Viennese Journal 15.0: Introduction to the Crime Commission and Summary of the Day

April 22, 2013

Introduction to the United Nations Commission for Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (“Crime Commission”)

Approaching the entrance to the United Nations building in Vienna is awe inspiring. With the world flags circling the entrance, and the great fountain, I felt great respect, admiration, and hope for the people of the world who gather together to participate in this process of global governance and information sharing.  

This is the second year that I have attended the United Nations Commission for Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice.  Last year was a grand adventure to Vienna. Before then, I have never really traveled very much. It was my first time in Europe, and my first time on a subway. (I wrote about these adventures on a blog post called “Viennese Journal 1.0 through 11.0.” )

Once again, I have arrived in Vienna to attend the Crime Commission and I hope to find the time to report to you some of the important issues considered by people attending this international gathering.

What is the United Nations Commission for Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice?

             The United Nations was founded in 1945 as a deliberative world body to allow nations of the world to meet and discuss important issues affecting the world. Composed of 193 countries, the United Nations was organized to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relationship among countries, promote social progress, and increase basic human rights and living standards around the world.

 Within the United States are several organizations/bodies which work together for the common good of the world.

These include the General Assembly, the Security Council, the Secretariat, the International Court of Justice, the Trustee Council, and the Economic and Social Council. These bodies are composed of member states that send delegates to fulfill the various roles within the United Nations.

 

The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), established by the UN Charter, is the coordinates the economic, social and related work of the United Nations and the specialized agencies and institutions.  Voting in the Council is by simple majority; each member has one vote.  Some of the work of ECOSOC is conducted through Commissions were delegates from around the world meet to discuss best practices, and set international norms in governance by passing of resolutions. The standing functional commissions of ECOSOC are:

·        Statistical Commission

·        Commission on Population and Development

·        Commission for Social Development

·        Commission on the Status of Women

·        Commission on Narcotic Drugs

·        Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice

·        Commission on Science and Technology for Development

·        Commission on Sustainable Development

·        United Nations Forum on Forests

The Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (“Crime Commission”) meets in the United Nations building in Vienna, each year in April. (http://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/commissions/CCPCJ/session/22.html ) . Commission guides the activities of the United Nations in the field of crime prevention and criminal justice. It also reviews United Nations standards and norms in this area, including their use and application by Member States. It takes action through resolutions and decisions.

Every five years there is a “Crime Congress” in some part of the world, where the work of the Commission culminates in important actions and work of the Commission in intervening years. The United Nations congresses on crime prevention and criminal justice are one of the main periodic conferences of the United Nations and play a major role in international standard-setting and policy-making in crime prevention and criminal justice. The congresses bring together policy-makers and practitioners in the area of crime prevention and criminal justice, as well as parliamentarians, individual experts from academia, representatives from civil society and the media. (http://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/crime-congress/crime-congresses.html ) The work of the Commission can be viewed in preparation for these Congresses. The Congress and Crime Commission are supported and hosted by the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crimes (UNODC) which provides administrative, research, and technical support to the work of the Commission.  (http://www.unodc.org/unodc/index.html?ref=menutop ) UNODC publishes guides of best practice in a variety of criminal justice areas which are very helpful and informative (and free online: http://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/justice-and-prison-reform/tools.html?ref=menuside ).

 

 Introduction to the Friends World Committee for Consultation

 I am attending the Crime Commission as a representative for the Friends World Committee for Consultation (FWCC).  (http://www.fwccworld.org/ ) FWCC was set up at the 1937 Second World Conference of Friends in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, US, "to act in a consultative capacity to promote better understanding among Friends the world over, particularly by the encouragement of joint conferences and inter-visitation, the collection and circulation of information about Quaker literature and other activities directed towards that end."

 Since 1948, FWCC has had “consultative” status with the United Nations and is responsible for the two Quaker UN Offices in Geneva and New York. Under the auspices of the Friends World Committee for Consultation (FWCC), the Quaker United Nations Offices (QUNO) build contacts with government missions and UN staff, attend relevant UN meetings, collaborate with other non-governmental organizations, and makes oral and written presentations to UN meetings. (http://www.quno.org/ )

Quakers have been attending the Crime Commission since 1975 when Canadian Barrister Broughton started attending UN Congresses on the Prevention of Crime and Treatment of Offenders. In 1985, Nicholas McGeorge joined him at the Congress in Milan. Nick was the person who recruited me to join the team of people work at the Crime Commission.

Summary of the Day

            The day began with a meeting of the Non-Government Organizations (NGOs) as they discussed which “side events” they were hosting, and which administrative meetings of leadership should be attended.   “Side events” are educational opportunities for State delegates to learn about a topic in more depth, and occur in the morning and around lunch time.  FWCC is scheduled to present a side event on Thursday on the treatment of children of prisoners.

We were invited to draft and share a statement on environmental crime to the General meeting, called the “Plenary.” I offered to take a first shot at a draft and we met periodically throughout the day to make revisions.  Then the draft was circulated to various Quaker organizations around the world with an interest in our work.

I also attended a meeting on children coming into conflict with the law, a more elegant and thoughtful way of saying "juvenile justice. The presentation was called: Inculcating Justice in Succeeding Generations by Building a Culture of Lawfulness.

In the afternoon I attended a session on Environmental crimes.

I am planning to write separate blogs on specific issues to give them more attention and shorten the presentation.

After the sessions, Kerry and I moved our luggage for the third night in a row. We had difficulty in the first apartment (“flat”) where we stayed, some mold issues. The hotel down the street only had room for one night, and so we finally found a place for the week.  It was perfect for us. It is a working class neighborhood and our apartment is across the street from the playground. You can hear the sound of children practicing the piano in our apartment building, and I thought of our kids making noise all the time at home on their instruments. The only problem with our apartment was that it is on the fifth floor and there is no elevator; so, I hoisted all of our luggage up several flights of stairs.

In the evening we had dinner in a local family restaurant around the corner.

As I have time to reflect on this trip, I am deeply humbled and honored.  I never imagined that a country boy from Tennessee would have the opportunity to travel abroad in order to participate in an international body. I am particularly honored to try to represent the perspective of Quakers, with our long historical commitment to human rights and environmental care. When I see beautifully old buildings, or hear German all around me on the subway, I think that I may be in a dream.  I am so thankful to everyone who is supporting us with your thoughts, prayers, and help at home.