H.E. Sheikh Ali Bin Jassim Al-Thani, Ambassador of the State of Qatar to the Republic of Austria and Permanent Representative to the United Nations Organizations in Vienna, in his capacity as representative of the Doha Declaration Global Programme Committee, affirmed the commitment and efforts of the State of Qatar to support international cooperation in achieving peace, stability and prosperity for all humanity. Also, he stressed the importance of investing in education in combating extremism and terrorism, assisting countries in implementing strategies to prevent all forms of cross-border crime, and supporting the implementation of the transformative 2030 Agenda for sustainable development.
In a statement at the Consultative Meeting of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in Paris, H.E. the Ambassador highlighted that the Global Programme for the implementation of the Doha Declaration, including the “Education for Justice initiative”, is one of Qatar's outstanding efforts to combat crime, terrorism, extremism, corruption and crime, declaring that more than 120 countries have benefited from the activities of this programme so far.
H.E. stressed that the " Global Citizenship Education" initiative, which the UNESCO experts are currently considering in Paris, should be based on providing primary and secondary teachers with mechanisms to support the principles of human rights, democracy and the rule of law in all fields, in order to reach a culture of peace, tolerance and protection against extremism, violence and terrorism in full respect for cultural diversity.
H.E. Sheikh Ali Bin Jassim Al-Thani added that the State of Qatar has decided to build on the success of the 13th United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice held in Doha in 2015 by launching an ambitious program to make the Doha Declaration a reality and through cooperation with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime in Vienna.
The initiative was a precedent in the history of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). For the first time in 60 years, a political declaration devoted to fighting crime became the basis for the development of the programs in force, as well as the largest program supported by Member States, with a budget of over $ 49 million.
In his speech, the H.E. the Ambassador reviewed the outcomes of the 13th United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice held in Doha in 2015, which had been adopted unanimously, in particular with regard to the integration of crime prevention and social justice into the broader United Nations agenda to address social and economic challenges and to promote the rule of law.
In his statement, H.E. Sheikh Ali bin Jassim Al-Thani addressed the four pillars of the Universal Declaration of Implementation of the Doha Declaration, namely enhancing the rule of the law through educational activities to prevent crime and strengthening the judicial integrity through tackling corruption in public institutions. The framework will be launched by the United Nations next month in Vienna as "the integrity of the international judiciary".
The third pillar on the rehabilitation of prisoners was also addressed through the implementation of various constructive activities in prisons, including education, vocational training and programs of action, as well as the fourth pillar related to the issue of the investment in sports programmes in crime prevention through the promotion of positive youth practices.
The Director of the division for Inclusion, Peace Sustainable Development of UNESCO, Soo hyun Choi, praised the State of Qatar's contributions in supporting the projects and activities of the Organization and the progress achieved in the projects of the Global Programme for the Implementation of the Doha Declaration, which is funded by the State of Qatar, mostly in developing and least developed countries.