They
should facilitate the investigation of major international
crime by allowing a more flexible approach.
WIdeally they should allow investigators of one country
access to another state for the purpose of interviewing
witnesses under appropriate supervision and subject to
safeguards."
His call for better support was part of his address to
the conference session examining the prosecution and
defence of international crime and recent innovations in
the investigation and trial of these cases.
The Lord Advocate also presented lessons that can be
drawn from the Lockerbie trial to benefit the international
community.
The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service is
increasingly involved in international work as crime is
committed across national borders. Recent terrorist
atrocities have highlighted the importance of ensuring that
the prosecution service can tackle international crime,
including terrorism, effectively.
The International Bar Association (IBA) comprises of
16,000 individual lawyers and 180 Bar Associations and Law
Societies. The IBA influences the development of
international law reform and helps shape the future of the
legal profession.
Its Member Organisations cover all continents and
include the American Bar Association, the German Federal
Bar, the Japan Federation of Bar Associations, the Law
Society of Zimbabwe and the Mexican Bar Association.